Imrem: D-Rose, Anthony Davis & Jabari Parker. Why not?
A Bulls fan's hoop dream might be that there is a hoop dream team out there waiting patiently to happen.
How does a combination of Derrick Rose, Anthony Davis and Jabari Parker sound to you?
A couple of the hang-ups are that Rose will have to do some serious recruiting, which he has been reluctant to do, and the basketball triplets can't come together for a while anyway because of contractual obligations under NBA rules.
Some day, though, why not?
For now all a local basketball fan can do is be happy that Rose's knees have held up well while practicing and playing with USA Basketball the past couple of weeks.
The Bulls might even get a dozen games out of Rose this season instead of last season's 10.
With Rose, the Bulls are considered contenders for the NBA East title along with the Cavaliers.
It'll be a clash of cultures: the Bulls' depth against the Cavs' stars, though Cleveland's blueprint is the one that has worked for decades in this league.
The Bulls would have gone that route, but Carmelo Anthony stayed in New York and Kevin Love was traded to the Cavaliers.
So Cleveland has the heralded triplets this time: Love, Kyrie Irving and, of course, superstar of superstars LeBron James.
The enduring formula is to get three great players and build around them as opposed to one like Rose, a near-great in Joakim Noah, an aging former great in Pau Gasol, a good one in Taj Gibson, a promising rookie in Doug McDermott and a collection of role players.
The problem is that the Bulls have failed repeatedly to attract all-stars to Chicago.
The pattern in the NBA, where players rule, is that three friends team up on one team to dominate or for a great player to go home to play,
James is in the middle of both those dynamics. First he teamed with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh to win two titles in Miami and then he retuned to Northeast Ohio to go for a couple more with Irving and Love in Cleveland.
The Bulls can benefit from both the tendency toward friendly forging and hometown heroes.
First there's Rose, who has to stay healthy for any of this to matter, and that's always a precarious proposition.
Second, there's Chicago native Anthony Davis, who was obscured Saturday night by Rose's return to the United Center court. In a victory over Brazil, Davis, currently property of the New Orleans Pelicans, was spectacular while scoring 20 points.
So, how about Davis joining Rose on the Bulls once he's eligible for free agency?
Third, there's Jabari Parker, who this season will begin his NBA career with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Parker not only is a Chicago native but he followed Rose as Simeon Career Academy's next great player.
So, how about Parker joining Rose and Davis with the Bulls?
Davis might have gone to Kentucky and Parker to Duke wondering what it would be like to play with Rose in the NBA.
Maybe they still do … and wouldn't that be Chicago's next hoop dream?
You know, Rose snaps his fingers and Davis and Parker come running home when eligible.
By that time, Rose should have second and third MVP awards already and be at an age where he'd like more help to win an NBA title.
So imagine Derrick Rose still at point guard, Anthony Davis at power forward, Jabari Parker at small forward, Joakim Noah at center if he can still walk and anyone else who ever could walk at shooting guard.
Why should everyone else benefit from players teaming up and/or going home?
At some point it has to be time again for Chicago's hoop dreams to come true.
mimrem@dailyherald.com