Tracy McGrady, Allen Iverson, Vince Carter and LeBron James will be watching the NBA playoffs on TV when the first round begins Saturday. Yet if you were the Bulls, you'd figure your problems would be solved if you had one of those players. So just how do you build a successful team?

Among the Bulls' many rebuilding plans, the centerpiece always was to get a star, whether it be through free agency--like their pursuits of McGrady, Grant Hill and Tim Duncan in 2000--or through the draft with Tyson Chandler and Eddy Curry.

 

Now look for the Bulls to pursue what is becoming the new, popular rebuilding option in the NBA, practiced best these days in Milwaukee and Memphis.

"When you take over a team," one veteran general manager said, "all you hear is you have to go out and get a star and you'll be OK. But there's a lot of merit in building a team first and when it's the right team, see if you can add a star. Just having a superstar doesn't guarantee you success.

"Look at Toronto, Philadelphia and Orlando. If you don't have a team, you're not going anywhere. Maybe you can only go so far with that kind of team, but at least you can be successful until you figure out how to get that guy."