The adage, “A guy’s only as faithful as his options,” doesn’t seem to apply to sports fans. No, even when there’s an option to obtain a much better player, they’re paralyzed by fear of parting with a favorite though inferior player. After losing out on Carmelo Anthony, it appeared the Chicago Bulls were once again going to photocopy the 1990s New York Knicks – a hard-nosed defensive team that couldn’t score, therefore always finishing second to the league’s best player. Despite losing out on Anthony, quite predictably, things still looked alright as they made trades to pick up Doug McDermott on draft day back in June. A polished 6-foot-8, 218-pound, four-year player out of Creighton, McDermott averaged 31.6 points on 53-percent shooting as a college senior. Making things feel even better for the Bulls was bringing over Nikola Mirotic, who the team acquired in a draft-day trade in 2011, then let season overseas with Real Madrid. At 6-foot-10, 210 pounds, Mirotic is another stretch-4, that can extend the defense, converting 46 percent of his three-point attempts in his final Euroleague season, averaging 12.4 points. Joining the core of 2013-14 Defensive Player of the Year Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson, Jimmy Butler and (knock on wood) Derrick Rose, the Bulls seem to be looking pretty nice for next season, having also signed former Laker Pau Gasol, as well as speedy point guard Aaron Brooks. The team also re-signed Kirk Hinrich and has Mike Dunleavy, but who really cares. So alright, the team looks pretty solid and should be able to hold off the Cleveland Cavaliers as LeBron James gets acclimated with Andrew Wiggins and former Rookie of the Year Kyrie Irving. But wait, the Cavs seem more than willing to part with Wiggins, who all of a sudden seems to be the second-coming of Michael Jordan, but may be more like O.J. Mayo. Now, they’re not just giving him away, they want to package him with their 2013 overall No. 1 draft pick Anthony Bennett and their 2015 first round pick to obtain Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Based on Bennett’s 4.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game as a rookie, and the realization that Cleveland’s first-round pick next year would be in the 20s, the Timberwolves would essentially be trading a guy who’s averaged 19.2 points and 12.2 rebounds per game in six professional seasons for a guy who averaged 17.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.0 blocks in his one season at Kansas. It appeared that trade was inevitable, as Love is wanting out of Minnesota, a team that hasn’t reached the playoffs since 2004, but then the Bulls complicated the splendid union of James and Love by throwing their hat back into the ring. The latest trade scenario would have the Bulls sending Gibson, McDermott and Mirotic to the Wolves for Love. Wow, trade a good, but not untouchable Gibson along with two guys that have never played an NBA regular season game for a two-time Second Team All-NBA selection (2012, 2014) and three-time all-star (2011, 2012, 2014)? Sounds like a no-brainer. But no, oh no. In a Comcast Sportsnet Chicago poll I saw Wednesday night, 74 percent of the voters were against the trade. What!?!? Why? Because those fans overvalue the players on their favorite teams. I do the same. I remember back when the Chicago Cubs moved Ryan Theriot, I was thinking, “Whaaaa? But he’s good.” Why did I think that? Because I liked him. To every other MLB team and fan base, Theriot was just a shortstop they’d never heard of. Same thing with the recently designated Darwin Barney, who won the 2012 Gold Glove for second basemen, but is also a .244 career hitter. Shocking to hear he’s been let go, but once you look at it from the outside, it makes perfect sense. In my estimation, every fan has this delusion about their teams, much like Pacers fans for Lance Stephenson. Yeah, yeah, yeah – I know he led the league with five triple-doubles last year, but he did average 13.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game, which is pretty comparable to Gibson’s 13.0 points, 6.8 rebounds 1.4 blocks and 1.1 assists per game. However, Pacers fans will say one is awesome, but the other is just an OK player. Gibson, who is three-and-a-half years older than Love, is coming off his best of five seasons with the Bulls. However, his best games are Love’s average games. On the year, Gibson had 16 games in which he posted a double-double (double-digit rebounds and points). Love AVERAGED a double-double. Perhaps fans are a little weary of trading away Mirotic and McDermott as well, but if you’re going to go for a title, you have to make big moves. Acquiring Love to accompany a former MVP (Rose) and defending Defensive Player of the Year (Noah) would be a big move and one that needs to be made. I realize there’s always that fear of getting the short end of the stick when making a trade. And while staying pat makes the Bulls a contender, it’s a contender that may once again lack playoff scoring (See: five-game loss to the Washington Wizards in May.) Trying to hide their fear of change, fans also claim that defense wins championships. While that’s true, it’s also true that you need to be able to score. During last year’s regular season, Chicago was first in points allowed and last in points scored. Points are kind of important, and Love scores a lot of them. And as a 6-foot-10, 243-pound player that converts 36 percent of his three-point attempts, he opens the court for Rose, who can excel with Noah and Gasol in the pick-and-pop game. The Bulls would lose some defense with the departure of Gibson, but the acquisition of offense far outweighs it. Yes, change can be scary and the likable players on our favorite teams are way more valuable to us than others. But when you have a chance to get a superstar, you pack their bags and drive them to the airport. This isn’t marriage. It’s sports. To quote many a daytime talk show crowd members, “Ditch that zero, and get with the hero.”
