Chicago Bulls: Will Rookies Contribute In 2014-15?

Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau does not have a history of giving rookies significant playing time. One example that supports this assertion is Jimmy Butler. Butler played just 8.5 minutes during his 2011-2012 rookie season and he averaged just 2.5 points per contest.

Marquis Teague, the team’s first-round pick out of Kentucky in 2012, played just 8.2 minutes per contest and was eventually traded to the Brooklyn Nets in early 2014. Erik Murphy, the Bulls’ second-round draft pick in 2013, who was expected to contribute at the power forward spot following a successful senior season at the University of Florida (12.2 points, 5.5 rebounds), averaged just 2.6 minutes per outing. And despite his respectable shooting percentages (52 percent overall, 45 percent from distance), Murphy was never able to break into Thibodeau’s rotation, playing in just 24 games. And as a result, he was traded in the middle of the season.

Now, the question is will Thibodeau give this rookie class an opportunity to shine? To answer that, let’s take a look at what each player has to offer.

Doug McDermott

The Bulls scouted McDermott for the past two seasons. And when the opportunity presented itself to acquire him in the draft, they didn’t hesitate to give up a pair of first-round picks to grab him at the No. 11 spot, via a trade with the Denver Nuggets.

Giving up two picks for an unproven rookie seems like a lot on paper, right? Well, here a just a few reasons why the Bulls were willing to invest in McDermott:

• Led the nation in scoring with 26.7 points per contest to go along with 7.4 rebounds.
• A 20-point-per-game scorer in three of his four seasons at Creighton.
• Consensus national player of the year in 2014.
• One of just three players that recorded over 3,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in NCAA history.
• Accumulated 3,150 points, making him the fifth-highest scorer in Division I history.

Those are pretty impressive stats to say the least. But wait, there’s more to the story.

McDermott also shot an efficient 52 percent from the field overall, including 45 percent from distance. In addition to that, McDermott also converted 51 percent of his three-point attempts in transition and recorded a ridiculous 1.95 points per possession in uncontested catch-and-shoot situations, per Luke Winn of SI.com.

In other words, if you leave this guy open, he is going to make you pay.

And for those of you who think that McDermott is just a great shooter, then you would be wrong. McDermott can also score in the paint as well. In fact, he scored nearly 25 percent of his points in the low post.

While McDermott has not developed into a great defender as of yet, he has earned the respect of Tom Thibodeau, as ESPN’s Jon Greenberg reports:

"If you’re just viewing him strictly as a shooter, you’re not casting him in the proper light. Because he’s a lot more than that. We think he’s a complete player. We think he’s capable of playing very good defense."

Based on that assessment, McDermott should be able to earn a spot in the rotation, especially since the Bulls are not very deep at the small forward position.

Nikola Mirotic

The Bulls selected Mirotic in the 2011 draft and the European star has spent the last three seasons playing for Real Madrid. During the 2013-14 season Mirotic’s averages included 12 points and five boards per contest. It is also worth mentioning that he shot 51 percent from the field, including 41 percent from three-point range.

And similar to McDermott, Mirotic is a player who is capable of playing effectively on the perimeter and around the rim as well. Although Mirotic’s numbers are respectable, we should remember that the last guy that was expected to play the coveted stretch-4 position is no longer in a Bulls uniform.

Furthermore, the chances of Mirotic seeing significant playing time can be considered slim because he is third on the depth chart behind Paul Gasol and Taj Gibson, both of whom will be playing a ton of minutes at the power forward spot. However, if injuries play a part in the equation, Mirotic could see extended action at some point, as was the case with Jimmy Butler during the 2012-13 season.

 Cameron Bairstow

With all the talk of the other players the Bulls have added to the roster during the offseason, Bairstow, the team’s second-round pick, has kind of flown under the radar as the saying goes. While the selection may have come as a surprise to some fans, Bairstow is a player the Bulls had kept a watchful eye on while they were scouting Tony Snell back in 2013.

During the first three seasons of his collegiate career at New Mexico, Bairstow was pretty much a non factor to put it mildly. In fact, his averages included 5.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per contest. Needless to say, those are not the kind of numbers that scream out draft pick.

But in his senior year, Bairstow became more than just a role player, increasing his averages to 20.4 points and 7.4 rebound per contest. Bairstow was also the leading scorer in the Mountain West Conference.

Aside from his increased production, another reason why the Bulls took an interest in Bairstow is his ability to score from different areas on the floor, as reported by Draft Express:

"Cameron Bairstow was one of the most diverse offensive players in the country, and his 18.4 possessions used per game were tops in this group. With 28% of his offense coming from post-ups on 1.08 points per possession, as well as 29.4% of his offense coming from jump shots at an incredible 1.04 points per possession, few had the inside-outside game that Bairstow flashed."

Like his other rookie teammates, Bairstow brings a versatile game to the mix, which is a huge positive for the Bulls as they look to complement the starting five with a deep, talented bench. Whether or not either of the rookies will make an immediate impact cannot be accurately predicted as this point.

What is a certainty is this group brings as much talent to the table as any of the players the Bulls have drafted the past few seasons. That being said, there is no reason to believe they cannot produce should Thibodeau call their number at some point during the season.

James Tillman is a Staff Writer for HoopsHabit.com and a sports contributor for Football Nation and Sports Kings/Pass The Pill. James is also a former Featured Sports Contributor for Yahoo! Contributor Network. Follow him on Twitter @JTILLMAN9693.