Do the Chicago Bulls need to add a veteran presence at point guard? by Nicholas Niendorf

Paul Zipser’s emergence last season was a pleasant surprise for the Chicago Bulls. Now the question becomes: How good can he be?

This series will take a look at each Chicago Bulls player’s shooting strengths and weaknesses.

Though he has a knack for coming up in big moments, Paul Zipser needs to become more consistent. His 21 points to help the Chicago Bulls beat the Brooklyn Nets in the final game of the season and make the playoffs cemented him as a fan favorite. If he’s to become one of Chicago’s best players, however, he’ll need games like that more often.

Zipser is an average shooter at his position. He made just 39.8 percent of his total shots during his rookie season, and 33.3 percent of his 3s. Outside of his sweet spot–the left corner–Zipser is mostly average or below average from everywhere else, as you can see from his shot chart.

Paul Zipser's shot chart from last season. He likes that left corner. pic.twitter.com/8Lk8jdEKnN — Pippen Ain't Easy (@BullsBeatBlog) August 31, 2017

Determining where Ziper should focus his improvement depends on what his role with the team will be. For example, Zipser can finish at the rim and take opponents off the dribble, but the Bulls might prefer that he space the floor and allow guys like Kris Dunn and Zach LaVine to drive the lane.

With his length (6-foot-8), he has a chance to develop into a versatile spotup shooter and wing defender. The Bulls should look at him as a possible 3-and-D guy who can play anywhere between the 2 and the 4 in smaller lineups, and attack close outs when he has to.

Zipser shot 38.1 percent on spotup jumpers, and averaged about two per game, last season. That’s about average for his position. If he can get that to around 42 percent on twice as many attempts, he’ll be one the more prolific spotup shooters among forwards.

He’s got it going from the left corner already. He needs to expand that range to other areas on the court.