I know a lot of people were all pissed off that we traded Aldridge, but I trust Pax & Skiles and I think if you read this interview you may feel a little better about their decision...then again, I may be wrong haha. Enjoy!
June 28, 2006
Bulls EVP-Basketball Operations John Paxson and Head Coach Scott Skiles meet the media after Chicago acquires Tyrus Thomas, Thabo Sefolosha and Viktor Khryapa via draft night trades.
How did the trade for Tyrus Thomas come about?
Paxson: “Well, first of all, let me just speak to what we were able to accomplish tonight. When we went in to this offseason, we basically put a couple of things up on the board—areas we needed to address. We know we need to address size, but we felt equally that we had to address length and athleticism for our basketball team. We also thought we needed a bigger guard that could take some of the pressure off both Kirk and Ben. Today, we were still indecisive about which direction we really wanted to go [at the number two pick]. There were a couple of players at the top [we liked], but then Portland came into the picture with Viktor Khryapa, a guy we had our eye on a couple of years ago in the draft. He’s also 6-9, he’s long, and he will fit with what we do. So we come out of this draft with great length in both Tyrus Thomas and Khryapa, guys that are both versatile players. In our backcourt, Thabo Sefolosha is a guy who we really admired the way he played. He’s another long, defensive-type guy who offensively will complement Ben when Kirk is off the floor. All things considered, we couldn’t have come out of this any better. We got three players tonight that give us depth and the ability for Scott and his staff to play in different ways. Now, we can go out in the free agent market and explore ways to try and get some big guys. If we can do that, we’ll feel that we’ve really made a significant improvement in our basketball team.”
Have you improved your defense with the acquisition of these players?
Paxson: “I think we have bolstered our defense, but we also have become a versatile basketball team. Tyrus is a young guy who is going to get thrown into the fire right away with summer league. It’s a lot like drafting a high school player in some regards, even though he had a college year at LSU. We feel his potential is better than anyone else’s in this draft. We think that, given a couple years under our system and in our environment, this kid is going to blossom. We have high hopes for him, but we’re not going to put the type of pressure on him that comes from that. He’s a great kid and we’re going to roll with it.”
In the last few years you’ve talked about wanting guys who are going to come in and play the game the right way. What is it about these guys that you liked?
“If you’ve watched us play over the last three years, you know that Scott isn’t afraid to throw players in there. We feel like we’ve got such a good, young core of guys that can compete every night. With Kirk, Ben, Luol, Andrés and Tyson, we wanted to get the guys we liked the best out of this draft and we did that. That’s huge for our future. Moving forward, that’s a big thing. We’re looking down the road a little bit, too; but that’s a huge thing for us.”
Would you say that you’re better right now, or will that take some time?
“We’ve added three players that we really like. Two of them are going to be rookies and granted, they’re young, but we had two picks in this draft and we were going to come out with two young players anyway. I think that we have the potential as the year goes along to be better, plus we don’t know what we are going to be able to do starting July 1 with free agency and in terms of some other directions we might go. If we can address some of our size needs in that scenario, we’ll see. I have great confidence in Scott and his staff in terms of the development of young players in this system and in this program. I think we’ve demonstrated over the last few years that young guys can thrive in the way we play, and Scott’s not afraid to use them. It’s a chance for us to get better.”
What can you tell us about Thabo Sefolosha and his workout? How does he grab your attention?
Skiles: “He grabs your attention whenever you watch him play. In the workout, he was here with other players that day and he played very well. He’s very long, he’s versatile, he’s got big hands, he deflects balls, and he gets out in the open floor. As John said, he’s a guy we feel can play behind Kirk and Ben and come in with some size and guard some bigger people. He’ll also do some ballhandling and allow those guys to play off the ball.”
What do you anticipate happening with the upcoming free agency period?
Paxson: “We have nothing set in stone. But we have the ability with the financial flexibility we’ve created to go out and be aggressive and we will be. We’re going to go out and try to strike on some guys July 1 and try to upgrade our front line as best as we can. We have the potential to be a very deep team that is versatile. In today’s NBA, I think that plays well.”
How exactly do you plan on bring Tyrus Thomas along?
Paxson: “It’s very difficult to say. I think that what we’ll do from Day One is to ask just a couple things of Tyrus; to come in and play hard and use his activity and his athleticism to help our basketball team. He has an uncanny ability to block shots and his reactions and instincts defensively are excellent. But he’s still learning the game. He’s got a ways to go in that regard. We’re very confident that he’s going to come in and want to soak up what we have to offer him. It’s up to us to provide him with the right environment, and we will. Whenever these kids come through, we don’t mince words about what we’re about. This is about basketball for us and I think he’ll fit right in. Are there going to be bumps along the way? Absolutely, but I can remember Kirk Hinrich, who was a four-year player at Kansas, in the preseason having some struggles along the way. We expect that, but I think this kid brings energy and athleticism to our team. That’s something we’ve not had—he’s the best athlete that we’ve had for a long, long time.”
Despite being relatively young and inexperienced as a team, do you feel you’re in a better position now to bring in a couple players as compared to a few years ago?
Paxson: “I think so. I think we’re in good shape to do that. We’d like to add some veterans with leadership abilities to this mix.”
When did the deals you made tonight come together?
Paxson: “It really all kind of flew today. You do a lot of talking and everything, but they really kind of came down today and Jerry Reinsdorf really stepped up again for us when we wanted to be aggressive and get a guy we wanted. That helped out—it allowed us to get two players in this draft that we really covet.”
Coach Skiles, what is your take on Tyrus Thomas and his development?
Skiles: “I agree with everything John said. We’ve got to get him in here and see. We’re very high on him and I’m very high on him because I know that he works and he’s got the tremendous length and athleticism. For Tyrus right out of the gate, he’s just got to keep it simple and be active. You’ve all seen us play—we like to be active out there and that’s really what all three of these guys are about. But he’s a cut-above athletically, even in the NBA. We’ll see how he looks in rookie league and take it step-by-step. He’s a worker, so I wouldn’t put any limitations on him and at the same time, I’m going to try and have some patience with him, too.”
Who would you compare Thomas’ game to?
Paxson: “It’s hard to say right now because his game is developing. We think that he has an ability to play on the perimeter that he didn’t get to show much at LSU. He was a four man there and they played a high-low offense. He really doesn’t have a defined position right now, but that’s OK. We’ll be able to play a lot of different ways and use his athleticism. Again, length can be as important as size in this league. With his long arms and his ability to jump and his timing, he’s going to be OK. I can’t determine how long that process is going to be, but like I said, we got the top talent in this draft. He’s still learning the game and we’ll bring him along patiently. We don’t know what we’ll have a few years down the road, but we think we’re going to have something really good.”
How do you see Thabo developing?
Paxson: “Thabo is 22 and he’s come up through the system the right way. He’s earned things that he’s had to earn and he’s gotten better and better. That’s what really came across in our scouting—that he’s improved and he’s gotten better and has a confidence level. He’ll fit in here. He loves basketball.”
When did you fist see Sefolosha play?
Paxson: “I first saw Thabo this year when we went over to Italy. I saw him in a gym where I had to keep my coat on and wear my gloves—it was like 30 degrees and really cold like a lot of those places over there are. He’s a versatile kid and he’s just scratching the surface with the type of player that he can be. I think he’s going to bring a lot to the table.”
Was there anything to the rumors that the Bulls were in talks about a blockbuster trade with Minnesota for Kevin Garnett?
Paxson: “Never had that conversation. I think everybody in the league made a phone call to [Timberwolves GM] Kevin McHale and asked him if Kevin Garnett was available. But never have we discussed anything in terms of names, draft picks, or anything for Kevin Garnett. He would not do it, and I don’t blame him.”
Does Thabo remind you of any particular player?
Skiles: “When we first saw him, Doug Christie came to mind a little bit with his hands and length and the way that he plays.”
With free agency, will you be hitting the ground running on July 1?
Paxson: “We plan on it. We’ll make some financial offers to some people. It’s a part of the process. We’re going to get after it. We think we’re an attractive place to play for people, we really do. We’ve got history, a terrific young team with guys that compete, and I think we’re an attractive place for people.”
What else can you say about the acquisition of Khryapa?
Skiles: “We like Viktor. We’ve liked him since he came out [for the draft]. We feel he’s been under-utilized; he started over 50 games this year and played well as a starter. Like John said, if you haven’t seen him, he’s another extremely long player who is athletic and can do some things with the basketball. He can put it on the floor and he can make an open shot. He brings depth, and that was an appealing part of why we acquired him.”
Paxson: “He’s also a good runner. We really like him. He can run and we think he can defend multiple positions. We think there will be times when he can guard some twos. He’s a big kid, and the word length comes in to play again. It gives Scott and his staff a variety of ways to approach certain players in the game. We’re talking about some of the great players at the wing position—we think as time goes on, we’ll have some people that we can throw out there and not be so overmatched in terms of size. You can say that maybe Viktor hasn’t made an impact, but he’s the type of player that we like.”
Is he going to be your LeBron stopper?
Paxson: “No, no, no… no one stops LeBron. But there are threes, some bigger twos and athletic fours that we need to match up against. He’ll be a versatile role player for us. The guy can play.”
Concerning the trade with Philadelphia, were you concerned that Utah might take Thabo?
Paxson: “We just wanted to do whatever it took. We actually thought that Thabo might go a little earlier to be honest with you. We were concerned that there were some teams in that 9, 10, 11 and 12 range that were going to take him. We started calling to see what we might be able to do and like I said, Jerry stepped up with some cash that helped us. It allowed us to get a player that we really like.”