New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) drives against Chicago Bulls guard Alex Caruso on April 5, 2024, at the United Center in Chicago (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune/TNS)
Over the last seven years the Bulls have been over .500 only once – during the 2021-2022 season. It is safe to say that this current Bulls team is nothing compared to the teams of the past.
From 2010 to 2016 the Bulls would be a consistent competitor in the Eastern Conference. Going all the way back to 1990 to 1998 the Bulls won six championships. This franchise is accustomed to winning, but recently our teams have not been able to figure it out.
As it currently stands the Bulls have the ninth seed in the Eastern Conference and will be playing in the play-in tournament. If the Bulls are able to win the play-in tournament, they will get the opportunity to play the first seed in the Eastern Conference, which is currently the Boston Celtics.
If they have to play the Boston Celtics the Bulls will get destroyed, which puts the Bulls in a horrible position. They are not good enough to compete in the playoffs but also not bad enough to tank for a high draft pick. It would have been great if the team made up their mind halfway through the season to either tank or make moves to make the Bulls competitive.
Instead the front office did nothing and the Bulls’ mediocre play has continued. The only way to fix this issue and be competitive next season is to make great moves in the offseason.
The first thing we have to do is get rid of our superstar core, consisting of DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vučević, and Zach Lavine. Although these players are all great they are not elite enough to carry this team against the top competitors in the NBA.
Zach Lavine was traded to the Bulls in 2017 and since then has been a two-time All Star. Despite this great achievement, his style of play is hurting the Bulls’ current roster. Lavine plays very heavy Iso-ball which does not allow the rest of the team to flow as well. Out of the big three he is the one that most definitely has to go.
But the issue with trading Lavine is his massive contract. He signed a five-year $215 million dollar contract back in 2022 and does not play like a player who deserves that amount of money, so no team is willing to trade for him.
Lavine has also been injured for almost this whole season, so teams don’t want to risk trading for him. With Lavine off the court the Bulls are 26-25, and with him on the court they are 10-15. Truth be told, we don’t even need Lavine, it is quite the tragedy that we have not been able to trade him yet.
Vucevic is just not that great of a basketball player and is too slow to compete in the current NBA. We have a backup center in Andre Drummond who should be getting more minutes than Vucevic. If we were to trade Vucevic the team would not take a blow at all.
The best player out of these three is definitely DeRozan. He has done great things for this city since he has been here and has revived his career. He has been an all star twice in Chicago, and was even in the running for MVP in the 2021-2022 season.
Although he’s been great for us, he is too old and is only going to start regressing as the seasons go on. DeRozan cannot be our star for much longer because of his age and the Bulls need a new fresh face of the franchise.
This is where Coby White comes in. White was the seventh pick of the first round of the 2019 NBA draft. He was scouted as an explosive guard who is able to create his own offense. White has not lived up to the hype he was given until this season.
White has exploded onto the NBA scene this season, averaging 19.3 points per game and shooting 38% from beyond the arc. He is in the running for the NBA Most Improved Player Award and has proven he is becoming an elite shooter who can carry an offense.
Additionally, next season Lonzo Ball is finally returning; this will either be great for the Bulls or horrible. Before Ball got injured the Bulls had the best season in recent memory. Ball was an excellent facilitator and helped get Lavine and DeRozan good shots.
If he returns to his past form he will be a great pairing with Coby White. Since his injury has kept him out since 2022, there is a high possibility that he has regressed. If the Bulls are able to get the same player they had in 2021 then the future is very bright.
The Bulls have two first round draft picks in the 2024 draft so it is possible that we strike gold, but it’s not something to hold out hope for. We also still have players like Drummond, Alex Caruso, and Patrick Williams who are all very talented. We have good role players to build around but we really need an elite superstar.
If we are able to trade our big three for players that can mesh well with our team, we have a chance to be competitors in a weaker Eastern Conference next season. As it currently stands the Bulls will be seeing the Atlanta Hawks in the play-in tournament. If the Bulls do not lose to them they will lose to the Celtics, so this season is pretty much over.