Chicago Bulls: Three things to look forward to post All-Star break
By Jerry Finger
With the Chicago Bulls having another terrible season it can be hard to watch at times so here are three things to pay close attention to.
The Chicago Bulls have only won 14 games this season and only three teams have won less than that: the New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Phoneix Suns. So needless to say it can be hard to find any reason to tune in. With them currently sitting well outside the playoff picture, the main focus for most fans is on the draft.
The potential to add athletic phenom Zion Williamson may excite most fans, while others may have their eyes set on the playmaking ability of Ja Morant. Either way, neither of those guys can save the Bulls today, so fans have to find something to look forward to with the remaining games on the schedule.
Before the trade for Otto Porter the Bulls had only won one of their previous seven games. But since acquiring the three & D talent of Porter, the Bulls have gone 2-2. One win came against a potential playoff team when they beat the Brooklyn Nets. One of the losses came at the hands of the Eastern conference leading team the Milwaukee Bucks and MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo who came up just two assists shy of having a triple-double. The other loss came in the Jabari Parker and Bobby Portis “revenge game,” where the two former Bulls combined for 30 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists.
Since trading for Porter the Bulls are averaging 117 points a game compared to only 103 points a game before the trade. For the sake of comparison, the Golden State Warriors lead the league with 118 points a game. Of course, this is a very small sample size but if this offense can continue to trend upward maybe they will be worth watching. Even if the defensive play of the team is still equivalent to that of a high school team.
With only 24 games left in the season (and half of those games coming up against potential playoff teams) the Bulls have a great opportunity to end the year on a high note or to continue being bottom feeders of the league.
The hope should be for the Bulls to show that they can be competitive against some the league’s better teams, while still holding on to a top-four spot for the draft lottery. They have three games left against the Philadelphia 76ers and their “big four,” one against the Bucks and two games against the Toronto Raptors. If the Bulls are able to show us they can somewhat compete against the Eastern Conference’s elite teams, hope for next season will drastically improve.
So here are three things you can look forward to watching on what is hopefully an improving Bulls team post-all-star break.