Bulls likely to use jackpot pick on either Rose, Beasley

The unselfishness and hard-nosed defense that defined Chicago disappeared last season. Several players had run-ins with coaches and skipped practices and shootarounds. Luol Deng and Ben Gordon turned down lucrative contract extensions and are restricted free agents after somewhat disappointing seasons. And for Paxson, a busy offseason just got a little more interesting.

Rose and Beasley are widely viewed as future stars, and both would fill major holes for the Bulls.

Drafting Rose, a Chicago product who carried Memphis to the national championship game, would give the Bulls a true point guard and allow Kirk Hinrich to move to shooting guard. That could also be a precursor to a trade that would relieve an already congested backcourt.

Beasley, the Kansas State forward who averaged 26.2 points and an NCAA-best 12.4 rebounds, would give the Bulls the inside force they've craved the past few seasons.

"These are two terrific young talents, there's no doubt about it," Paxson said. "They both offer totally different elements. One can impact the game without scoring. The other one can just flat out score the ball. It's a nice position to be in."

Paxson indicated Rose and Beasley are the only two players Chicago will work out for the No. 1 pick, perhaps an indication that he's not looking to trade down in the draft. And he said he feels no pressure to take Rose, the hometown product.

Paxson said he'll follow the example that Orlando and Portland set in recent years. Both teams took their time deciding which player to take with the top pick -- the Magic choosing Dwight Howard over Emeka Okafor in 2004 and the Trail Blazers taking Greg Oden over Durant.

"The great thing right now for us is that the pool of people to consider at that spot is really narrow," Paxson said. "So we could really spend the time we need to spend to find out."