The Bulls were smart to keep quiet amid dramatic trade deadline

The Chicago Bulls have proved that, when healthy, this roster is one of the best all-around groups in the league

Lonzo Ball just needs to get healthy. In the 35 games Ball has played this season, he’s averaged over three three-pointers per game at 42.3 percent shooting, by far the best rate of his career. He also provides size and quick hands at the defensive end, as well as spectacular full court passes that helped the Bulls lead the league in fastbreak points when the 24-year-old is healthy.

The same goes for Alex Caruso. Caruso and Ball may just be the best defensive backcourt duo in the league. When they share the court, the Bulls are +9.5 points per 100 possessions.

They generate steals and opponent turnovers at an enormous rate, and both players can defend the other team’s guards and forwards anywhere on the court. Before Dec. 12th, when Caruso injured his knee, the Bulls were 11th in the NBA in defensive rating. Since then, Caruso and Ball have appeared in a combined 11 games, and the Bulls are 26th in defensive rating.

Zach LaVine is deserving of his All-Star nod. He’s one of the best scorers in the NBA, and he’s maintaining impressive shooting splits. I can’t help but feel like something’s off, though. Being the longest-tenured Bull, the story coming into this season was that the arrivals of Vucevic, DeRozan, and Ball, were to help LaVine lead the team to the playoffs. No one saw DeRozan’s success coming, but LaVine was supposed to be an All-Star starter as well.

Why isn’t he? Was he robbed? I don’t think so. I just haven’t seen the drive from LaVine that I was hoping to see this season. Allowing DeRozan to go to work is perfectly fine, but I’m still waiting for one of LaVine’s signature performances where he singlehandedly takes over a game. Last season, the average of the 10 highest scoring games within his first 45 games was 39.3 points. LaVine’s season-high this season: 36 points. There’s definitely room to improve.

Coby White has had an inconsistent, sometimes high, sometimes low, season. The high’s include last night’s game against Minnesota in which White came off the bench to score 22 points and shoot 6-for-7 from the three-point line in the second half. If White were to find himself comfortable in the sixth man catch-and-shoot role we need him to play, that would benefit the Bulls greatly.

Patrick Williams is hopefully enjoying his long rest due to his wrist injury. He’s going to be desperately needed as the best defender the Bulls have to guard forwards we’re inevitably going to run into in the playoffs such as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum, Pascal Siakam, and others.

Finally, Nikola Vucevic just needs to be better. He’s good for a double-double practically every night, but his shooting splits are among the worst of his career. When Vuc is struggling on offense, he also has the tendency to stop trying on the defensive side of the floor. If the big man can find a groove and increase his scoring average back to the 20’s, hopefully his effort on defense will follow suit, and the Bulls will have their third All-Star back.

A lot has to go right for the Bulls to contend this season, but at least we know the blueprint that can get us there. Health isn’t something that can be controlled, but every injured Bull is planning to return to the court in some capacity before the playoffs begin. Once that time comes, we can lean on DeRozan’s leadership and playoff experience, a deep rotation of guards, perimeter and isolation defense, and above all, hunger. These Bulls are hungry. They hear the experts ranking Milwaukee, Brooklyn, Miami, and sometimes others ahead of them. The doubt fuels the fire. And if not this season, the future for this team is very bright.