NEWSLETTER
The Eastern Conference will not stop riding the bumper cars.
As the Chicago Bulls look toward their final game before a much-needed All-Star break, they find themselves tied for first-place alongside the Miami Heat. The Milwaukee Bucks have fallen 1.5 games behind while a pair of losses have put the Cleveland Cavaliers 2.0 games back in the 4th spot. I feel somewhat silly glancing at the standings every morning, especially with a couple of months of the season left to go, but I also feel like it’s borderline necessary considering how tight this race has turned out to be. Every game matters, and the Bulls can’t take for granted a first-place standing (and potential five-game win streak) heading into All-Star Weekend.
• As we anxiously await a Zach LaVine update, the All-Star reserve tweeted out a gif at 12:18 in the morning.
— Zach LaVine (@ZachLaVine) February 16, 2022
• Is this what my life has come to? Trying to decipher whether or not a moving image of Snoop Dog can tell us important medical information? Yes! We know that Zach LaVine took a trip to Los Angeles earlier this week to visit a specialist for his ongoing knee issue. A previous MRI showed no structural damage, but it remains unclear what kind of results this second look could offer. While we can’t make any grand conclusions until head coach Billy Donovan or the Chicago Bulls share the news, it’s hard not to think this is a positive message from LaVine, right? I take this smiling Snoop with prayer hands to send more of a “God is good” message than a “so help me God” message.
• Also, considering LaVine is expected to be a significant part of All-Star Weekend (competing in both the 3-point contest and the big game), the fact he has yet to call for a replacement seems positive. I know he can be pretty stubborn when it comes to taking a backseat, but I have to imagine Klutch and the Bulls would be aggressive in their pursuit to shut him down. So, yeah, I’m choosing to be optimistic until negative news knocks me on my feet.
• LaVine did a Q&A with SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell ahead of this weekend’s festivities, and he provided some great insight on why he believes this team works so well and how a handful of losing seasons helped him become the player we see today. If you got the time, give it a read.
Zach LaVine knows the margin for error in the East this season is super thin.
Full interview: https://t.co/AHWPVPHXXI pic.twitter.com/2p21x7E5BB
— SB Nation (@SBNation) February 15, 2022
• I’ve been third-wheeling this LaVine-DeRozan Bromance since the moment it started, and this specific quote from the All-Star in his conversation with O’Donnell made me blush:
Then coming here, we allowed him to be who he is and who he always has been. Him being able to complement me and play off of me while I complement him. I don’t think either one of us has never been on the team with somebody that’s as good a scorer as each of us is. There’s little opportunity to double us on the court. And then you add Vuc (Nikola Vucevic) in there as well. So DeMar has been great. Me and him’s bond, our friendship, has been really good.
• The Athletic’s Seth Partnow took a closer look at how each title contender positioned themselves after the trade deadline. In his brief write-up on the Bulls, I thought he made a point that we probably need to consider more when thinking about the approach Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley took: “Further, the rash of injuries through which Chicago is currently suffering likely made it difficult for management to assess whether this Bulls team is good enough to make that kind of all-in move. While many Bulls fans would not have minded seeing a more aggressive stance, the lack of obvious alternatives makes the lack of action understandable.”
• Don’t get me wrong, the reason this front office decided to stand pat could surely have a lot to do with (1) their high-expectations for Patrick Williams and (2) their belief in was this unit did while mostly healthy at the beginning of the season. However, we do also have to consider the possibility that they couldn’t yet answer some of the questions they needed to. As good as this Bulls team has been, it’s simply a fact that we haven’t seen much of the true core play together. We assume it’ll work well, but we don’t know what problems could arise over time or what holes will still exist. With that in mind, it’s hard to know what all-in move benefits the team best and if that all-in move is truly the end all be all.
• RETURN OF THE MARKO.
Roster Update: We have recalled C Marko Simonovic from the @WindyCityBulls. pic.twitter.com/ArXnzjcUX3
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) February 16, 2022
• The Bulls have moved Simonovic up and down the G-League and pros all season long, but this call-up does feel a tiny bit different. The 2021 2nd-rounder has played some of his best basketball as part of the Windy City Bulls recently, averaging 17.2 points and 11.4 rebounds in his seven games this month. He does continue to struggle in the turnover and fouling department, which I have to imagine will continue to keep him off the big-league floor, but who is to say the Bulls haven’t finally seen something they like from the big man this month? We’ll see.
• Speaking of the G-League, Devon Dotson record SEVEN steals last night! So that’s why he was on a two-way deal.
https://twitter.com/nbagleague/status/1493788989622525954?s=20&t=PmjJe38BCwIrXlZXokDCvw
• Dwyane Wade is spitting facts about DeRozan.
"He didn't change his game. He only improved it."@DwyaneWade shows love to @DeMar_DeRozan for his performance this season. pic.twitter.com/Qiml1jE4mM
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 16, 2022
• I just vomited.
basketball is beautiful. pic.twitter.com/zUjDDwuvW2
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) February 16, 2022
• Should the Blackhawks do it?
Patrick Kane may not be on the trade block, but that hasn’t stopped teams from asking the #Blackhawks about his availability https://t.co/xllDxLvYAn
— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) February 16, 2022
