Paxson's blind spot sizable one

John Paxson has a big problem.

The Bulls' general manager has joined the list of Chicago sports general managers with a visible blind spot.

Each is generally proficient at what he does and has managed to build a playoff contender.

Yet each has that one question to which he can't find an answer that would lead to a world championship.

For the Bears' Jerry Angelo it's the quarterback position. For the Cubs' Jim Hendry it's the bullpen, which improved this year until a Carlos Marmol home run pitch led to a playoff exit.

For John Paxson … well, that's the topic of the day as his team prepares to take a 1-5 record on a six-game road trip.

Earlier this week Paxson invited criticism by saying, "There's no sense in pointing fingers at anybody. Point them at me. I'm the one who put the group together."

OK, scrutiny wish granted: Paxson hasn't been able to provide the Bulls with big men good enough to win an NBA title.

All the Bulls' best players during Paxson's regime -- Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, Andres Nocioni -- have played on the outside looking in.

And no one of consequence has looked back at them.

It's a big problem.

Even when Paxson does what seems to be the right thing -- like signing center Ben Wallace away from the rival Pistons -- it turns out wrong.

Then again, not all the moves have looked right even at the time. Not surprisingly, some of those have come back to stunt the Bulls' growth.

Like, Paxson made room for alleged defensive force Wallace by dispatching Tyson Chandler to the New Orleans Hornets.

Compare the two today: the 6-foot-7½ Wallace is bust-like, scoring 3½ points per game, shooting 32 percent and averaging 5 rebounds; meanwhile, the 7-foot Chandler is boom-like, scoring 10 points per game, averaging 11 rebounds and shooting 55 percent.

If the Bulls are going to have a small center like Wallace, the obvious thing to do is combine him with a long, tall forward like Detroit did in Rasheed Wallace.

Paxson had an opportunity to do that when 6-10 LaMarcus Aldridge (19 points per game with Portland now) was available in the 2006 draft. Instead Aldridge's rights were traded for Tyrus Thomas, who is somewhere in the 6-7 range and averaging 9 points for the Bulls.

Yes, Thomas still might turn out to be an all-star. Of course, he instead might be a power forward without the size for that position or a small forward without the skills for that position.

Maybe 6-11 Joakim Noah, drafted at No. 9 overall in June, will contribute inside. But so far he has played in three games, missed all 7 of his shots and is experiencing growing pains.

Paxson can be excused for losing 6-10 center Eddy Curry (19-point average for the Knicks), who had a heart ailment, is an ordinary defender and doesn't rebound.

But couldn't the Bulls match up with Minnesota to acquire 6-11 Kevin Garnett?

Anyway, the Bulls appear to be in big trouble now as the East looks better and they don't.

The only way the Bulls can grow significantly by next spring's playoffs is for Thomas and Noah to be more than they look capable of being.

Blind spots sure tend to blur a team's championship vision, don't they?