I must say, in the opener Joe Smith looked quite good. The guy can definitely make some moves down low, but I was also very surprised with the range he has. I think he could be a huge reason why this team goes further or stays level in the Eastern Conference.

Thank God tonight is a home game and is in HD, I can't freakin' wait.

The reason Joe Smith will be a great pick up this year for the Bulls is because of that jumper. He can turn and face off of the high pick and roll drop-pass, plus he has the hands to make a post entry pass out of the same spot. He also draws an interior defender out, because they know they can't leave him alone ala Wallace, Thomas, Gray, and Noah.

Smith really is a key part to this team, and it's always nice to have another vet on the front line with playoff experience. The real key is going to be developing a comfort level for all of these guys with a rotation and with each person's abilities. Smith gives us a scoring dimension in the front court that we didn't really have last year, and hopefully it can both help open up the floor and make the other 3 guys more effective.

I can't wait to see how this team gels.

There are more weapons on this team than last year--and everyone's got one more year of experience (except the rookies, though Noah may be able to contribute something with any luck) and the addition of Joe Smith to draw out bigs from the paint may weaken this team's traditional Kryptonite, that damn 2-3 zone.