Offensively, Kyle Korver is a good fit for the Bulls. The Bulls needed someone who can shoot from the outside, and he should be a good addition to the pick-and-roll game they will surely use a lot. NBA Playbook demonstrates how he helps in that regard. The question is defense.

Earlier this week, I said I would have preferred only J.J. Redick because I think he’s a better defender. But I’ll give Korver a shot under the tutelage of Tom Thibodeau before I get too upset about whom the Bulls decided to pursue first.

After Monday’s introductory press conference, Korver told Boers and Bernstein (listen to the entire interview here) about how the Jazz graded their players on defense: the Utah coaches gave check marks to a player if he guarded his man correctly, boxed out, basically, was where he was supposed to be. Well, over the course of last season, Korver received the highest marks in the Utah class. This is a good sign for Thibodeau’s defense.

A lot of Thibodeau’s defense, and why the Celtics were successful, was because players knew where to go and were normally in the right position. For example: this diagram breaking down the Celtics’ pick-and-roll defense. Again, it’s from NBA Playbook.

The Celtics were able to create turnovers because they had some athletic players. The Bulls, with Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah, specifically, do too. And those two will have an important job double-teaming the ball-handler as he goes around the screen. But the guy responsible for covering the roll man is whomever is covering the wing player in the opposite corner, which is where I expect Korver will be when he’s on the floor.

At the link at NBA Playbook, check out the screen grabs and look for the Celtics’ Marquis Daniels. This should be the position that Korver is most often in, and while it’s an important part of the defense, it doesn’t take a whole lot of athleticism. Daniels simply slides into position and does what he was supposed to do. Something, according to Korver and the Jazz coaches, that Korver is great at.

Sebastian Pruiti, who writes NBA Playbook mentions how important it is to trust the other players on the floor to be where they’re supposed to be:

“You know how much trust it takes to just leave your man and go double the basketball (or make a play to get the steal)? … Sure, the strategy is great, but he got his players to trust their teammates and believe in the system, and that is a large part of the reason it worked as well.

With Korver in position, Rose and Noah can go hard at the guard maneuvering around the screen, knowing someone is there to take away the roll man option.

I’m not saying Korver will be a good defender. This is only one part of being a reliable defensive player and Korver still lacks some of the other parts. I’m also not changing my mind on who I’d rather have. But, I’m going to wait to see it in October before I judge.

Erick is a contributor to i94 Sports. You can find his daily thoughts at his site Outside the Clubhouse, and on Twitter at @OTCChicago23.