Despite their two game winning streak, the Chicago Bulls must blow it up before it is too late
With two wins over the Hawks and Heat, some fans are wondering if the team has turned a corner following an abysmal start
It is time to rebuild in Chicago. Despite having a talented trio of DeMar DeRozan (25.9 points per game with a TS% of 60.1), Zach LaVine (21.7 points and 1.1 steals per game with a TS% of 56.3), and Nikola Vucevic (16.8 points and 10.4 rebounds per game with a TS% of 60.4), the Bulls are only two games ahead of the 13th seed Magic and just five games ahead of the last place Hornets. They have only won four out of their last 11 games, and despite winning two straight games to start this week, last week’s blunders against the Timberwolves (where they gave up 150 points) and Knicks (twice), should not be forgotten.
Their defensive rating was ranked 7th just last week and now has dropped to 13th (defensive rating of 113), and their offensive rating of 111.7 (ranked 22nd) is very concerning as well. It is mind-boggling that just under two years ago this team traded away Wendell Carter Jr. (who is already arguably as impactful as a player as Vucevic because of his defense) and the 7th overall pick (which turned into Franz Wagner, an up and coming NBA Star) for Vucevic, one of the league's worst interior defenders.
The thirst for making the playoffs after a long drought outweighed a rebuilding process that was well on its way to being complete. Lauri Markkanen is now an All-Star in Utah, Carter Jr. is thriving in Orlando, and first round picks still on the roster, Coby White and Patrick Williams, have not been developed properly as they have been pushed to the side for DeRozan, LaVine, and Vucevic. What makes matters even worse is that the Bulls only have a top 4 protected first round pick for next year as it will go to Orlando otherwise.
Despite his injury history, Lonzo Ball is still a top 5 defender at the point guard position, a 40% 3PT shooter, and one of the best playmakers in the NBA when healthy. When the Bulls had their hot start last season and were 1st in the Eastern Conference, Ball was leading this team on both ends of the floor. Right when he got hurt, the Bulls started deteriorating, which eventually resulted in a first round exit against the Bucks as Ball failed to return on the season.
Though his defense is questionable, LaVine is still an efficient three level scorer, and someone who just committed to the team long term (though recent reports, if accurate, of his teammates being unhappy with him raises a multitude of questions). DeRozan has had the two best seasons of his career with the Bulls and continues to score at will and single-handedly win this team games.
Bulls fans would consider DeRozan to be the franchise player, but if the Bulls want to get out of the purgatory of barley making or missing the playoffs and not being bad enough to have a top 5 pick, then they should heavily consider moving on from him. Despite his lack of defense and hit or miss efficiency from 3PT range, Vucevic is still one of the better offensive centers in the NBA and can stretch the floor when needed to. Will he ever replicate his career season in Orlando before being traded? Probably not, but there is still a lot of value for teams that want to win now.
The most viable option to start the rebuilding process would be to build around Ball (when he returns) and LaVine, and ship DeRozan and Vucevic for picks as many contending teams would give up numerous first-round selections to get a blockbuster deal of that magnitude complete. Some initial trade packages that come to mind are Russell Westbrook (on an expiring contract) and the Lakers’ two unprotected first round picks (2027 and 2029), and Christian Wood (or Spencer Dinwiddie), Reggie Bullock, Davis Bertans, Josh Green, Jaden Hardy, and two-three unprotected first round picks from the Mavericks.
Those are the only two teams at the moment with the assertiveness to improve their rosters to win now at all costs. The only other team that wants to win now that I can think of approaching the Bulls for this sort of package is either the Knicks (who have a lot of tradable assets) and the Heat (who also have a lot of tradable assets, though Jimmy Butler and DeRozan may not be able to coexist on offense because of similar playing styles). Vucevic will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year and DeRozan will be an unrestricted free agent in 2024, and even if they wanted to keep both of those players and see if this roster could work out, whose to say that DeRozan and Vucevic would even consider re-signing with the Bulls?
Furthermore, the Bulls fans have yearned for success following the Derrick Rose era and finally made the playoffs last year, but at what cost? The Bulls may not make the playoffs again, this core group isn’t getting any younger, and they don’t have enough picks to fall back on if this situation continues to get worse. What the Bulls fans really want is to continuously make the playoffs and have a shot at the title every year, and this team certaintly won’t be able to get it done. It is now or never for the Bulls to right their wrongs, fix the mess they have created, and get out of this basketball purgatory and rebuild while they can.