Fantasy Basketball Slant: Dwyane Wade to the Chicago Bulls

By Vincent Frank on Thursday, July 7th 2016
Fantasy Basketball Slant: Dwyane Wade to the Chicago Bulls

It's going to take time to get accustomed to this, but here it is. Chicago Bulls guard Dwyane Wade will be signing his contract with his new team on Thursday, ending a 13-year career with the Miami Heat. It's a decision that might have even been more shocking than Kevin Durant heading to Oakland. 

From a Bulls' perspective, this signing probably makes them a playoff team. It however, doesn't make the squad a serious title contender with the likes of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs being clearly ahead of the pack. 

From a fantasy perspective, it really is an interesting move. 

Wade joins a backcourt that will be run by recent free-agent signing Rajon Rondo. It also moves Jimmy Butler to the small forward position. That's three solid wing players, two of which can't shoot from the outside. That's our first fantasy-related takeaway here. 

 

Three-Point Shooting
Player 2015-16 Career
Jimmy Butler .312 .328
Rajon Rondo .365 .289
Dwyane Wade .159 .284

Yes, that's quite the opposite of the Splash Brothers (or whatever they're called now). Instead, you likely aren't going to be able to rely on thist trio to give you a lot of points from beyond the arc. After all, Wade himself attempted just 44 threes last year. 

Instead, this trio will be MONEY from the mid-range while providing the necessary numbers in other categories to help you out. Looking at the rest of Chicago's rotation, that's quite evident, especially after the team traded Derrick Rose and Mike Dunleavy while watching Joakim Noah leave in free agency. 

2015-16 Stats
Player PPG RPG APG
Taj Gibson 8.6 6.9 1.5
Nikola Mirotic 11.8 5.5 1.5
Tony Snell 5.3 3.1 1.0
Bobby Portis 7.0 5.4 0.8
Doug McDermott 9.4 2.4 0.7
Robin Lopez 10.3 7.3 1.4

It goes without saying that the assists are going to have to come from this trio of perimeter options. After all, the other six players in Chicago's projected rotation tallied a combined 6.9 assists per game. That's not going to get it done in today's NBA.

The good news here is that Rondo, Butler and Wade are more than willing passers, something that will come in handy when passing to one another in 2016-17. Rondo racked up an Association leading 11.7 assists a season ago. Butler dished out 4.8 while Wade tallied 4.6. 

With them more than willing to dish out the assists and acting as drive-and-dish wing players, it should open up mid-range opportunities from the "guard" trio. 

2015-16 Stats
Player  Inside 10 FT Mid-Range
Jimmy Butler .586 .545
Rajon Rondo .545 .502
Dwyane Wade .549 .538

If these three players can get uncontested mid-range opportunities, they are going to be able to score a heck of a lot of points. The impact here will likely be more in relation to Butler, who will have two solid passers with him out on the perimeter.

Only eight percent of Butler's attempts from 10-plus feet a season ago came uncontested. That will definitely change in 2015-16. Expect major progression from him when it comes to a scoring standpoint here. 

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