Fan on the Street: Part 1

So a few weeks ago I was having lunch with a friend – a man who’s lived in Chicago his entire life, by the way – and I mentioned to him that I was starting a new blog about the Bulls. His immediate response was: “That’s cool. Are they any good? They have any decent players?” I was mildly stunned: He knew absolutely nothing about the Bulls. Nada. Nicht. Zero. Zilch. He couldn’t even remember the name of the player he and a childhood friend used to regularly harrass with prank phone calls. (He remembered later, but only after asking his friend. Turns out it was Will Perdue.)

I’m a basketball-obsessed kook, I know that, so obviously I’m going to know more about the city’s NBA team than the Average Joe or Joanne. But still. I mean, I can’t stand baseball, but I still keep track of the Cubs and Sox, their rosters, their records, recent trades, etc. Part of embracing your city is embracing it’s professional sports teams, right?

Anyway, that experience inspired me to start a new series: Fan on the street. I’m basically going to wander the streets of the Windy City and ask its citizens some question about the Bulls…and publish their unedited reponse. Here’s the first installment.

Question: Derrick Rose…Rookie of the Year?

Answer: “If people don’t think he’s the Rookie of the Year, then they obviously haven’t been watching Bulls basketball. His ability to be the streaking, slashing, scoring player all teams need has allowed other players on the team to better exert their skills.” ~Mark Clark, Business Development

On the cutting room floor: After answering the proffered question, Mr. Clark continued on: “Why not ask me about Ben [Gordon] instead of Derek. I mean, then I could say all the stuff that I want to, like why don’t we trade him to some team. I know he’s not a fit for most teams, but he could be an asset to someone like the Lakers or something. Maybe we can get something, like a big man, for him. At least if we had another big man then Aaron Gray wouldn’t be able to play as many minutes as he gets, which should in turn slow down the other team’s offense. All Gray does is make other teams better.”