Now, can Bulls find a taker for Hinrich?

OK, no surprise.

Not that you really expected one.

While several teams talked about truly huge deals for big men, the Bulls have gone small and taken a true floor general in Derrick Rose - a good, safe selection to be sure.

But the Bulls are going to have to get points and the man best suited to getting those buckets, besides Rose, is the one many people have on his way out of town.

If nothing else, Scott Skiles was effective during his time here in turning fans and media against Ben Gordon.

But trading Gordon now after drafting Rose is the opposite of what GM John Paxson should be thinking.

After all, lacking a low-post presence, Gordon is only legitimate offensive counterpart to Rose, who's going to create plenty of nice looks for Gordon, the only Bull over the last few years capable of consistently finding his own.

With Rose - in stark contrast to playing next to Kirk Hinrich - Gordon won't find himself taking terrible 3s from five feet behind the line with the shot clock expiring, after Hinrich has dribbled himself dizzy.

Gordon ought to average 25 a game with Rose penetrating and kicking the ball around for open shots, which will feel like free throws to Gordon after the horrible shots he's been asked to take the last few years.

Yes, there's a worry that Gordon will play out his deal and leave, but you've got to think that he'll enjoy playing with Rose, and that the opportunity to fire at will is going to have a say in where Gordon wants to spend the next four or five years.

Rose will make the game fun again for Gordon and Luol Deng, and, heck, even Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah might find themselves all alone for dunks, providing they're paying attention and can catch a pass.

This is going to be a far cry from the days of Hinrich dribbling through the lane a couple times, holding the ball, and then giving his receiver no chance to make a shot.

Let's not put this all on Hinrich, who was running the offense the way he was told to, but he looks and sounds like a player who needs a change of scenery.

He's essentially a tweener in the NBA, neither point guard nor off-guard, and not nearly the defensive whiz the Bulls tried to insist he was under Skiles, who promoted him as the franchise superstar and the next Steve Nash.

That was too much for him to handle, and an unfair burden.

But one thing Hinrich could do - at least when he was at Kansas - was shoot, and given the right opportunity, and a better situation, Hinrich could easily go back to being a gunner again.

It just doesn't seem like that's going to happen here, and dealing Captain Kirk, if you can find a taker, makes more sense than moving Gordon at this time.

In fact, if there were any way to move Hinrich and Larry Hughes, Paxson would become a genius again in the eyes of Bulls fans, especially if he could find any sort of low-post presence in return for either one or both.

If it takes dumping Drew Gooden as well, all the better for the Bulls, who still need someone with an NBA post move before they can think about contending for anything.

Had Skiles bothered to teach Deng to work in the post, the Bulls might have a decent option there already, and while Deng's obviously not a power forward and that need still exists, any post options are better than no post options.

Deng, meanwhile, will also have a chance with Rose aboard to get his career back on track. Only 15 months ago, it looked like Deng was coming into his own and finding that mid-range jump shot. If he can locate that again, it's yet another opportunity for Rose to pile up assists.

So, yes, the Bulls passed on an opportunity to reload Thursday, instead taking the very safe and slow rebuilding route, they at least found one major piece of the puzzle with their improbable lottery win.

The Rose Parade has begun, and the campaign for Rookie of the Year is well underway, though it's worth keeping in mind that top five picks don't always wind up being the best players in the draft.

It's also worth remembering that the players rated high in January, who are overlooked amid the hype for others in the NCAA Tourney, often reappear as NBA stars.

Rose was both, so he should be fine, but he is only one piece of the puzzle, and, no, the pieces are not in place.

It's up to Paxson to find them.

brozner@dailyherald.com