Swirsky: Bulls stole Gibson

Chuck Swirsky says mark it down; the Bulls stole Taj Gibson Thursday night.

The Bulls have to feel satisfied knowing they took a highly skilled player in 6-9 James Johnson at No. 16 (Wake Forest), projected in some mock polls to go as high as nine. Johnson is versatile and can play the small or power forward positions.

I like the pick. He’s smooth with good ball handling skills. With the No. 26 pick the Bulls stole Taj Gibson. Mark it down. Save this ESPNCHICAGO.com blog and show it to me a year from today. He’s got length, can block shots and reminds me of Joe Smith.

Going into the draft I thought the Bulls would come away with either Johnson, DeJuan Blair or Jeff Teague with the No. 16 pick. Tyler Hansbrough and Gerald Henderson, two players I really liked, were not available so Johnson was the clear choice. Blair is tough, rugged and gets after it but teams backed off from drafting him because of issues regarding his knees and his size at 6-6. The depth at forward should create some outstanding competition in training camp. I’m expecting Tyrus Thomas to have a monster year. He knows if he wants a fat contract extension he must produce, and I think he will. The Bulls are gearing up for another playoff run led by Derrick Rose, knowing they’ll have roughly $25 million in cap room this time next year.

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