Dunn says he's happy to be back with Bulls, plans to fit in
The biggest surprise of the Bulls' offseason is probably that Kris Dunn is still here.
Maybe the Bulls tried to find Dunn a new home and failed. With just one more year left on his rookie contract, the Bulls aren't ready to just let go of a guy who was the No. 5 pick in the 2016 draft.
They did bring in some competition at the point guard spot, signing free agent Tomas Satoransky, drafting Coby White and bringing back Ryan Arcidiacono.
"They told me in the exit meetings those things were going to happen," Dunn said. "It's part of the business. You can't be a professional if you can't take on those kinds of things."
The biggest issue with Dunn is his background as a scoring-minded point guard. The Bulls want to use multiple ballhandlers and Dunn's lack of outside shooting made him a poor fit for that style. Dunn was the catalyst of the most successful stretch of the rebuilding era, when the Bulls went 14-7 over a five-week stretch two years ago.
"I learned, just do a little bit of everything," he said. "I know I can be a great defensive piece for this team. Score the ball at times, get people involved, rebound. Do a little bit of everything. I bring a lot to the team. Coach is going to use me where he needs me.
"I always wanted to be in a Bulls uniform. As long as I'm here, I'm going to work my butt off and try to be the best teammate I can be. Try to help this team win games, that's the biggest thing."
Young ready to build:
Thaddeus Young is 31 years old and has been past the first round of the playoffs just once in his 12 NBA seasons.
For many players, that's point in their career when they start shopping for a superteam. Maybe Houston or the Lakers or the Clippers needs a role player to help them reach the NBA Finals.
But Young chose more of a big-brother role with the rebuilding Bulls. He's hoping to recreate the surprising success he experienced in Indiana the past three years.
"At the end of the day for me, I think it was more about need than anything," Young said Monday. "I felt like this team needed me. I felt like this team would give me a chance to come and help lead, help build something, help grow something, and build some culture which is what we did in Indiana.
"That was one of the biggest things (in Indiana), the brotherhood, the culture was there. It starts in (the locker room), building that camaraderie, building that brotherhood with one another and then it translates to the court. We have to be unified at all costs and that's the only way we're going to win games is being unified."
Sato passes on position battle:
Newcomer Tomas Satoransky is probably the most likely candidate to start at point guard, but he disagreed with the idea that he's competing against Kris Dunn for the job.
"I don't expect it to be a rivalry between us," he said. "I don't even know if I'm going to play against him a lot at the point guard position. I think it's about getting better and getting the best out of us, not only Kris and me but also Coby (White) and Arch (Ryan Arcidiacono).
"I think as far as I'm concerned, it's about helping the team in whatever position coach wants me to play. I think we have a lot of playmakers on the team and that's the most important in nowadays basketball."
Injury update:
Center Luke Kornet will miss the first few days of practice due to turf toe, according to VP of basketball operations John Paxson. Second-year forward Chandler Hutchison is expected to need a couple more weeks to recover from a hamstring injury suffered during preseason workouts.
Center Wendell Carter said he's feeling 100 percent after having surgery to repair a core muscle in July. Tomas Satoransky doesn't think he'll need to pace himself after playing for the Czech Republic at the FIBA World Cup in China last month. Denzel Valentine is full speed after missing last season while recovering from ankle surgery.