Chicago Bulls: Jabari Parker must accept possible bench role

Chicago Bulls forward Jabari Parker was in for a surprise on Wednesday when he came off the bench in a game against the Indiana Pacers.

The Chicago Bulls brought a hometown kid back to where it all began for him when they signed forward Jabari Parker to a two-year, $40 million deal this offseason. Bulls fans were excited to see the team trying to improve with the Chicago native, and Parker was obviously thrilled to be back home. It seems as if the honeymoon phase of this new relationship may already be over.

Parker was already going to be in a different role as part of this Bulls team. He played power forward during his entire NBA career with the Milwaukee Bucks. Now, with rising star Lauri Markkanen firmly locked into the power forward position, Parker was supposed to transition to small forward. However, plans change rapidly in today’s NBA and that appears to be the case here.

Parker wasn’t in the starting lineup for the Bulls during Wednesday’s preseason game with the Indiana Pacers. Instead, young power forward Bobby Portis started in that position with Markannen out for six to eight weeks with an elbow injury. Parker came off the bench to replace Portis and played pretty well. He even had a buzzer-beater at the end of the first quarter.

Parker ended up playing 26 minutes in the game while Portis played 22 minutes, but Portis had the better overall night. Parker started out great but failed to score at all in the second half. Meanwhile, Portis put up 20 points on 8-11 shooting. Small forward Justin Holiday played the position Parker thought he’d be moving to, and also had a strong night with 22 points.

It’s now clear that Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg scrapped the idea of moving Parker to small forward. He explained after Thursday’s practice that he was sticking with the lineup combinations he tried on Wednesday. Hoiberg believes this is the best lineup to get the team through several weeks without Markkanen. Parker even practiced with the second unit on Thursday.

After the game against the Pacers, Parker declined to speak to media. This fueled speculation that he was unhappy with the lineup change. Parker confirmed that on Thursday when he did speak to the media. He was obviously not thrilled with the idea of coming off the bench, saying it would be a “huge adjustment.” Right now, he needs to do what’s best for this team.

There are many reasons why Parker should know that this isn’t the right time to stir the pot with this squad. The Bulls have a young lineup that will definitely experience some growing pains this year, but Parker needs to understand that conflict in the locker room will only make the learning process more difficult.

I’m glad Parker is back home and with the Bulls, but he needs to realize he’s not the focal point of this team. Parker isn’t the guy the Bulls are looking to lead the way. That role would go to Markkanen or possibly guard Zach LaVine. Parker was a nice pickup, but he’s on more of a “Prove it” contract than secure in his role with the Bulls.

Parker’s contract is really a one-year, $20 million deal with a team option in the second year. If he complains about his role, he could end up a free agent after only one season with the Bulls. If he doesn’t mesh well with his teammates or disagrees with how they’re playing, he will be gone after this year. $20 million is nice, but Parker needs stability after a rocky start to his NBA career.

It’s time for Parker to realize that his bad luck with injury and inability to excel on defense is a huge factor in this decision for him to come off the bench. The lineup changes worked on Wednesday night, but who knows what will happen going forward? Parker shouldn’t lose hope that he will be a starter at some point, but he also needs to accept his possible new role.