There is no timetable on chemistry.
The veteran Bulls players have spent the last month of training camp reiterating that over and over again, led by Dwyane Wade, who has preached a certain amount of patience in allowing a team to come together.
Wade would know.
He was one of the pillars in Miami when “The Big Three’’ took South Beach by storm and landed in four consecutive NBA Finals.
Admittedly, however, Wade said there were obvious bumps in the road in Year 1, and that’s what he expected with his new Bulls teammates, as well.
“I have no idea,’’ Wade said, when asked when he felt this team could get on the same page and play consistent basketball. “Everything is different. I can’t say it will or it won’t be. With every team when you add a new piece, when you add new players, it’s going to be a moment where you have to adjust to each other.’’
The preseason was evidence of that, as there were good stretches played, but there were also those moments that Wade warned about.
Especially in the preseason finale against Atlanta in which the offense bogged down, and looked even worse when they couldn’t hit open outside shots.
“For us [back in Miami], we had a lot of growing pains, but at the end of the day we were in the finals in our first year of playing together,’’ Wade said. “We were just great talent. We weren’t the team we needed to be, but we were still in the Finals. So you just never know.’’
The Bulls did have workouts on Monday at the Advocate Center as Thursday’s opening season tip-off gets closer for them, and coach Fred Hoiberg has acknowledged all along that this was a work in progress. Maybe that’s why off days have been far and few between since camp started.
Not only to get the veterans on the same page, but also the additions of new faces like Michael Carter-Williams and first-round pick Denzel Valentine.
“I love how we competed throughout the preseason,’’ Hoiberg said. “We’re still making mistakes, not too unexpected with the amount of new faces, the amount of young guys that we have on this team. But we’re getting better, we’re making progress and I’m excited about that. I’m excited to see where we are as a team playing, in my opinion, one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference in Game 1.’’
Boston isn’t the only big test early in the schedule.
After the Celtics, the Bulls host Indiana, travel to Brooklyn and then face the Celtics once again, this time in Boston. Then comes the emotional Nov. 4 game in which Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah return to the United Center with the New York Knicks.
“We have a very tough early-season schedule, so we’ll learn a lot about ourselves in this early part of the season,’’ Hoiberg said. “I’m excited to get out there, I know a lot of our guys are.
“I love how our guys have competed, I like how they’ve stayed together through the preseason. Hopefully we keep making progress.’’
They better. The front office first cleaned out the coach in Tom Thibodeau two years ago, and then pointed the finger at the roster last season. Finger pointing is running thin.
“We just have to have some patience,’’ Wade said. “But like I said, you never know.’’
