One of the most exciting weeks of the year is upon us … kinda.
The trade deadline is only a few short days away, and we have already seen one blockbuster trade go down. As both conferences remain wide-open, the expectation is for plenty of teams to stay aggressive in their pursuit of adding instant-impact talent. Meanwhile, other teams will draw a line in the sand and begin to think more about their lottery position in what is expected to be a relatively deep draft.
Which side of the fence will the Chicago Bulls be on? Great question. I have no clue … and nor do their colleagues:
Shams Charania of The Athletic did state that the Bulls might look to add talent over the next week, particularly at guard. However, he wasn’t able to go into much detail about their plans, leaving the door open for several possibilities. The only thing I’ll find unacceptable this week is zero activity. And, unfortunately, I do think the chance of that happening is well over 50 percent. Where there is smoke there is fire, and we’ve gotten so little smoke around this Bulls team this season. I know the front office has surprised us in the past, but their blind commitment to continuity makes it easier to believe that a lack of noise could truly lead to a lack of action.
Even if the Bulls’ plans are to continue a postseason push, they’re hurting themselves if they don’t look for at least some kind of roster adjustment. Whether it be more formidable rim protection, 3-point shooting, or additional length at the wing, there are several holes they can look to fill to help now and later. And, look, I understand that the perfect deal isn’t always on the table. But this is a great time to do business. If a good opportunity to buy low or sell high on a role player presents itself, the Bulls have to be ready to jump on that. Waiting until the offseason to address everything isn’t always the best idea, and we need to look no further than the Bulls’ most recent lackluster offseason to see just that.
One big fat reason the Bulls must seek out change is their inability to hold onto leads. Something just isn’t clicking with this current core, and it’s led to some *historic* struggles. Read what Jamal Collier shared in his latest piece at ESPN:
It’s the latest microcosm of the team’s struggles this season: The Bulls have had three separate three-game winning streaks, but have yet to win four in a row. In January, they dropped four games when leading by more than 15 points, tied for the most by any team over the past 25 seasons, according to research by ESPN Stats & Information. And the Bulls are 9-10 against teams under .500.
Brutal. The fact of the matter is that good teams don’t let that happen, and I also don’t think this is a problem that just goes away with time. The Bulls are simply an inconsistent group that struggles to hold onto leads because of 3-point variance and lack of facilitating. Nobody on this roster is suddenly going to become an elite 3-point threat or prime distributor. Those things need to be sought out.
Alex Caruso will enter tonight’s matchup with the San Antonio Spurs as questionable. Patrick Williams remains probable. All things considered, if the Bulls are able to make it past one of the best offensive backcourts in the NBA without their best defender on the floor, I have some faith they can do the same against a Spurs team that has lost 13 of its last 14.
Having said that, we all know how this Bulls team likes to play down to their opponents. They’ve already lost once to the Spurs this season thanks to one of their infamous collapses, as they allowed the Spurs to shoot 55 percent in the second half with 17 assists on 22 made field goals. San Antonio plays remarkably hard and has a number of youngsters trying to prove their worth. They aren’t going to have any fear coming into this one.
According to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report, the Lakers offered both their highly-coveted first-round picks for Irving, while the Suns offered both Chris Paul, Jae Crowder, and draft capital. While we don’t know the protections on those picks presented, I’m pretty baffled they chose the Mavs deal of Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, a first-rounder, and two second-rounders over those two packages. Don’t get me wrong, I like both DFS and Dinwiddie, but the value of those two options feels quite a bit higher, especially the Phoenix one if the plan is to still compete for a championship.
Sources: Brooklyn Nets received Los Angeles Lakers’ proposal that did include team’s two first-round picks (2027, 2029) and Phoenix Suns’ offer of Chris Paul, Jae Crowder and unspecified picks: @NBATVpic.twitter.com/cJuABbaYGy— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) February 6, 2023
LeBron jamming out to some Taylor Swift right now after missing on Kyrie.
Good news as the league and NBPA work to get a new CBA done.
ESPN story on the NBA, NBPA expected to extend early opt-out deadline for CBA amid league’s softening push for an upper spending limit on team payrolls: https://t.co/ZRb1Cjt8pJ— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 6, 2023
Once again, BRING MY TEE!
In recent years, we've seen the surprising trades of Tyreek HIll, A.J. Brown, Stefon Diggs, & Davante Adams. So while I'm not sure if Tee Higgins will join that list this offseason, #DaBears should be ready to pivot just in case he hits the market.https://t.co/04pdirNWzLpic.twitter.com/vwwWLrRIxV— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) February 6, 2023
Elias Schuster is the Lead Chicago Bulls writer at Bleacher Nation. He started with BN full-time in 2019 immediately after graduating from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign with a degree in Journalism (yes, he started with the Jim Boylen Era). Since joining, Elias has been the driving force behind Bulls and NBA content for both the site and social accounts. You can follow him on Twitter/X @Schuster_Elias.
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