Why Bulls' Hutchison finally feels healthy
During two injury-filled seasons with the Bulls, forward Chandler Hutchison showed he has the tools to play in the NBA.
Staying on the court has been an issue, though, along with fitting into the system. But the first problem generally leads to the second.
After playing in just 28 games last season, Hutchison had shoulder surgery in the spring and he's happy with the results.
"It's been long, a lot of time to get that shoulder right," Hutchison said Wednesday. "It's been great. I haven't had any lingering issues with that. I feel as close to 100 percent as I've felt since I've been a Bull, which is exciting for me."
A couple weeks ago, the Bulls chose small forward Patrick Williams with the No. 4 pick of the draft. But Hutchison said he's not worrying about whether or not the team still has faith in him.
"I've never been one to look at things like that," Hutchison said. "I put myself in control of my success. If it's Kevin Durant in front of me, it's not going to change my mindset. I'm still looking at coming into camp with a clean slate, new coaches and an opportunity and a chip on my shoulder to establish myself and what I feel like I haven't been able to do from dealing with injuries."
Hutchison actually praised the Bulls' selection of Williams.
"Really, when you get a guy who's versatile like that, it's kind of like a sigh of relief because you got more guys who can do more on the floor," Hutchison said. "Positionally, the NBA is kind of moving towards positionless stuff anyway ... so the 2-3-4 is interchangeable anyway.
"So it's not like I see one guy in front of me or behind me that I have to compete with. It's more that we have more guys who are interchangeable who are going to help our team get better. He's looked really good."
Praise for preseason:
The long layoff for the Bulls has Zach LaVine changing his outlook on the upcoming exhibition games. "Usually, your first two years you look forward to preseason," he said. "Then after that, you just want to hurry up and get to the regular season. This might be first time in a couple years that you're looking forward to preseason games." ...
The NBA plans to release the first half of the regular season schedule on Friday. The Bulls' first preseason game is Dec. 11 against Houston at the United Center.