The Bulls have been mired in sub-mediocrity for the past three seasons, finishing with middling records a shade below .500 but failing to advance out of the play-in tournament each year.
Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times (subscriber link) takes stock of whether or not Chicago has an actionable strategy for lifting the club out of its plight long-term.
Cowley calls out president Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley for having “no real plan” for bringing in an All-Star-caliber player this summer, either through free agency or a trade.
There’s more out of the Windy City:
- On January 24 this season, the Bulls will retire the No. 1 jersey of former 2011 MVP guard Derrick Rose, who called it a career last summer. Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic asserts that the oft-hurt Rose is worthy of such an honor, despite only spending eight seasons — although he missed all of 2012/13 and all but 10 games in 2013/14 with injuries — in Chicago. Lorenzi observes that Rose, a Chicago native, will be just the fifth Bulls player to have his jersey retired, along with Michael Jordan‘s No. 23, Scottie Pippen‘s No. 33, Jerry Sloan‘s No. 4, and Bob Love‘s No. 10.
- In lieu of landing an established star, the Bulls are counting on 2025 All-Rookie Second Team forward Matas Buzelis to emerge as their star of the future, observes Lorenzi.
- Just a year after being signed to a five-season, $90MM deal, Bulls forward Patrick Williams finds himself in a tenuous standing with Chicago. The club’s lone trade this summer, for another defense-first young forward in Isaac Okoro, could make Williams somewhat expendable.