Top 10 Chicago Bulls of the 21st century

2. Luol Deng

Has there been a less talked about, more underrated and more overlooked Bull in the last 20 years than Luol Deng? I doubt it. He came to the Bulls in 2004 out of Duke and scored a lasting impact on the team and the city over his 10-year career in Chicago.

It wasn’t until 2012 that Deng was given an All Star nod, which was several years too late. Deng was Mr. consistent for the Bulls over his tenure with the Bulls.

People outside of Chicago always looked at him as a mid-level player for most of his career — never more than good, never great. Deng did so many things that never showed up on the stat sheet. He understood the game of basketball better than most of his teammates over the years.

Deng was an underrated rebounder, often overlooked as a defender and, quite frankly, deserved ten times the attention he received while playing for the Bulls. For most of his early years there, Deng was part of some awful teams. It wasn’t until Chicago became competitive that the national media took notice of him — but, it was too late.

Seven seasons in, and finally Deng was respected. It is okay, though, because Bulls fans will never forget what Deng meant to the team and the city. He was run into the ground night after night for most of his career. From 2009-2014, Deng flirted with 40-minute averages.

At times, I felt bad for the guy, because he was exhausted. There were nights where he only got one or two quick breaks and ended up playing 46, 47 or close to all 48 minutes. He not once complained, at least from what we could see on the outside. He was and always will be remembered as the definition of class.