East offseason rating - Chicago Bulls

Group II: The Tasty Hors D'oeuvres

Scrumptious in small doses, these clubs are hoping to steal your attention from the centerpiece, and at times it seems they might succeed. But each lacks a key ingredient to keep it on our plate 'til June.

Chicago: Postseason darlings after taking Boston to seven thrilling games in the first round, Chicago lost a big chunk of its offensive firepower when Ben Gordon bolted for Detroit. But with the trio of Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng and John Salmons likely to be healthier than they were last season, Gordon might not be missed.

The other big factor in Chicago's favor is the likely improvement of young players like Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas. That's not a "nice to have," though; it's imperative. The kids have to get better, because the Bulls didn't sign any players as they gear up for a free-agent run next summer. In fact, it's possible they'll trade Thomas or Hinrich to have more cap space left over.

Piston Boris wrote:Salmons should be able to fill in some of the scoring void created by Gordon's departure.

Do you know how much Rose has been working on his jumpshot and what areas of Noah's and Thomas' games will improve?

"In the practices and the scrimmages, he was excellent, just did a real nice job running the team," Forman said. "He was playmaking for others, penetrating and finding guys. He made some plays for himself but was very unselfish. He really looked like he belonged. He was vocal getting his team into offense and looked very, very confident."

"His shooting was really good," Forman said. "He didn't shoot it much in the game. In the practices and scrimmages, he shot it well. They went through some drillwork and I don't remember him missing but one or two shots. His shot looks improved."