UPDATE: Ronnie Brewer tells KC Johnson: ”They might try to sign me back once the dust settles at a lower salary. I will test the market though.” Ronnie Brewer at a discounted price back in a Bulls uniform? Yes, please!
Ronnie Brewer on ESPN Radio 1000: “It’s always a possibility to come back when the market opens up, we’ll see. Some of the best moments of my career [were in Chicago].”
Grade: C
Season Averages: 6.9 PPG, 2.1 APG, 3.5 RPG
Season Highlight: In the New Years Day blowout over the Memphis Grizzlies, Ronnie Brewer contributed 17 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. It was his second start as a Chicago Bull. It was the intangibles (defense, deflections, 50/50 balls, baseline cuts, etc.) that he brought to each and every game that makes him a unique player on the Bulls roster. At one point in the season, Dwyane Wade called him the best baseline slasher in the league – for his ability to roam the baseline and have the instinct to cut at the perfect time, catching his defender off guard. MORE
Ronnie Brewer called into ESPN radio’s Waddle & Silvy show Thursday morning to talk Bulls, his future with the team, and being a spectator to the NBA playoffs:
On whether or not he follows the NBA playoffs after being eliminated:
Obviously it’s tough to watch because you feel like the way that you played during the regular season would transpire into the playoffs. You get knocked out and you see teams out there that you feel like you had a chance to beat, but as a professional and student of the game, you enjoy watching basketball and learn everyday. So, I watch the playoffs and watch the intensity and try to learn from the teams that are still playing.
On who he is rooting for in the series between both Bulls’ rivals Indiana and Miami:
I wouldn’t say I’m rooting for any team in the NBA, especially when you’re on a good team, but I could speak for a lot of guys on our team and probably a lot of the fans, you definitely don’t like the Heat. They are like enemy number one and the battles that we had with the Pacers the last couple of years has brewed to be a pretty good rival so, I don’t really know who should win the series, but as long as Miami doesn’t win the championship that’s fine with me.
On the condensed season:
For me, it was an up and down year. Coming in, trying to vie for a starting job, then we find Rip and he gets hurt, then I start a little bit and he comes back and then Luol gets hurt and I start at the three, and then I go back to the bench to be more of a role player, it was tough. [All of the injuries] made it really difficult this year to have a lot of success.
On the possibility that him and Kyle Korver may not be in a Bulls uniform next year:
It’s part of the business, you take the good and the bad. To me, I think we would both like to be on the roster and we both feel like we could make contributions to the team in different ways, and I think the management and Coach Thibs agree. In an ideal situation, hopefully they can bring us both back.
If he could choose staying on Bulls in limited role or going to different team as starter:
To me, I like the situation I’m in with the Bulls. I feel like we have a great team and the chemistry was bar none compared to the other teams I’ve been on. We’ve had a lot of success and we’ve won a lot of games in the regular season, and if we didn’t have injuries this year we could have been in the mix for the championship. I’d love to stay with the Bulls, the fans treat me great, the city has treated me well, and it’s a first class organization, so I’d like to stay there.
On Luol Deng’s Olympic dream and whether he should play or have surgery:
That’s a really tough predicament he’s in. I think the organization would tell him to sit the Olympics out and have surgery because they want him to be back for the start of the season. But, to me, the Olympics is a once in a lifetime opportunity. A lot of people can’t say that they will ever carry the flag for their country, that’s a great honor and it speaks highly of him. Whatever decision he makes, it’s for him and people just have to bear with him.
On Derrick Rose a year from now:
The biggest thing for him is going to be the mental part, him still being able to go into the lane as hard as he did. I think he’ll still be just as explosive, jump just as high, and possibly be better than what he was. He’s a tough kid, I think this is just a minor setback and he’ll be back bigger and better next year.
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