Taj Gibson Interview

http://espn.go.com/chicago/columns/blog/_/post/4645928/name/friedell

Taj Gibson gave this interview to Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago.  He spoke on his time at USC, his love of reality shows, and being a Yankees fan.

When the Bulls first selected Taj, I was happy with the pick, but not overjoyed.  I was hoping they would take their chances with DeJuan Blair out of Pittsburgh.

My feelings were that Taj was the same type of player that Tyrus Thomas was.  A long, athletic, undersized power forward.  He did not possess great ball handling skills, low post moves, or scoring ability.  But, his defense was incredibly good, and he would be an undervalued rebounder and shotblocker.

I like all that about him, and even like his game.  And, I definitely like it more now since Tyrus Thomas is injured. 

I understand that Blair isn’t exactly tearing up the league right now, but he isn’t really getting the chance, either.  Once he does, I think he will be a valuable backup power forward/center.  I don’t think he’s going to be an overpowering presence in the NBA, so that is one reason I am still ok with the Taj Gibson pick over Blair.

My hope is that Gibson can develop a nice fifteen foot jumpshot to go along with his rebounding and defensive skill set.  If he could do that, he would be a great secondary scoring threat on every possession.  With guys that like to slash to the hoop in Derrick Rose, John Salmons, and Luol Deng, it would be great to have a big man who could pop outside so the man with the ball could have options on what to do if he got in trouble on his way to the hoop.

Anyways, please feel free to leave your opinion on the Taj Gibson selection, and how you think he is doing as a rookie so far.

 

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