Butler still Bulls’ best thing going
Injuries, poor drafts have taken toll on team
Thirty games left to salvage something. That’s what the Bulls are facing when they return from the All- Star break. They don’t have much to build on. In fact, the product has gotten worse since training camp.
Thirty games left to salvage something.
That’s what the Bulls are facing when they return from the All- Star break.
They don’t have much to build on. In fact, the product has gotten worse since training camp. The Bulls have lost 13 of their last 18 games and still are searching for an identity.
It’s a team screaming for a trade before the deadline Thursday, but it seems incapable of pulling one off.
When asked this week if anything had changed on the trade front, Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg replied, “I don’t think so.”
That doesn’t come as a surprise, especially because the front office has insisted several times since the removal of coach Tom Thibodeau that the Bulls have a “championship roster.’’
That’s hard to swallow these days, but the team hopes improved health and more time in the new system will lead to better days.
What went right in thefirst half
1. Jimmy Jam and the Funky Bunch: Whether it’s hanging with good friend Mark Wahlberg or getting a hug from actress Shay Mitchell after games, no one has gone from “just a humble kid from Tomball, Texas” to Hollywood quicker than Jimmy Butler.
He leads the Bulls in scoring, minutes and hostile takeovers of leadership, and the team is 0- 4 since his knee injury. The Bulls have themselves a legitimate star wing for years to come.
2. Derrick Rose finally listened: Bulls coaches — past and present— have been begging Rose to forgo his dismal outside shot and
attack the rim. It only took more than a season of pleading, but the point guard is finally listening.
Rose’s points per game have gone up each month since November, and he averaged 19.4 points in the last five games.
3. Mike Dunleavy finally returned: The one player considered the “glue” of the team returned from back surgery just before the break. The Bulls hope Dunleavy’s addition will make them more efficient and deeper at small forward.
What went wrong in thefirst half
1. No one died, but … : Different coach, same story. The Bulls just can’t stay healthy. Joakim Noah is out for the season after shoulder surgery, Nikola Mirotic will slowly return after surgery for appendicitis, Butler could miss three more weeks with a knee injury and there’s always that tricky “general soreness’’ that keeps Rose out of games.
And none of it can be pinned on Thibodeau.
2. Draft misses: Since they drafted Butler in 2011, the Bulls have had more misses than hits. Rookie Bobby Portis has shown signs, but the jury is still out on Doug McDermott and Tony Snell, and Marquis Teague was a bust.
The lack of consistent depth has been exposed this season, and that falls directly on Gar Forman and John Paxson.
3. No identity: Hoiberg has had to dummy down his playbook, and the offense still is searching for consistency. Plus, that once- proud defensive DNA has all but disappeared. Agendas and ego have made the Bulls lose their way.