Tonight, the Chicago Bulls played their 16th game of the year, the second of which has been aired on a national broadcast. ESPN hosted the Bulls and Bucks matchup as the featured early window game, giving the entire country a chance to judge the Bulls’ 6-9 record for themselves. While most of the roster has been inconsistent at best, especially the usual suspects of Zach LaVine, Coby White, and Patrick Williams, one cornerstone piece over the last four years is having his best year in a Bulls jersey. Who did ESPN give flowers to, and can he sustain these numbers over an entire campaign?
Nikola Vucevic Performing At An “All-Star Level”
Vucevic is celebrating a flashback season to his Orlando Magic days, where he appeared in his first and only two All-Star games. Averaging the highest field goal and three-point percentages of his career paired with a top-three scoring season in his 14-year career, the 34-year-old center is turning heads leaguewide. Not only is he the only consistent offensive force this year for the Bulls, but he’s simultaneously inflating his trade market value in the case of a potential trade deadline dump of the veteran.
Realistic Outlook For The 2024-25 Chicago Bulls
Chicago has shocked many by beginning the year 6-9. They were heavy favorites to miss the playoffs and NBA Play-In Tournament entirely, yet sit in the middle of the pack now. Their current formula is not necessarily sustainable and relies heavily on the three-point field goal and transition battle, but they’ve been relatively healthy. Lonzo Ball is the only notable injury, but they’re unfortunately used to being without his services. As the season progresses and they regress to the mean, look for the Bulls to finish between the 10th and 12th slot in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Bulls are stuck in a limbo of sorts. While they’re not good enough to make a playoff push and should probably sell out their highest-paid aging players, this front-office group has not earned enough trust to execute another overhaul without personnel change from the top down. LaVine and Vucevic should not be on the roster after the February trade deadline and should aim to retain their top-ten 2025 NBA Draft selection. This would also dump their two most expensive contracts and oldest roster pieces. Shipping LaVine’s contract has been a goal of most of the fanbase since he inked it several seasons ago.
Would you prefer the Bulls overhaul and let White and Matas Buzelis take the reigns of the future, or ride out the LaVine and Vucevic pairing that has come up short since its inception when Arturas Karnisovas first got to town? Would you trust Karnisovas and company with another rebuild and valuable draft stock?
