Hey Bulls fans, this is one of my first posts on this board and I was wondering if you think Loul Deng could move to PF next year? His numbers are exactly what you want from a Power Forward. Right Now hes averaging 14 ppg and 7 rbpg but suddenly since the Allstar Break he's averaging 16 ppg 10 rbpg. I think if he adds alota muscle next year in the offseason I think we could move him to that spot and put up some good numbers each night. He would create matchup problems for the ones gaurding him. What do you guys think?

He isn't big enough to defend real PFs. He is very athletic and long, but guys like Randolph would just abuse him in the post.

Exactly, he wouldn't be able to guard a true back-to-the-basket 4.

ya I can see where your coming from but, like I said, say he adds 20 pounds of muscle to him like Okafur did this year. Deng wasnt able to lift weights this year because of his wrist and therefore he is behind strengthwise. He has Extremly long arms. But If Skiles can teach him how to post up and defend the post I dont see a Problem next year. thats only IF he puts on some weight. Plus he did it with Duke in College.

I don't see Deng having that kind of a build. He is too lean and long to really play that position at only 6'9". A Nowitski or Garnett can get away with being more finesse at their size, but Deng just can't get away with that.

Personally I see Luol emerging as the Bulls 20 PPG scorer, and as a stat sheet filler as a guy who pulls down 7 rebounds, hands out 5 assists, and picks up some steals and blocks while he is at it. I think he will be a very good 3 in the NBA.

Ya I think next year he can avg 20ppg and 10 rbpg He is very Capable of that.

In no way, shape, or form is Deng a PF, he is too athletic and his J is really coming around to even ponder this move. Him guarding other SF's and premier SG's is a huge advantage for us, and his size at SF will make him hard to stop if he keeps producing and maturing like he has.

Right now, Deng can't even hang with a hefty percentage of the NBA's SFs on the defensive end, let alone your prototypical PFs. He'll stick you man to man, but you can back him in & get a much, much higher percentage shot than you would have against an SF with ordinary strength. I watched Jalen Rose physically abuse him, and Jalen ain't exactly one of the strongest SFs in the NBA. Artest physically destroyed him. There are just way too many guys who can take advantage of him right now. He definitely needs to add some muscle, although he doesn't quite have the frame to add a significant amount of bulk.

On the other hand, Deng plays awesome help defense, particularly when he's chasing down a player from behind. There are times when he sort of reminds me of a poor man's Tayshaun Prince (albeit strictly in that regard). It's a combination of height/athleticism/wingspan/determination. But much like Tayshaun, he won't ever be considered a "strong" SF. If you put him in the PF slot, he'll get abused to no end, not to mention injured. He also doesn't quite have the foot speed to hang with prototypical SGs. He's an SF through and through.

And look what happened to Okafor... he messed up his ankle...

I don't like screwing around with a guys natural weight to much. Its a recipe for an injury.

I don't think Deng would ever be strong enough to guard Pf's. He could create a nightmare for them on the offensive side of the court (by making them come out to the perimeter). However I think he's best suited by getting stronger, continuing to improve his jump shot and turning into an all around better player.

He's already solid defensively, but one of his biggest weakness is that stronger 3's can back him into the post and get good shots. Plus Deng is too good of an athlete to have playing a lot on offense with his back to the basket.

Deng will be a special player for this team. Hinrich will be a good player. The question is who can come in and be that good to great player down low, while Chandler develops into the great defensive player.

That will be the key for the Bulls. Of course adding a good 2 will make things better (especially because it means Mr. No Defense - Ben Gordon stays off the court).

I don't think he'll grab that many boards, especially since he's surrounded by a couple very good rebounders (Chandler; Plus Hinrich is one of the best rebounding guards in the league, imo). However with time he could very well be that 20/7/5 type of guy who will play very good defense as well.

He still has some strides to make though, before he reaches that level. The best part is he's still super young. Him and James were the #1-2 prep players (same age too I think).

I'd rather see him be able to play some 2.

LOL, awesome avatar.

Yep, he did go senile in the end, but never forget those championship squads that he put together.

I could definately see Deng being a better 2 than 4. He has excellent first step quickness, but he would definately have to work on his deep shot. Deng has an excellent mid range game on in, but from about the NCAA 3 point line out, he struggles. He, Du, and Kirk need to all get some mean games of horse together this summer and work on those shots. Painfully, the biggest difference between us and the Bucks last night is if they were open, they were going in from deep. For us, some nights they will, some nights they won't.

He would need to gain 30 lbs of muscle to play PF...

I wish Nocioni was 3 inches taller...he would be a perfect pf

He'd be Al Harrington at PF. No need to move him.

I can't believe that Deng is averaging 10 rebounds per game since the All Star Break.

On the season, there are only 11 guys in the entire NBA who are averaging 10+ rebounds per game:

K. Garnett 12.4
S. Marion 12.3
D. Howard 12.2
M. Camby 12.0
B. Wallace 12.0
T. Duncan 11.2
J. Magloire 10.1
Y. Ming 10.1
E. Okafor 10.0
C. Webber 10.0
E. Brand 10.0

But he doesn't have the frame to put on much muscle.

i anything he will go up to play a guard spot on the court because he is very athletic or he will stay at SF

SF is definatly the best spot for Deng

only if he adds more muscle and works on his post game. Otherwise keep him at SF