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Doug McDermott: Why Chicago Bulls SF Should Be In Starting Lineup

By James D. Tillman III

Mar 11, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Doug McDermott (3) in his warm up jacket before a game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. The Bulls won 104-95. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 11, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Doug McDermott (3) in his warm up jacket before a game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. The Bulls won 104-95. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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Doug McDermott has played well during the preseason. But does he deserve consideration at the starting SF spot while Mike Dunleavy is on the shelf?

Chicago Bulls second-year forward Doug McDermott is coming off a rookie season that he would like to forget. During the 2014-15 campaign, he averaged just 3.0 points and 1.2 rebounds per contest.

Along with that, McDermott connected on just 40 percent of his attempts overall, including a rather forgettable 31.7 percent from distance. This was a significant drop off for the player who concluded his collegiate career shooting 52 percent from the floor and 45 percent from distance.

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And although it would have been easy for him to lose confidence after just 36 appearances and playing sparingly upon returning from a knee injury that sidelined him for six weeks, McDermott has bounced back quite nicely to say the least. First, he began the offseason by working out with Most Improved Player Jimmy Butler.

Then, McDermott played well during Summer League for the second consecutive year. In five games, McDermott’s averages included 18.8 points and 4.4 boards per contest while shooting a respectable 48 percent from the field. And for those of you who may scoff at those numbers because of the level of competition, McDermott’s solid play has continued into the preseason.

Although Tony Snell has been given the starting small forward spot in light of Mike Dunleavy’s back injury, it is McDermott who has played extremely well when his number has been called. And through the first four preseason games, McDermott is averaging 17.8 points, 4.8 rebounds per outing, and he has scored at least 15 points in every contest thus far.

Even more important, McDermott is playing with a lot more confidence than what we saw a year ago, as his 45 percent conversion rate from distance illustrates. And he looks more comfortable on the defensive end of the floor as well.

Meanwhile, Tony Snell isn’t exactly playing terribly, as he is averaging 8.8 points and 4.0 rebounds per contest. However, he is not shooting the ball particularly well, converting just 34 percent of his attempts overall, including an abysmal 25 percent from three-point range.

But despite the fact that McDermott has thoroughly outplayed his counterpart to this point, first-year coach Fred Hoiberg seems to think that the team benefits more with McDermott coming off the bench compared to being a starter, as Chicago Sun-Times’ Joe Cowley explains:

"“I like the rhythm right now that Doug’s had coming off the bench. Again, we have five more opportunities to evaluate that, and again, early on in the beginning of the season we’ll see what lineup fits best.“Again, it doesn’t matter to me who starts the game. I want to see the guys that go out and deserve to be out there at the end of the game when you’re trying to win, and who is going to make the clutch plays. Doug’s been awesome, he’s been great.’’"

So even though McDermott is playing well enough to warrant consideration as a starter, for the time being, he may continue to serve as Snell’s backup for the foreseeable future. But being that Hoiberg’s offense is predicated on pace and knocking down shots from distance at an efficient clip; McDermott deserves the nod because he has clearly been the better player so far.

Next: Chicago Bulls: Takeaways From Preseason Opener

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