Trading Derrick Rose or Jimmy Butler should be Bulls' offseason priority
The Bulls can talk about finding value in any draft. They can have a strong plan to spend their roughly $23 million of salary-cap space in free agency. Management can support coach Fred Hoiberg and express belief in his potential for growth in his second season.
But, really, one of two things has to happen for this offseason to be successful: The Bulls have to trade Jimmy Butler or Derrick Rose or figure out a way to unlock the potential of their powerful partnership.
Trading one won't be easy, either to execute or to reconcile internally. It would run counter to the conservative nature of this management team. But it's the better route.
For myriad reasons, a smooth partnership between the two has become untenable. It's less somebody's fault than a situation where each player believes he's the No. 1 option, a classic case of will and skill colliding.
It's less about who's the better player and more about who's the better fit.
Neither possesses knockdown 3-point shooting ability to play well off one another. Both prefer to have the ball. Butler has added a screen-and-roll element to his game that nobody envisioned when he first came into the league.
This has little to do with whether Rose and Butler like each other or get along. Simply put, they didn't consistently play well together last season, getting outscored by 3.5 points per 100 possessions. If left unaddressed, their uneasy alliance will continue to have a negative effect on the locker room.