National Basketball Association

Cavs Dribbles: Are Bulls a legit threat?

Published Oct. 19, 2014 9:40 p.m. ET

foxsports

Random observations on the Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls, who meet in a preseason game Monday at Ohio State:

1. It's only the preseason, but a lot of folks expect the Bulls to be the Cavs' biggest threat in the Eastern Conference. I'm not so sure about that. I think the Wizards will be up there, too. I'm not certain Pau Gasol will be this major help to the Bulls, either. Gasol is still a nice player, but his game had been in decline with the Lakers the past few years. So we shall see.

2. Either way, the Bulls' Derrick Rose is back after another lost season to knee surgery. He may have been the NBA's best point guard (with apologies to the Clippers' Chris Paul) before his first knee injury, suffered two seasons ago. Rose looked OK during his time with Team USA this summer. He may return to his old self someday, but I suspect it to take some time.

3. Understand that I'm just playing devil's advocate here -- and I really do think the Bulls will be doggone good. With Gasol, Joakim Noah and several others, they should be right up there with the Cavs in terms of rebounding. And coach Tom Thibodeau always gets his teams to defend. But I'm not entirely sold on the idea that they're suddenly a championship contender again.

4. No matter, the first quarter of this game -- when the starters and regulars are likely playing a lot and giving full effort -- could be intense. The Cavs will start their Big Three of LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, along with Dion Waiters, and either Tristan Thompson or Anderson Varejao. The Bulls will counter with Rose, Noah, Gasol and lots of guys who know their roles. These teams had some serious battles last time James was in Cleveland, and that seriousness is likely to return now that he's returned.

5. I remember back in 2010, when the Bulls beat LeBron and the Cavs in a regular-season game at The Q. I visited the Bulls locker room after the game and Noah and several others were mocking James, calling him a drama queen. That was four years ago, and James has won two championships since then. My guess is Noah has quite a bit of respect for LeBron now. But let's just say the Bulls and LeBron aren't the best of friends.

6. Also, when James hit free agency in 2010, Rose made it clear he wouldn't be doing any recruiting. He's never had an issue with LeBron -- he just thinks the Bulls can be fine without him, thank you very much. Interestingly, Rose seemed very open to having Carmelo Anthony join the team in free agency this past summer. (Anthony gave it some thought, but returned to the Knicks instead.)

7. Anyway, the Cavs are well aware that the Bulls are considered by many to be a true contender in the Eastern Conference. "Chicago is a high-level team and we know that," admitted Cavs coach David Blatt.

8. Most of the starters for both teams are likely to play in the low-to-mid 20s in terms of minutes Monday. So the final result will actually mean very little. Nothing new there. At least, not when it comes to exhibition games.

9. Rose has been averaging 21 minutes a night in the preseason, and that lower number may carry over to the start of the real thing. "We just want him moving in the right direction," Thibodeau said. "It's gonna take some time. He's been away from the game for a long time. … He’s got to work his way back."