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2028-2029 SEASON - LEAGUE PRESS CONFERENCE (LEAGUE EXPANSION) The Seattle Supersonics and Virginia Squires have officially joined the National Basketball Association on April 1st, it was announced by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. The Sonics and Squires become the league's 31st and 32nd teams and will begin play next season. Seattle has a metropolitan area population of 3.8 million that is growing quickly, a ton of major corporations and is a great sports town, which made it a veritable shoe-in for expansion. The passion Seattle fans have for their sports teams is unrivaled and the Seattle-Tacoma region also has the 12th largest media market in America, so putting a franchise back in Seattle was a foregone conclusion. However, the announcement of the Virginia Squires as the 32nd NBA team was not met with the same enthusiasm. The addition of the Squires has had it's fair share of skepticism and in some circles, outright condemnation. The Virginia Squires were once an American Basketball Association team that played in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia and featured some great stars, such as Julius Irving, George Gervin and local Old Dominion University graduate Dave Twardzik. Hampton Roads boasts a population in excess of 1.8 million and at one time ranked #1 among all markets nationally for percentages of TV's tuned to watch NBA games. Critiques say that Hampton Roads may love the NBA, but it's residents are adverse to buying tickets. It is true that the area has struggled for decades to support various pro and semi-pro sports franchises. However, after decades of false starts, the seven major cities that make up the Hampton Roads area, Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Suffolk, Portsmouth, Newport News and Hampton, agreed to build a brand new state of the art 18,000 seat arena in downtown Norfolk. The entire project cost well over $100 million dollars and it was stated that each city will receive a share of the profits. Proponents of the plan to bring the NBA to Hampton Roads enjoy reminding everyone that even before the project was completely approved, promissory notes for potential season tickets were sold out in a matter of hours. I think it is safe to say that almost everyone would agree that the Squires are virtually guaranteed success in the short term, but whether the NBA can survive there long term is a question that remains to be answered. As the saying goes, "only time will tell." ---------------------

2028-2029 SEASON - MARCH We are now in the final stretch run of the regular season and there are only six games remaining on the schedule. Other than Sacramento, the remaining games are against teams who won't be making the playoffs, so a seventy win season is most assuredly a reachable goal. However, I would be lying if I said I wasn't concerned about our play on the defensive end of the court. Our defensive rating has slipped to fourteenth in the league; a full eight spots down in one month of play. Granted, we are scoring nearly 120 ppg, but we are going to have to play much better defense once the playoffs begin. SCHEDULE GAME | SCORE | W-L | CHI @ DET | 105-90 | W | CHI @ MIA | 134-127 | W | DET @ CHI | 103-119 | W | DEN @ CHI | 105-117 | W | ORL @ CHI | 126-134 | W | CHI @ PHI | 123-131 | L | CHI @ NYK | 98-104 | L | BKN @ CHI | 125-127 | W | CHI @ MIA | 127-111 | W | LAC @ CHI | 111-123 | W | LAL @ CHI | 104-140 | W | ATL @ CHI | 125-134 | W | CHI @ SAC | 118-114 | W | CHI @ PHO | 123-129 | L | --------------------------- RECORD W-L OVERALL | 66-10 | MONTH | 11-3 | CONFERENCE STANDINGS EASTERN | WESTERN CHI 66-10 | PHO 57-20 ATL 59-18 | SAS 50-26 NYK 52-23 | SAC 47-29 DET 47-29 | DAL 41-35 PHI 43-33 | MIN 41-35 TOR 41-35 | POR 41-36 MIA 40-36 | MEM 40-36 ORL 36-40 | GSW 38-39 ----------|---------- CLE 33-43 | NOP 35-41 IND 31-45 | HOU 34-42 WAS 30-45 | LAC 33-42 BOS 29-48 | UTA 29-47 CHA 29-48 | DEN 26-50 BKN 28-48 | LAL 21-55 MIL 25-51 | OKC 20-57 TEAM RANKINGS (Per Game) STATISTIC | Current | Previous | Points | 119.2 (1st) | 118.4 (1st) | NC Assists | 24.5 (4th) | 25.0 (3rd) | -1 Rebounds | 46.8 (2nd) | 47.5 (2nd | NC Points Allowed | 107.6 (25th)| 106.0 (21st)| -4 Blocks | 7.6 (3rd) | 7.6 (4th) | +1 Steals | 9.1 (19th)| 9.1 (18th)| -1 Field Goal % | .486 (3rd) | .485 (3rd) | NC Three Point % | .369 (1st) | .367 (2nd) | +1 Free Throw % | .791 (13th)| .784 (16th)| +3 Offensive Rating | 116.1 (2nd) | 115.3 (2nd) | NC Defensive Rating | 104.7 (14th)| 103.1 (6th) | -8 Net Rating | 11.4 (1st) | 12.2 (1st) | NC ---------------------------------------------- Power Ranking | 1st (NC) | TEAM ROSTER STARTERS | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | D'Angelo Russell | PG | 73 | 73 | 34.9 | 22.3 | 6.8 | 3.5 | Devin Booker | SG | 74 | 74 | 36.7 | 23.6 | 5.8 | 4.7 | Jayson Tatum | SF | 76 | 76 | 32.0 | 12.9 | 2.7 | 5.7 | Ryan Jefferson | PF | 74 | 54 | 31.4 | 16.2 | 1.6 | 6.3 | Justin McCuthison | C | 75 | 75 | 30.1 | 16.5 | 1.0 |11.2 | --------------------------------------------------------------- BENCH | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Marcue Jones | PF | 70 | 35 | 25.6 | 7.7 | 1.0 | 5.7 | Tony Carr | PG | 75 | 7 | 17.1 | 8.8 | 3.1 | 1.9 | Miles Bridges | SF | 75 | 6 | 17.1 | 7.9 | 1.3 | 2.9 | Hollis Samuels | C | 60 | 10 | 13.0 | 4.5 | 0.5 | 4.1 | Markelle Fultz | SG | 74 | 2 | 12.5 | 5.0 | 1.5 | 2.7 | Steven Adams | C | 50 | 0 | 8.2 | 3.7 | 0.3 | 2.2 | Marcus Bosl | PG | 44 | 1 | 6.9 | 3.3 | 1.1 | 1.0 | Dan Keith | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- D-LEAGUE | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Dan Keith | SF | 41 | 41 | 33.4 | 8.3 | 3.3 | 8.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------

2028-2029 SEASON - FEBRUARY The Toronto Raptors may have ended our winning streak at twenty-three consecutive games, but we are now solidly six and a half games ahead of the struggling Atlanta Hawks in the conference standings. Barring a major collapse, we should be able to enter the playoffs as the #1 seed in the East. Offensively, the team continues to lead the league in points-per-game and making improvements in field goal percentage, three point percentage and free throw percentage. However, we certainly sacrificed some defensive prowess along the way and have slipped seven spots in points-allowed-per game. I can live with that though, as the offense remains potent. My only real concern is Jayson Tatum. He is averaging 13.3 ppg, 2.8 apg and 5.9 rpg, but his play is very erratic. Despite that fact, he is one of the more efficient small forwards in the league and is by far our best defender when he is on the court. I am nitpicking though, because most teams would happy to have my problems. SCHEDULE GAME | SCORE | W-L | CHI @ CHA | 117-93 | W | NYK @ CHI | 119-130 | W | MIA @ CHI | 111-141 | W | CHI @ DAL | 132-127 | W | CHI @ PHI | 128-105 | W | BOS @ CHI | 116-127 | W | CHI @ TOR | 116-121 | L | ORL @ CHI | 107-114 | W | CHI @ HOU | 131-115 | W | CHI @ ORL | 115-96 | W | --------------------------- RECORD W-L OVERALL | 55-7 | MONTH | 9-1 | CONFERENCE STANDINGS EASTERN | WESTERN CHI 55-7 | SAS 43-18 ATL 48-13 | PHO 41-20 NYK 40-19 | SAC 39-23 DET 39-22 | DAL 34-28 TOR 35-27 | POR 35-29 PHI 34-29 | MEM 30-30 MIA 33-29 | LAC 30-30 ORL 31-31 | MIN 30-31 ----------|---------- CLE 26-35 | GSW 30-33 IND 25-36 | NOP 28-34 WAS 25-36 | HOU 26-36 BOS 25-37 | UTA 23-38 BKN 24-36 | DEN 22-39 CHA 21-41 | LAL 16-44 MIL 17-43 | OKC 16-47 TEAM RANKINGS (Per Game) STATISTIC | Current | Previous | Points | 118.4 (1st) | 117.1 (1st) | NC Assists | 25.0 (3rd) | 24.6 (4th) | +1 Rebounds | 47.5 (2nd | 47.9 (2nd) | NC Points Allowed | 106.0 (21st)| 105.0 (14th)| -7 Blocks | 7.6 (4th) | 7.8 (2nd) | -2 Steals | 9.1 (18th)| 9.1 (18th)| NC Field Goal % | .485 (3rd) | .480 (4th) | +1 Three Point % | .367 (2nd) | .355 (3rd) | +1 Free Throw % | .784 (16th)| .780 (18th)| +2 Offensive Rating | 115.3 (2nd) | 114.2 (2nd) | NC Defensive Rating | 103.1 (6th) | 102.2 (5th) | -1 Net Rating | 12.2 (1st) | 11.9 (1st) | NC ---------------------------------------------- Power Ranking | 1st (NC) | TEAM ROSTER STARTERS | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | D'Angelo Russell | PG | 61 | 61 | 34.9 | 21.8 | 6.9 | 3.5 | Devin Booker | SG | 60 | 60 | 36.4 | 23.2 | 5.7 | 4.9 | Jayson Tatum | SF | 62 | 62 | 32.1 | 13.3 | 2.8 | 5.9 | Ryan Jefferson | PF | 60 | 40 | 30.2 | 16.1 | 1.7 | 6.0 | Justin McCuthison | C | 61 | 61 | 29.7 | 16.7 | 1.0 |11.1 | --------------------------------------------------------------- BENCH | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Marcue Jones | PF | 56 | 35 | 27.0 | 7.6 | 1.1 | 5.9 | | 32 | 32 | 30.8 | 8.2 | 1.1 | 7.0 | <-- Marcue Jones @MIN Tony Carr | PG | 61 | 5 | 17.5 | 9.2 | 3.0 | 2.1 | | 37 | 3 | 19.6 | 10.7 | 3.2 | 2.3 | <-- Tony Carr @MIN Miles Bridges | SF | 61 | 6 | 17.3 | 7.9 | 1.4 | 2.9 | | 37 | 6 | 17.5 | 7.9 | 1.5 | 3.1 | <-- Miles Bridges @CHA Hollis Samuels | C | 50 | 10 | 14.0 | 4.8 | 0.5 | 4.4 | | 27 | 10 | 17.4 | 5.8 | 0.6 | 4.6 | <-- Hollis Samuels @CHA Markelle Fultz | SG | 60 | 2 | 12.8 | 5.1 | 1.6 | 2.0 | Steven Adams | C | 43 | 0 | 8.8 | 4.0 | 0.4 | 2.3 | Marcus Bosl | PG | 37 | 1 | 7.3 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 1.1 | Dan Keith | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- D-LEAGUE | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Dan Keith | SF | 38 | 38 | 33.4 | 8.0 | 3.3 | 8.1 | --------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------

2028-2029 SEASON - JANUARY Some people will say that I'm completely insane, because right after the Detroit game I traded away six bench players. Initially, I was simply trying to cut some salary, but when all was said and done, I was nearly $5 million dollars further over the cap. However, I think the team has more depth, despite having fewer players. Ultimately, I just wasn't satisfied with how the bench players were shaping up. Neither PG Trevon Duval nor PF Paul Johnson were adequate backups, in my opinion, so I went and struck a deal with the Timberwolves to bring in PF Marcue Jones and PG Tony Carr. I even got two first round picks out of the deal! The bottom line is that I simply wanted to cut what I thought was some dead weight. SF KZ Okpala was in the final year of his contract, SF Enric Obrégon was never going to make the team and he was getting first round draft pick money, so they became expendable. PF Luke Kornet was expendable simply because of his two year deal and ultimate lack of playing time, while C Tony Bradley was under achieving for someone making in excess of $8 million dollars a year. Only C Steven Adams, SG Markelle Fultz, PG Marcus Bosl and SF Dan Keith remain from the original ten bench players and the starting five remain untouched of course. In the end, I think I was justified in my trades. We are currently on a seventeen game winning streak and went undefeated for the month of January. We are now in first place in the Eastern Conference with a 46-6 record and we even defeated the Atlanta Hawks 141-121. I couldn't be happier and I'm very excited to see how the remainder of the regular season turns out. TRADES Timberwolves trade PF Marcue Jones, PG Tony Carr, 2029 1st round pick(MIN), 2031 1st round pick(MIN) for Bulls PG Trevon Duval and PF Paul Johnson. Hornets trade SF Miles Bridges and C Hollis Samuels for Bulls SF KZ Okpala, SF Enric Obrégon, PF Luke Kornet, C Tony Bradley and 2029 1st round pick(MIN via CHI). SCHEDULE GAME | SCORE | W-L | CHI @ DET | 122-94 | W | CLE @ CHI | 153-164 | W | OT DET @ CHI | 101-124 | W | ATL @ CHI | 112-141 | W | MIL @ CHI | 99-110 | W | CHI @ GSW | 122-109 | W | CHI @ DEN | 114-105 | W | CHI @ MIN | 117-105 | W | CHI @ LAC | 117-104 | W | CHI @ NOP | 116-97 | W | GSW @ CHI | 105-118 | W | CHI @ MIL | 128-106 | W | WAS @ CHI | 113-122 | W | CHA @ CHI | 116-125 | W | MEM @ CHI | 108-125 | W | --------------------------- RECORD W-L OVERALL | 46-6 | MONTH | 15-0 | CONFERENCE STANDINGS EASTERN | WESTERN CHI 46-6 | PHO 34-16 ATL 41-10 | SAS 32-17 NYK 33-15 | SAC 32-19 DET 31-18 | DAL 30-20 MIA 28-22 | MIN 27-24 TOR 29-23 | LAC 26-24 ORL 27-24 | POR 28-26 PHI 26-26 | GSW 24-28 ----------|---------- BKN 22-27 | MEM 23-27 CLE 22-29 | NOP 24-29 BOS 22-30 | HOU 23-29 IND 20-29 | DEN 17-33 CHA 18-32 | UTA 17-34 WAS 17-33 | LAL 13-27 MIL 16-34 | OKC 12-39 TEAM RANKINGS (Per Game) STATISTIC | Current | Previous | Points | 117.1 (1st) | 114.1 (2nd) | +1 Assists | 24.6 (4th) | 23.8 (7th) | +3 Rebounds | 47.9 (2nd) | 48.2 (2nd) | NC Points Allowed | 105.0 (14th)| 103.6 (9th) | -5 Blocks | 7.8 (2nd) | 8.0 (1st) | -1 Steals | 9.1 (18th)| 9.2 (16th)| -2 Field Goal % | .480 (4th) | .469 (6th) | +2 Three Point % | .355 (3rd) | .341 (8th) | +5 Free Throw % | .780 (18th)| .776 (18th)| NC Offensive Rating | 114.2 (2nd) | 112.5 (2nd) | NC Defensive Rating | 102.2 (5th) | 101.8 (4th) | -1 Net Rating | 11.9 (1st) | 10.8 (2nd) | +1 ---------------------------------------------- Power Ranking | 1st (+1) | TEAM ROSTER STARTERS | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | D'Angelo Russell | PG | 51 | 51 | 35.1 | 21.6 | 6.9 | 3.4 | Devin Booker | SG | 50 | 50 | 36.8 | 22.8 | 5.7 | 4.8 | Jayson Tatum | SF | 52 | 52 | 32.6 | 13.8 | 2.7 | 6.1 | Ryan Jefferson | PF | 52 | 32 | 29.5 | 15.7 | 1.5 | 5.9 | Justin McCuthison | C | 52 | 52 | 29.9 | 16.5 | 1.1 |11.2 | --------------------------------------------------------------- BENCH | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Marcue Jones | PF | 46 | 32 | 27.8 | 7.6 | 1.1 | 6.3 | | 32 | 32 | 30.8 | 8.2 | 1.1 | 7.0 | <-- Marcue Jones @MIN Tony Carr | PG | 51 | 5 | 18.2 | 9.5 | 3.2 | 2.2 | | 37 | 3 | 19.6 | 10.7 | 3.2 | 2.3 | <-- Tony Carr @MIN Miles Bridges | SF | 51 | 6 | 17.7 | 7.8 | 1.3 | 3.0 | | 37 | 6 | 17.5 | 7.9 | 1.5 | 3.1 | <-- Miles Bridges @CHA Hollis Samuels | C | 40 | 10 | 14.4 | 4.9 | 0.5 | 4.3 | | 27 | 10 | 17.4 | 5.8 | 0.6 | 4.6 | <-- Hollis Samuels @CHA Markelle Fultz | SG | 50 | 2 | 12.8 | 5.2 | 1.6 | 2.0 | Steven Adams | C | 36 | 0 | 8.9 | 4.4 | 0.4 | 2.5 | Marcus Bosl | PG | 32 | 1 | 7.7 | 3.4 | 1.0 | 1.2 | Dan Keith | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- D-LEAGUE | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Dan Keith | SF | 32 | 32 | 33.3 | 7.7 | 3.4 | 8.2 | --------------------------------------------------------------- SALARY CAP CAP: $180,000,000 TAX: $215,000,000 CONTRACTS (TEAM SALARY $217,946,933 / CAP STATUS $-37,946,933) Player | PS | CUR | POT | HGT | LBS | AG | EX | SALARY | CONTRACT Devin Booker | SG | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-5 | 206 | 32 | 13 | $38,110,097 | $122,333,409/3y D'Angelo Russell | PG | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-4 | 193 | 32 | 13 | $37,382,085 | $122,928,600/4y Jayson Tatum | SF | 4.0 | 4.0 | 6-8 | 204 | 30 | 11 | $37,220,754 | $76,720,329/2y Justin McCuthison | C | 3.5 | 4.0 | 6-11| 280 | 24 | 4 | $32,900,000 | $104,622,000/3y Tony Carr | PG | 3.0 | 3.0 | 6-4 | 205 | 31 | 9 | $21,691,904 | $96,528,968/4y (TO) Miles Bridges | SF | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-6 | 225 | 30 | 10 | $17,212,954 | $35,626,811/2y (PO) Hollis Samuels | C | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-11| 258 | 27 | 6 | $9,480,000 | $19,386,600/2y Marcue Jones | PF | 3.0 | 3.0 | 6-10| 240 | 21 | 2 | $5,493,166 | $12,491,459/2y Ryan Jefferson | PF | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-8 | 222 | 25 | 2 | $5,218,497 | $11,872,080/2y Dan Keith | SF | 2.0 | 2.5 | 6-9 | 234 | 23 | 1 | $4,111,800 | $8,511,426/2y (RO) Markelle Fultz | SG | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-3 | 200 | 30 | 11 | $3,372,784 | $6,745,568/2y Steven Adams | C | 2.0 | 2.0 | 6-11| 265 | 35 | 15 | $3,372,784 | $3,372,784/1y Marcus Bosl | PG | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-0 | 189 | 25 | 2 | $2,380,180 | $6,676,202/2y ---------------------

2028-2029 SEASON - DECEMBER The team is playing well, but we did have a couple of hiccups against Orlando and Houston. In the Orlando game, Matt Hankins simply could not be stopped and he put on a clinic by scoring 55 points with 10 rebounds and 7 assists. In the loss to Houston, Joel Embiid scored 36 points, with 6 assists and 9 rebounds for the Rockets. I suppose we could just chalk it up to a couple of great players having a really good nights, but I've noticed that Jayson Tatum played poorly in both games. His play has been uncharacteristically erratic of late. Let's hope he is able to get it sorted out soon. Also, PF Ryan Jefferson has impressed the coaching staff and Coach Starks has rewarded him by moving him into a starting role. Obviously this means that Paul Johnson will now come off the bench as the sixth man, but it also means that I won't be as eager to extend his contract. I don't want to pay $30 million dollars for a backup power forward. Sure, it would be nice insurance, but we are already well over the cap and I'm confident I can find a more reasonably priced replacement. SCHEDULE GAME | SCORE | W-L | CHI @ BKN | 108-105 | W | BOS @ CHI | 90-105 | W | CLE @ CHI | 106-114 | W | MIL @ CHI | 87-101 | W | UTA @ CHI | 88-104 | W | OKC @ CHI | 88-116 | W | IND @ CHI | 90-115 | W | CHI @ TOR | 118-116 | W | PHI @ CHI | 84-99 | W | CHI @ ORL | 119-123 | L | TOR @ CHI | 90-97 | W | CHI @ IND | 110-97 | W | HOU @ CHI | 128-117 | L | Trevon Duval - strained hamstring (OUT - 1/14/29) CHI @ CLE | 124-109 | W | POR @ CHI | 123-136 | W | --------------------------- RECORD W-L OVERALL | 31-6 | MONTH | 13-2 | CONFERENCE STANDINGS EASTERN | WESTERN ATL 32-4 | PHO 24-12 CHI 31-6 | SAS 22-13 DET 23-11 | MIN 21-14 NYK 23-14 | SAC 22-15 TOR 21-15 | DAL 20-16 MIA 19-18 | LAC 18-17 BKN 17-17 | NOP 18-19 PHI 20-20 | POR 18-19 ----------|---------- CLE 16-20 | GSW 18-20 ORL 16-20 | HOU 16-22 BOS 14-22 | MEM 15-22 CHA 14-22 | UTA 14-24 WAS 14-23 | DEN 14-23 IND 13-22 | LAL 10-25 MIL 11-25 | OKC 10-27 TEAM RANKINGS (Per Game) STATISTIC | Current | Previous | Points | 114.1 (2nd) | 115.5 (2nd) | NC Assists | 23.8 (7th) | 24.6 (6th) | -1 Rebounds | 48.2 (2nd) | 47.5 (3rd) | +1 Points Allowed | 103.6 (9th) | 105.0 (16th)| +7 Blocks | 8.0 (1st) | 8.0 (8th) | +7 Steals | 9.2 (16th)| 8.6 (17th)| +1 Field Goal % | .469 (6th) | .464 (7th) | +1 Three Point % | .341 (8th) | .337 (10th)| +2 Free Throw % | .776 (18th)| .762 (20th)| +2 Offensive Rating | 112.5 (2nd) | 112.4 (2nd) | NC Defensive Rating | 101.8 (4th) | 102.2 (6th) | +2 Net Rating | 10.8 (2nd) | 10.2 (2nd) | NC ---------------------------------------------- Power Ranking | 2nd (+0) | TEAM ROSTER STARTERS | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | D'Angelo Russell | PG | 36 | 36 | 34.6 | 20.9 | 6.3 | 3.3 | Devin Booker | SG | 37 | 37 | 36.7 | 21.6 | 5.7 | 4.5 | Jayson Tatum | SF | 37 | 27 | 32.5 | 13.5 | 2.7 | 5.9 | Ryan Jefferson | PF | 37 | 17 | 27.8 | 15.5 | 1.3 | 5.7 | Justin McCuthison | C | 37 | 37 | 29.7 | 16.3 | 1.2 |11.6 | --------------------------------------------------------------- BENCH | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Paul Johnson | PF | 38 | 21 | 24.8 | 9.8 | 1.4 | 6.4 | Trevon Duval | PG | 33 | 6 | 14.1 | 3.9 | 1.9 | 1.7 | Markelle Fultz | SG | 35 | 2 | 13.1 | 4.8 | 1.7 | 2.0 | Tony Bradley | C | 34 | 0 | 10.6 | 3.8 | 0.7 | 3.2 | Steven Adams | C | 27 | 0 | 10.2 | 5.1 | 0.4 | 2.7 | Marcus Bosl | PG | 21 | 1 | 9.1 | 4.1 | 1.2 | 1.3 | KZ Okpala | SF | 36 | 0 | 9.9 | 2.3 | 0.6 | 1.4 | Luke Kornet | PF | 10 | 0 | 9.3 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 0.8 | Dan Keith | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | Enric Obrégon | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- D-LEAGUE | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Dan Keith | SF | 17 | 17 | 29.0 | 8.4 | 3.4 | 9.6| Enric Obrégon | SF | 17 | 0 | 20.5 | 4.8 | 2.1 | 3.6 | --------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------

2028-2029 SEASON - NOVEMBER Well...I can't believe I actually did it...but I traded Giannis on November 1st. I was sad to see him go, because I really like Giannis, but the deal with the Spurs was simply too good to pass up. I traded Giannis, shooting guard Greg Hawkins and our 2031 1st round pick to the San Antonio Spurs for SG Devin Booker, PF Paul Johnson and the Spurs 2029 1st round pick. Honestly, I didn't like the situation with the shooting guard by committee and Devin Booker immediately puts that nonsense to rest. Paul Johnson is an excellent young power forward and although he may never have the Hall of Fame career that Giannis has had, he has a lot of upside and is a solid starter in the league. The only downside is that Johnson is in the final year of his contract and it might be difficult to sign him to an extension. Then again, I might not need to with Ryan Jefferson playing well off the bench. SCHEDULE GAME | SCORE | W-L | CHI @ MIL | 95-93 | W | CHI @ NYK | 94-104 | L | CHI @ BOS | 105-82 | W | DAL @ CHI | 102-125 | W | CHI @ IND | 114-101 | W | CHI @ CLE | 129-103 | W | SAS @ CHI | 124-118 | L | CHI @ MEM | 106-94 | W | IND @ CHI | 86-94 | W | CHI @ ATL | 132-140 | L | CHI @ WAS | 117-112 | W | BKN @ CHI | 101-120 | W | PHI @ CHI | 141-144 | W | WAS @ CHI | 98-115 | W | CHI @ SAS | 109-99 | W | --------------------------- RECORD W-L OVERALL | 18-4 | MONTH | 12-3 | CONFERENCE STANDINGS EASTERN | WESTERN ATL 18-3 | MIN 15-7 CHI 18-4 | GSW 15-8 NYK 16-5 | PHO 13-8 TOR 13-8 | SAS 12-9 MIA 12-9 | SAC 12-10 BKN 11-9 | DAL 11-10 DET 11-9 | POR 11-11 PHI 12-11 | NOP 10-11 ----------|---------- IND 10-10 | LAC 9-12 CLE 9-11 | HOU 9-13 ORL 8-13 | MEM 8-12 WAS 8-14 | UTA 8-13 CHA 7-13 | OKC 7-13 MIL 7-15 | DEN 7-15 BOS 5-16 | LAL 5-15 TEAM RANKINGS (Per Game) STATISTIC | Current | Previous | Points | 115.5 (2nd) | 117.6 (2nd) | NC Assists | 24.6 (6th) | 26.9 (2nd) | -4 Rebounds | 47.5 (3rd) | 48.7 (3rd) | NC Points Allowed | 105.0 (16th)| 104.4 (11th)| -4 Blocks | 8.0 (8th) | 7.0 (10th)| +2 Steals | 9.4 (14th)| 8.6 (17th)| +3 Field Goal % | .464 (7th) | .496 (3rd) | -4 Three Point % | .337 (10th)| .348 (9th) | -1 Free Throw % | .762 (20th)| .754 (22nd)| +2 Offensive Rating | 112.4 (2nd) | 117.5 (2nd) | NC Defensive Rating | 102.2 (6th) | 104.6 (11th)| +5 Net Rating | 10.2 (2nd) | 12.9 (3rd) | +1 ---------------------------------------------- Power Ranking | 2nd (+4) | TEAM ROSTER STARTERS | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | D'Angelo Russell | PG | 21 | 21 | 36.5 | 21.8 | 6.4 | 3.6 | Devin Booker | SG | 23 | 23 | 36.4 | 20.7 | 5.5 | 4.2 | Jayson Tatum | SF | 22 | 22 | 32.7 | 13.8 | 3.0 | 5.4 | Paul Johnson | PF | 23 | 21 | 30.6 | 11.6 | 1.6 | 7.2 | Justin McCuthison | C | 22 | 22 | 39.4 | 17.7 | 1.1 |12.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- BENCH | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Ryan Jefferson | PF | 22 | 2 | 22.5 | 15.0 | 1.2 | 4.5 | Trevon Duval | PG | 20 | 6 | 15.1 | 3.9 | 2.2 | 1.4 | Markelle Fultz | SG | 22 | 2 | 13.9 | 5.1 | 2.0 | 1.9 | Toney Bradley | C | 22 | 0 | 12.4 | 4.5 | 0.9 | 4.1 | Steven Adams | C | 14 | 0 | 6.6 | 2.9 | 0.1 | 1.8 | Marcus Bosl | PG | 14 | 0 | 6.8 | 4.4 | 0.9 | 0.7 | KZ Okpala | SF | 22 | 0 | 10.9 | 3.0 | 0.6 | 1.5 | Luke Kornet | PF | 2 | 0 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | Dan Keith | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | Enric Obrégon | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- D-LEAGUE | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Dan Keith | SF | 1 | 1 | 29.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 7.0 | Enric Obrégon | SF | 1 | 0 | 22.0 | 12.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- SALARY CAP CAP: $180,000,000 TAX: $215,000,000 CONTRACTS (TEAM SALARY $213,374,131 / CAP STATUS $-33,374,131) Player | PS | CUR | POT | HGT | LBS | AG | EX | SALARY | CONTRACT Devin Booker | SG | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-5 | 206 | 32 | 13 | $38,110,097 | $122,333,409/3y D'Angelo Russell | PG | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-4 | 193 | 32 | 13 | $37,382,085 | $122,928,600/4y Jayson Tatum | SF | 4.0 | 4.0 | 6-8 | 204 | 30 | 11 | $37,220,754 | $76,720,329/2y Justin McCuthison | C | 3.5 | 4.0 | 6-11| 280 | 24 | 4 | $32,900,000 | $104,622,000/3y Trevon Duval | PG | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-2 | 194 | 30 | 10 | $14,344,128 | $29,589,009/2y (PO) Paul Johnson | PF | 3.5 | 4.0 | 6-9 | 225 | 25 | 3 | $13,084,119 | $13,084,119/1y Tony Bradley | C | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-10| 248 | 31 | 11 | $8,300,000 | $16,600,000/2y Enric Obrégon | SF | 1.0 | 3.0 | 6-8 | 233 | 19 | 0 | $6,654,853 | $13,808,753/2y (RO) Ryan Jefferson | PF | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-8 | 222 | 25 | 2 | $5,218,497 | $11,872,080/2y Dan Keith | SF | 2.0 | 2.5 | 6-9 | 234 | 23 | 1 | $4,111,800 | $8,511,426/2y (RO) KZ Okpala | SF | 2.0 | 2.0 | 6-8 | 215 | 29 | 9 | $3,549,338 | $3,549,338/1y Markelle Fultz | SG | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-3 | 200 | 30 | 11 | $3,372,784 | $6,745,568/2y Luke Kornet | PF | 2.0 | 2.0 | 7-2 | 240 | 33 | 11 | $3,372,784 | $6,745,568/2y Steven Adams | C | 2.0 | 2.0 | 6-11| 265 | 35 | 15 | $3,372,784 | $3,372,784/1y Marcus Bosl | PG | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-0 | 189 | 25 | 2 | $2,380,180 | $6,676,202/2y ---------------------

2028-2029 SEASON - OCTOBER Off to a good start, but the Atlanta Hawks are for real. They lead the league in scoring, assists and rebounds. They are the only remaining undefeated team in the NBA and they even gave us our only loss of the season to date, 144-138. Don't get me wrong, they are beatable, but beating them in a seven game series is going to be a daunting task. Personally, I think we are up to the task, but we need to get this shooting guard by committee sorted out and the sooner the better. A solid scorer at the two spot would be immensely helpful, especially since Giannis is off to the worst season of his career. Can Giannis bounce back at the age of 34? It's hard to tell, this might actually be the beginning of the end for him, but let's hope I'm wrong about that. The NBA season is a marathon, not a sprint, and a lot can happen between now and the end of the season. SCHEDULE GAME | SCORE | W-L | TOR @ CHI | 95-105 | W | MIN @ CHI | 103-116 | W | CHI @ ATL | 138-144 | L | CHI @ POR | 103-91 | W | CHI @ OKC | 120-102 | W | NOP @ CHI | 118-130 | W | PHO @ CHI | 78-111 | W | --------------------------- RECORD W-L OVERALL | 6-1 | MONTH | 6-1 | CONFERENCE STANDINGS EASTERN | WESTERN ATL 6-0 | MEM 5-2 CHI 6-1 | GSW 5-2 CLE 4-1 | DAL 4-3 NYK 5-2 | MIN 4-3 TOR 5-3 | LAC 4-3 PHI 4-3 | PHO 4-3 DET 4-3 | SAS 4-4 ORL 4-3 | SAC 4-4 ----------|---------- BOS 3-3 | DEN 3-4 BKN 3-3 | HOU 3-5 IND 4-4 | NOP 2-5 MIA 3-3 | OKC 2-5 CHA 3-4 | LAL 1-5 WAS 2-5 | POR 1-6 MIL 1-6 | UTA 106 TEAM RANKINGS (Per Game) Points | 117.6 (2nd) Assists | 26.9 (2nd) Rebounds | 48.7 (3rd) Points Allowed | 104.4 (11th) Blocks | 7.0 (10th) Steals | 8.6 (17th) Field Goal % | .496 (3rd) Three Point % | .348 (9th) Free Throw % | .754 (22nd) Offensive Rating | 117.5 (2nd) Defensive Rating | 104.6 (11th) Net Rating | 12.9 (3rd) Power Ranking | 6th (Last Week 10th | +4) TEAM ROSTER STARTERS | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | D'Angelo Russell | PG | 7 | 7 | 35.7 | 23.6 | 8.4 | 3.0 | Trevon Duval | PG | 5 | 5 | 23.4 | 6.2 | 1.4 | 1.2 | Jayson Tatum | SF | 7 | 7 | 30.3 | 16.7 | 3.6 | 7.6 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | PF | 7 | 7 | 31.3 | 11.0 | 4.6 |10.0 | Justin McCuthison | C | 7 | 7 | 33.6 | 22.6 | 1.3 |12.1 | --------------------------------------------------------------- BENCH | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Gregory Hawkins | SG | 5 | 0 | 27.8 | 8.2 | 1.4 | 3.6 | Ryan Jefferson | PF | 7 | 0 | 20.1 | 12.1 | 1.0 | 3.7 | Markelle Fultz | SG | 7 | 2 | 20.1 | 8.0 | 2.6 | 0.6 | Toney Bradley | C | 7 | 0 | 11.6 | 3.3 | 0.9 | 3.1 | Steven Adams | C | 4 | 0 | 4.5 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 1.5 | Marcus Bosl | PG | 7 | 0 | 7.9 | 5.1 | 1.1 | 1.0 | KZ Okpala | SF | 7 | 0 | 10.7 | 3.1 | 1.0 | 1.3 | Luke Kornet | PF | 1 | 0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | Dan Keith | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | Enric Obrégon | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- D-LEAGUE | PS | GM | GS | MPG | PPG | APG | RPG | Dan Keith | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | Enric Obrégon | SF | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | --------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------

2028-2029 PRE SEASON REPORT This off season has been far busier than I anticipated. We drafted small forward Enric Obrégon with the sixth overall pick in the draft, extended D'Angelo Russell's contract, signed four free agents and exercised the rookie options on Marcus Bosl, Ryan Jefferson and Gregory Hawkins. D'Angelo Russell is 32 years-old, but he is currently playing better than ever. Extending his contract through the 2032-2033 may be risky, but he will save us approximately $30 million over the length of his contract and that makes him a bargain. I didn't plan on signing four free agents, but I'm happy that I did. We brought back center Steven Adams at the minimum and signed former Bulls players, shooting guard Markelle Fultz and power forward Luke Kornet on low-level exceptions. I also signed center Tony Bradley on a mid-level exception to be McCuthison's backup. Now, this is where things get weird. Last year, Midway through the season, I traded Markelle Fultz to Milwaukee for Jaylen Nowell. Now that Fultz is back on the team, coach Starks has decided to go with Fultz as the starting shooting guard, with Hawkins as the sixth man and Nowell relegated to the bench. Nowell makes way too much money to ride the pine, so I decided to seek out a trade. I wasn't looking to cut payroll, but rather find a suitable backup for Russell. I eventually struck a deal with the Portland Trailblazers for PG Trevon Duval and SF Dan Keith. Keith is only 23 years-old and could develop into a decent small forward, but truthfully, he was packaged in the deal to reached the leagues' cap requirements. The 30 year-old Duval was brought in to be a backup, but once again coach Starks has thrown me another curve ball and placed Duval, a point guard, in the starting lineup as the starting shooting guard??? This subsequently relegates Fultz to the bench behind Hawkins. Look, I get it. Hawkins is a good young player, but his basketball IQ is preventing him from getting a starting role. So we enter the season just under $42 million under the cap, but we have what I would consider an even better, albeit older, team than last year. Can we repeat a 76 win season, unlikely, but we are the defending NBA Champions and there is no reason we can't repeat. We better, because the owner is going to shit himself when he sees how much money I've spent. The funny thing is that once again Atlanta has been picked to finish ahead of us in the Eastern Conference. No respect I tell ya! Lastly, I didn't think the salary cap was keeping up with the current player salary demands, so I found a site that had the projected cap through the 2028 season and adjusted accordingly. I also like nice round numbers, so I rounded the cap off at $180 million with $215 million luxury tax cap. I will manually increase both by $10 million each year from here on out. So, next years cap will be $190 and the luxury tax cap at $225. STAFF The entire staff was in the final year of their contracts and now seemed like the prudent time to negotiate new deals. So, I basically gave them all what they wanted and next year's staff budget is going to be through the roof...I don't care. Now this is an area that I really take issue with. First, there is no mechanism to negotiate an increase in staff payroll and that makes it literally impossible to re-sign or sign good coaches as salaries increase. Plus, every team seems to have a different staff budget. I think ours is $12,800,000 for four coaches and the training staff, which is a joke. There are coaches in the league that demand and get paid more than that per season. In the real world, the highest paid coaches earn around $11 mil a year, but in the game a coach like Steve Kerr makes $19.8 million a year, Doc Rivers $17.9, Stan Van Gundy $15.1, Erik Spoelstra $14.8, Tom Thibodeau $13.5, Quinn Snyder $13.9, Brad Stevens $13.4 and Scott Brooks $13.9. Everyone of those teams is over their staff budgets. Cleveland (Doc Rivers) is actually $-26.9 million over their staff budget and Cleveland's owner has no desire to win or spend money, so why are they that far over budget??? Regardless, I see this area of the game as a detriment. Coaches salaries are out of control, as evident by my current staffs new renegotiated deals. All my coaches wanted four year deals and I tried to negotiate their requests down a bit, they all pretty much got what they asked for. Head Coach $17,425,000 per year, 1st Assistant $10,025,000 per year, 2nd Assistant $2,850,000 per year and third assistant $1,610,000 per year. Should I have resigned all four coaches, of course not, but I just had to see how much it was going to cost. The only way I could have even remotely stayed within the staff budget was to let both the head coach and first assistant go. My head coach record is 208-38, three playoffs and two championships and I'm just supposed to let him go?!? Who in their right mind would do such a thing? Anyway, this is just my pet peeve and I don't like how staffing and staff budget works. DRAFT We had the sixth overall pick in the NBA Draft, but the draft was very weak this year and there weren't a lot of great players available outside of the top three. So, we selected Small forward Enric Obrégon from Spain. Obrégon is 6'8", 233 lbs and only 19 years old. He is a very raw talent and despite J.P.'s incessant bitching about my picks, the staff really liked him, so I selected him. I think he has some upside, but I don't see him lasting very long if he doesn't develop quickly and he'll probably spend his first year, maybe two, in the D-League. TRADES Trailblazers trade PG Trevon Duval and SF Dan Keith to the Bulls for SG Jaylen Nowell, PG Andrew Miller, 2029 1st round pick, 2029 2nd round pick and 2029 2nd round pick (via WAS). CONTRACTS Extended the contract of D'Angelo Russell ($85,546,515 over 3 years) Exercised rookie option for Marcus Bosl. Exercised rookie option for Ryan Jefferson Exercised rookie option for Gregory Hawkins FREE AGENCY C Tony Bradley |$16,000,000/2y SG Markelle Fultz | $6,745,568/2y PF Luke Kornet | $6,745,568/2y C Steven Adams | $3,372,784/1y TEAM ROSTER SALARY CAP CAP: $180,000,000 TAX: $215,000,000 CONTRACTS (TEAM SALARY $221,950,140 / CAP STATUS $-41,950,140) Player | PS | CUR | POT | HGT | LBS | AG | EX | SALARY | CONTRACT Giannis Antetokounmpo | PF | 4.5 | 4.5 | 6-11| 242 | 34 | 15 | $49,390,625 | $100,820,312/2y D'Angelo Russell | PG | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-4 | 193 | 32 | 13 | $37,382,085 | $122,928,600/4y Jayson Tatum | SF | 4.0 | 4.0 | 6-8 | 204 | 30 | 11 | $37,220,754 | $76,720,329/2y Justin McCuthison | C | 3.5 | 4.0 | 6-11| 280 | 24 | 4 | $32,900,000 | $104,622,000/3y Trevon Duval | PG | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-2 | 194 | 30 | 10 | $14,344,128 | $29,589,009/2y (PO) Gregory Hawkins | SG | 3.5 | 4.0 | 6-4 | 198 | 23 | 1 | $10,379,600 | $21,485,772/2y (RO) Tony Bradley | C | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-10| 248 | 31 | 11 | $8,300,000 | $16,600,000/2y Enric Obrégon | SF | 1.0 | 3.0 | 6-8 | 233 | 19 | 0 | $6,654,853 | $13,808,753/2y (RO) Ryan Jefferson | PF | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-8 | 222 | 25 | 2 | $5,218,497 | $11,872,080/2y Dan Keith | SF | 2.0 | 2.5 | 6-9 | 234 | 23 | 1 | $4,111,800 | $8,511,426/2y (RO) KZ Okpala | SF | 2.0 | 2.0 | 6-8 | 215 | 29 | 9 | $3,549,338 | $3,549,338/1y Markelle Fultz | SG | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-3 | 200 | 30 | 11 | $3,372,784 | $6,745,568/2y Luke Kornet | PF | 2.0 | 2.0 | 7-2 | 240 | 33 | 11 | $3,372,784 | $6,745,568/2y Steven Adams | C | 2.0 | 2.0 | 6-11| 265 | 35 | 15 | $3,372,784 | $3,372,784/1y Marcus Bosl | PG | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-0 | 189 | 25 | 2 | $2,380,180 | $6,676,202/2y ---------------------

2027-2028 POST SEASON REPORT FIRST OWNER MEETING When was the last time a GM won an NBA Title and was fired at the end of the season? Never...I think? Regardless, I figure if there ever was a time that could happen, it would be now. The owner and I really got off on the wrong foot and I very publicly defied him by exceeding the salary cap. Then again, I did put a trophy on his self. With some trepidation, I picked up the phone when my secretary notified me that the owner was on the phone. "Good morning Mr. Humphries, how are we doing today?" He asked me how I thought I did and I told him what any GM in my position would have said. I told him I thought I did an excellent job. He replied, "Well you met my expectations for quality of the team despite spending more than we agreed upon. Would you like to come back for another season?" I hesitate for just a second and graciously accept his offer. I know I could and probably should just walk away on a high note, but I simply have to see if this team can repeat. How could anyone simply walk away from a team that just won 76 games and an NBA Title? Not me. SECOND OWNER MEETING Well, I was dreading this day. The team I've assembled may have won an NBA Title, but this year's payroll is going to be through the roof. Yes, we are talking about the rarefied air of the luxury tax. I told the owner we are championship material and really meant it this time, however he wasn't at all interested in hearing about venturing above the cap, much less paying a luxury tax. There is no way I can get us below the cap, without totally gutting the team and the only way I can get us below the luxury tax is to rid ourselves of some high priced talent. Giannis is the likely candidate, as he is set to make $49 plus million this year. That is indeed a lot of money for a 34 year-old power forward, but it's the "Greek Freak" we're talking about. His headed to the Hall of Fame material and one of my personal favorite players. It would break my heart if I had to give up Giannis and I would love to see him finish his career here in Chicago and keeping Giannis just happens to be one of the owners roster demands, so he stays regardless of his salary. We're going into the season with the same starting five and that's that. If we have to pay a luxury tax, so be it. PLAYER CONTRACTS Not a lot to do. I pretty much have the entire team coming back for the 2028-2029 campaign, so I just need to pick up some free agent bench players. I did go ahead an exercise the rookie options for SG Gregory Hawkins, PF Ryan Jefferson and PG Marcus Bosl. I only have three positions to fill and we have the sixth overall pick (via MIL) in the upcoming draft. FREE AGENTS C Steven Adams - Adams played well coming off the bench and when asked to step in for an injured McCuthison. However, he is 35 now and showing signs of decline. I really like Adams and I think there is a little more gas in the tank, but we are going to look elsewhere first. If I can't find a suitable replacement, I'm confident I can bring Adams back on a low level exception contract. PG Spencer Dinwiddie - Dinwiddie is another aging pro in the twilight of his career. At 35 he has nearly exhausted all of his talent and we have Bosl waiting in the wings. He could probably be had for the minimum, but I think there are better options. C James Jackson - Taken #3 by the Magic in the second round of the 2024 NBA draft, Jackson has spent the vast majority of his time in the D-League. We signed him as a two-way free agent in December of 2026. He only played in three games that season and has spent the last two seasons in Springfield. However, he is only 23 years old and I think he still has some untapped potential, I'm just not sure he will ever going to realize it, because he isn't going to get much, if any, playing time with us. Probably time for him to find a new home. STAFF CONTRACTS All four members of the coaching staff have one year remaining on their current contracts. This is the put up or shut up year. If I am going to keep any of my coaches, I'm going to have to pony up some cash. Unfortunately I have an owner who is not going to open up his coin purse. Head coach Brian Starks has a 208-38 win/loss record and two championship rings. Do you think he'll be demanding a big pay raise...is the Sun hot? Starks is looking for $18 plus million. I have approximately $9 million to spread between four coaches and the training staff. Hell, I can't even afford to re-sign the 1st assistant Byron Scott. This alone is going to drive me out of the Bulls organization. It is virtually impossible to keep good coaches when the organization isn't willing to pay fair market value. ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - END OF YEAR AWARDS MOST VALUABLE PLAYER Matt Hankins (Guard ORL) 30.1 ppg / 7.2 apg / 5.0 rpg / 3.7 spg / 0.8 bpg DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR Matt Hankins (Guard ORL) 30.1 ppg / 7.2 apg / 5.0 rpg / 3.7 spg / 0.8 bpg SIXTH MAN OF THE YEAR Ante Zizic (Center TOR) 10.8 ppg / 1.3 apg / 6.5 rpg / 0.4 spg / 0.8 bpg ROOKIE OF THE YEAR Murray Slater (Forward DEN) 16.8 ppg / 2.9 apg / 6.9 rpg / 1.2 spg / 1.1 bpg COACH OF THE YEAR Brian Starks - Chicago Bulls 76-6 <--- ALL-LEAGUE 1st TEAM G Matt Hankins (ORL) G Donovan Mitchell (UTA) F Joaquin Villarreal (ORL) F Bernard Person (PHO) C Mitchell Robinson (NYK) ALL-LEAGUE 2nd TEAM G Ja Morant (MEM) G Jamaal Hickerson (LAL) F Sharone Preston (CLE) F Zion Williamson (NOP) C Justin McCuthison (CHI) <--- ALL-LEAGUE 3rd TEAM G Luka Doncic (DAL) G Zach LaVine (MIA) F Jason Tatum (CHI) <--- F Giannis Antetokounmpo (CHI) <--- C Jason Robertson (OKC) ALL-DEFENSIVE 1st TEAM G Matt Hankins (ORL) G Matisse Thybulle (DEN) F Jayson Tatum (BOS) F Kristaps Porzingis (DAL) C Mitchell Robinson (NYK) ALL-DEFENSIVE 2nd TEAM G Ben Simmons (PHI) G Juan Menser (MIN) F Casey Ohanlon (GSW) F Giannis Antetokounmpo (CHI) <--- C Greg Dumic (GSW) ALL-ROOKIE 1st TEAM G Jared Wilson (HOU) G Gregory Hawkins (CHI) <--- F Elliot DeWitt (NOP) F Murray Slater (DEN) C Mike Simmons (MIL) ALL-ROOKIE 2nd TEAM G Vincent Kraft (PHI) G Ryan Williams (BKN) F Dan Keith (POR) F Andy Page (LAC) C Torian Smith (IND) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - NBA FINALS (GAME 4) The Chicago Bulls are NBA CHAMPIONS!!! The game was close at the end of the first half, with the Spurs leading 64-59. However, Chicago came out of the locker room like a team on a mission and proceeded to put on a basketball clinic, outscoring the Spurs 72-46 in the final two quarters and walking away with their tenth NBA Championship. D'Angelo Russell led all scorers with 34 points, 14 assists and was named the Player of the Game. Devin Booker did find his way back into the Spurs lineup and he scored 17 points with 6 assists and 4 rebounds, but he alone was not going to change the Spurs fortunes. Now the only thing that remains to be seen is whether or not the Bulls General Manager will be around next season. Since taking over as the Bulls new owner, Mario Humphries has had a somewhat contentious relationship with his GM. Dalton defied his orders to remain under the league's salary cap, but also delivered an NBA Championship. Will Humphries forgive Dalton's indiscretions or is his ego too bruised to allow him to stay? We'll know the answer to that question soon enough. NBA FINALS Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W CHI(1)| 37 | 22 | 34 | 38 | -- | 131 (4) SAS(3)| 39 | 25 | 23 | 23 | -- | 110 (0) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - NBA FINALS (GAME 3) With the injury to Giannis, coach Starks was forced to give Ryan Jefferson the start. Jefferson is no stranger to the starting lineup, but this was his first start on such a big stage and he did not disappoint. Jefferson scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in his starting role. Giannis did play 21 minutes, but he did so coming off the bench, scoring 7 points with 3 rebounds. The Player of the Game was Jayson Tatum, who scored 21 points with 4 assists and 4 rebounds. With the victory, the Bulls are poised to capture their second title in the past three years and fourth since I took over as the GM in 2019. NBA FINALS Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W CHI(1)| 28 | 27 | 26 | 33 | -- | 114 (3) SAS(3)| 31 | 28 | 26 | 22 | -- | 107 (0) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - NBA FINALS (GAME 2) Another convincing win by the Chicago Bulls, with D'Angelo Russell picking up Player of the Game honors. Russell scored 29 points, with 9 assists and 4 rebounds. Truthfully, this game could have been very different if the Spurs had hit their free throws. San Antonio went 17-28 from the charity stripe, which is only 60.7% shooting from the free throw line. The Spurs also went 7-19 from three, but neither of those stats are surprising. The Spurs are known for their free throw shooting woes and they've never been a team that is very good at shooting three's. The series now heads to San Antonio, but unlike Orlando in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Spurs seem resigned to their fate. The only good news for Spurs fans is that Giannis picked up a mild injury in game two and is listed as probable for game three with a sore arm. Although a team spokesman did state that he would miss a couple of weeks. I find that hard to believe, but that's typical coming from the PR Department. NBA FINALS Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W SAS(3)| 18 | 31 | 24 | 25 | -- | 98 (0) CHI(1)| 36 | 22 | 32 | 17 | -- | 107 (2) --------------------- ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - NBA FINALS (GAME 1) This was a game that only a Bulls fans could enjoy. Total domination from the opening tip and the Bulls never trailed in the game. Chicago's Jayson Tatum awoke from his Eastern Conference Finals slumber and scored 32 points, with 4 assists and 8 rebounds. Tatum was the clear choice for Player of the Game and I was thrilled to see him bounce back after a very lacklusters conference finals. Statistically speaking, the game looked close on paper, with Gottlieb and company having a 50-32 point edge in the paint, but beyond that, the Spurs lack of defense was fairly evident. They will need to play much better if they hope to compete with the Bulls. NBA FINALS Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W SAS(3)| 16 | 28 | 31 | 24 | -- | 99 (0) CHI(1)| 34 | 26 | 30 | 25 | -- | 115 (1) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - NBA FINALS (PREVIEW) The San Antonio Spurs have four of the top fifty players in their starting lineup. Point guard Marlin Taylor (4-Stars), shooting guard Devin Booker (4-Stars), power forward Paul Johnson (3.5-Stars), playing at the small forward position and center Gottlieb Kessler (5-Stars) who is without a doubt the best young center in the NBA. Center Jarrett Allen (3.0-Stars) rounds out the starting line up, playing at the power forward position. This team is immensely talented offensively, but lack skill on the defensive end of the court. San Antonio is rated 29th in defense and they are the worst free throw shooting team in the league. On paper, this is a very bad match up for the Spurs, which is only made worse by the injury to Devin Booker. Booker is out until 5/31 with a sprained ankle and he is scheduled to return for game four. That means shooting guard Hunter Floyd (2.5-Stars) will be thrust into the starting lineup. I don't want to suggest that the series is over before it gets started, but out of all the teams that the Bulls could have met in the finals, this is probably the best match up. The best offense (Bulls) going up against one of the worst defenses in the league (Spurs) seems like a recipe for a potential sweep. If the series isn't over in five, I'll be very surprised. TEAM INSIGHTS SAN ANTONIO SPURS (OVERALL: 48-34 | HOME: 30-11 | AWAY: 18-23) OFF Rating: 108.0 (#7) DEF Rating: 109.2 (#29) NET Rating: -1.1 (#17) PPG: 109.3 (#4) PAPG: 108.0 (#24) FG%: .470 (#4) 3P%: .315 (#19) FT%: .669 (#30) APG: 23.3 (#10) RBP: 46.6 (#7) NBA Top 50 Players: C Gottlieb Kessler, PG Marlin Taylor, SG Devin Booker, PF Paul Johnson ($238,537,922 Payroll - 4th Highest / $-85,537,922 CAP Space) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ CHICAGO BULLS (OVERALL: 76-6 | HOME: 41-0 | AWAY: 35-6) OFF Rating: 112.6 (#1) DEF Rating: 100.7 (#1) NET Rating: 11.9 (#1) PPG: 117.7 (#1) PAPG: 103.6 (#11) FG%: .489 (#1) 3P%: .342 (#5) FT%: .724 (#27) APG: 25.0 (#2) RBP: 48.5 (#1) NBA Top 50 Players: PF Giannis Antetokounmpo, SF Jayson Tatum, C Justin McCuthison, PG D'Angelo Russell ($173,351,825 Payroll - 21st Highest / $-20,351,825 CAP Space) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - EASTER CONFERENCE FINALS (GAME 5) The Bulls left no doubt who was the best team in the Eastern Conference, with a resounding 133-111 series clinching victory over the Orlando Magic. Chicago simply dominated in every aspect of the game, outscoring the Magic 64-38 in the paint and they recorded a 29-4 edge in second chance points. At one point the Bulls were up by as much as 34 points and once again dominated the boards, grabbing 58 rebounds to Orlando's 28. Giannis Antetokounmpo led all scorers with 31 points, 3 assists, 17 rebounds and was named the Player of the Game. So, for the third consecutive year, the Bulls will be headed to the NBA Finals and this time they will face off against the #3 seed in the Western Conference, the San Antonio Spurs. EASTERN CONFERENCE WESTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W ORL(2)| 30 | 29 | 18 | 34 | -- | 111 (1) | MEM(5)| 15 | 30 | 27 | 25 | -- | 97 (1) CHI(1)| 37 | 36 | 33 | 17 | -- | 133 (4) | SAS(3)| 42 | 22 | 22 | 18 | -- | 104 (4) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - EASTER CONFERENCE FINALS (GAME 4) Giannis Antetolounmpo had 20 points with 21 rebounds, Justing McCuthison had 23 points and 14 rebounds, but the Player of the Game honors went to D'Angelo Russell who scored 30 points, with 7 assists and 7 rebounds. For the Magic, it was once again the Matt Hankins show, as he led all scorers with 44 points and 10 assists. Unfortunately for Orlando and Matt Hankins, only Joaquin Villarreal was of any real help, contributing 23 points in the loss. The rest of the Magic starting lineup was held to 18 points and Jabari Parker, Buddy Hield and Alize Johnson came off the bench to add a combined score of 22 points. When your up against a team as offensively talented as the Bulls, you really need your role players to step up and the Magic supporting cast failed to do that. Of note for the Bulls is the poor play of Jayson Tatum. He has been downright awful and has only managed to score 14 total points, outside of his 24 points in game three. Tatum averages nearly 15 ppg and his lack of offensive output is a testament to the excellent defense that the Magic play. Now we head back to Chicago with a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. Here's to hoping we finish the series off in game five, because I really don't want to have to go back to Orlando and give the Magic an opportunity to take this series to a game seven. EASTERN CONFERENCE WESTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W CHI(1)| 20 | 17 | 32 | 38 | -- | 107 (3) | SAS(3)| 21 | 26 | 33 | 38 | -- | 118 (3) ORL(2)| 18 | 25 | 22 | 35 | -- | 100 (1) | MEM(5)| 32 | 32 | 32 | 34 | -- | 130 (1) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - EASTER CONFERENCE FINALS (GAME 3) The Bulls dug themselves into a 34-17 hole to start the game and were down by as much as 21 points. Unfortunately Chicago could never find their way back from such a big deficit. The bottom line is that you just can't get down big to a team that is as good defensively as the Magic are. You also don't want to give them hope and if the Magic were somewhat confident after the game two loss, their confidence was certainly buoyed by the victory. Matt Hankins scored 41 points, had 9 assists, with 6 rebounds and was named Player of the Game. Game four isn't a must win for the Bulls, but if Orlando can take game four, it will be the first time that the Bulls would have lost back-to-back games all season. That is not the kind of bulletin board material you want to be handing your opponent at this stage of the playoffs. EASTERN CONFERENCE WESTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W CHI(1)| 17 | 35 | 36 | 26 | -- | 114 (2) | SAS(3)| 18 | 24 | 39 | 17 | -- | 98 (3) ORL(2)| 34 | 34 | 29 | 26 | -- | 123 (1) | MEM(5)| 24 | 16 | 27 | 29 | -- | 96 (0) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - EASTER CONFERENCE FINALS (GAME 2) After struggling in game one, Orlando made some defensive adjustments and held Giannis to a mere 11 points, but D'Angelo Russell picked up the slack with 46 points, 6 assists and 4 rebounds and was named Player of the Game. Ryan Jefferson had another outstanding game coming off the bench, scoring 17 points with 6 rebounds. The Magic once again struggled to score in the paint and only managed to score 3 second chance points. Regardless, Orlando kept the game close and had every opportunity to win the game, but came up just a bit short in the end. So, despite being down two games to none, the Magic will head home knowing that they are equipped to defeat the Bulls. I don't think there is any question that the Magic are good enough, but are they good enough to win four of the next five? It is possible, but game three is almost a must win as Chicago is undefeated at home and taking four straight from this Bulls team is nearly impossible. EASTERN CONFERENCE WESTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W ORL(2)| 26 | 25 | 30 | 32 | -- | 113 (0) | MEM(5)| 14 | 22 | 30 | 16 | -- | 82 (0) CHI(1)| 28 | 23 | 30 | 38 | -- | 119 (2) | SAS(3)| 32 | 23 | 34 | 24 | -- | 113 (2) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - EASTER CONFERENCE FINALS (GAME 1) Matt Hankins led all scorers with 42 points, but it was Giannis Antetokounmpo who received the Player of the Game honors. Giannis scored 29 rebounds, with 8 assists and 10 rebounds. D'Angelo Russell contributed an additional 21 points and Gregory Hawkins and Ryan Jefferson combined for 34 points coming off the bench. It was good to see Jefferson back on the floor after suffering a broken wrist back in March. Orlando's defense was effective, but their lack of size and inability to rebound was their downfall. The Magic were out rebounded 59-31 and out scored the in the paint 46-38. If the Magic can't find a way to contain Giannis, this is going to be a very short series. EASTERN CONFERENCE WESTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W ORL(2)| 29 | 28 | 33 | 20 | -- | 110 (0) | MEM(5)| 25 | 23 | 21 | 40 | -- | 109 (0) CHI(1)| 39 | 28 | 24 | 30 | -- | 121 (1) | SAS(3)| 41 | 27 | 25 | 25 | -- | 118 (1) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS (PREVIEW) For the third year in a row, the Chicago Bulls and the Orlando Magic will meet in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Bulls won the two previous series and are poised to break the hearts of the Orlando Faithful yet again. However, hope is eternal and this Magic team is no push over. Coach Brett Brown has this team playing old school defense and although their offense is not as potent as it once was, Matt Hankins (5 Stars) is arguably the best point guard in the league and Joaquin Villarreal (4.5 Stars) is an elite small forward. Amir Jenkins (3 Stars) is a very good small forward, but has been thrust into the role of shooting guard due to the teams lack of depth and a lack of depth is the Magic's Achilles heel in my opinion. David Hayes (3 Stars) is another small forward being forced to play power forward and center Myles Turner (3.0 Stars) rounds out the starting lineup. As I previously stated, the Magic's bench is not very deep and only SG Buddy Hield (2.5 Stars) and PF Jabari Parker (2.5 Stars) see any significant minutes coming off the bench. The Bulls will certainly be favored in this series, but these two teams have some history and that makes this series all the more interesting. TEAM INSIGHTS ORLANDO MAGIC (OVERALL: 52-30 | HOME: 30-11 | AWAY: 22-19) OFF Rating: 104.3 (#16) DEF Rating: 101.3 (#2) NET Rating: 3.0 (#5) PPG: 107.4 (#9) PAPG: 104.5 (#12) FG%: .446 (#20) 3P%: .316 (#18) FT%: .803 (#7) APG: 24.8 (#3) RBP: 42.8 (#27) NBA Top 50 Players: PG Matt Hankins, SF Joaquin Villarreal ($167,469,821 Payroll - 25th Highest / $-14,469,821 CAP Space) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ CHICAGO BULLS (OVERALL: 76-6 | HOME: 41-0 | AWAY: 35-6) OFF Rating: 112.6 (#1) DEF Rating: 100.7 (#1) NET Rating: 11.9 (#1) PPG: 117.7 (#1) PAPG: 103.6 (#11) FG%: .489 (#1) 3P%: .342 (#5) FT%: .724 (#27) APG: 25.0 (#2) RBP: 48.5 (#1) NBA Top 50 Players: PF Giannis Antetokounmpo, SF Jayson Tatum, C Justin McCuthison, PG D'Angelo Russell ($173,351,825 Payroll - 21st Highest / $-20,351,825 CAP Space) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - SECOND ROUND (GAME 6) EASTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W ORL(2)| 31 | 32 | 42 | 26 | -- | 131 (4) | PHI(3)| 29 | 41 | 17 | 29 | -- | 116 (2) | ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - SECOND ROUND (GAME 5) EASTERN CONFERENCE WESTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W | DEN(8)| 24 | 24 | 14 | 23 | -- | 85 (1) | MEM(5)| 18 | 18 | 31 | 31 | -- | 98 (4) Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W PHI(3)| 22 | 28 | 21 | 27 | -- | 98 (2) | ORL(2)| 28 | 30 | 25 | 29 | -- | 112 (3) | ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - SECOND ROUND (GAME 4) A close game throughout, but once again Darius Garland got into foul trouble and when he fouled out late in the game, they had no answer for D'Angelo Russell. Russell scored 44 points, dished 9 assists, grabbed 5 rebounds and was named Player of the Game. With the win the Bulls advance to the Eastern Conference Championship and will face the winner of the Philadelphia/Orlando series. EASTERN CONFERENCE WESTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W CHI(1)| 37 | 24 | 29 | 37 | -- | 127 (4) | MEM(5)| 28 | 29 | 20 | 15 | -- | 92 (3) CLE(4)| 26 | 34 | 33 | 28 | -- | 121 (0) | DEN(8)| 24 | 33 | 29 | 21 | -- | 107 (1) Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W ORL(2)| 28 | 31 | 26 | 15 | -- | 100 (2) | SAS(3)| 33 | 33 | 28 | 22 | -- | 116 (4) PHI(3)| 24 | 13 | 24 | 23 | -- | 84 (2) | HOU(7)| 29 | 28 | 21 | 23 | -- | 101 (0) ---------------------

2027-2028 SEASON - PLAYOFFS - SECOND ROUND (GAME 3) Player of the Game D'Angelo Russell scored 45 points and added 9 assists in Chicago's 136-128 win over the Cavaliers. This was one of those games that really could have gone either way and the Cavaliers had the Bulls on the ropes when both Jayson Tatum and Justin McCuthison got into early foul trouble. However, the Cavs had their own troubles with fouls and both Dean Burns and Darius Garland fouled out late in the game. Unfortunately for the Cavs, their bench is not as deep as the Bulls and when Garland fouled out, Russell was left unchecked. With the win the Bulls are once again a win away from advancing to the Eastern Conference Championship. Is a sweep in the works? If history tells us anything, the answer to that question would be no, but that's why they play the games. EASTERN CONFERENCE WESTERN CONFERENCE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W CHI(1)| 25 | 41 | 25 | 27 | 18 | 136 (3) | MEM(5)| 32 | 12 | 22 | 42 | -- | 108 (3) CLE(4)| 24 | 33 | 29 | 32 | 10 | 128 (0) | DEN(8)| 30 | 17 | 22 | 31 | -- | 100 (0) Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT F W ORL(2)| 37 | 33 | 23 | 28 | -- | 121 (1) | SAS(3)| 31 | 34 | 16 | 31 | -- | 112 (3) PHI(3)| 28 | 24 | 22 | 35 | -- | 109 (2) | HOU(7)| 18 | 38 | 25 | 29 | -- | 110 (0) ---------------------