NEWSLETTER
If you’ve been wondering what NBA players think about their competition, The Athletic has got you covered.
Beat reporters from around the country asked 108 players around the league a series of questions. They compiled the answers over the final weeks of the regular season, and there is no question it generated some pretty surprising responses. Before I share what members of the Chicago Bulls received a mention, I want to encourage you to give the full survey a read here. I’m not going to share the full results or every question that was asked, so make sure to glance it over when you have the time.
All things considered, the Bulls weren’t as well-represented as one would hope. In fact, the only individual to receive more than one vote in a particular category was Patrick Beverley, who finished with the second-highest percentage of votes when asked “who talks the most trash on the court?”
Indeed, I was truly shocked when Alex Caruso didn’t even receive a singular name-drop when players were asked “who’s the best defender?” Guys like the Pacers’ Andrew Nembhard and former Bull Kris Dunn even received one vote. Now, where Caruso did receive at least some acknowledgment was in the “most underrated” category. Again, while he couldn’t muster more than one mention, he was at least included in the list of players to come up. The other Bulls to receive a vote was Nikola Vucevic.
Arguably the most telling part of the survey for Chicago, however, was the “most overrated” section. Beverley, Vucevic, DeMar DeRozan, and Zach LaVine each were each named once. Look, we shouldn’t read too much into a player throwing some shade, but the fact that FOUR of the Bulls’ players were included undoubtedly stings.
But the Bulls’ roster wasn’t the only thing to be cast aside by their colleagues, the fans didn’t get a ton of respect either. While Bulls fans, fortunately, dodged the “worst fans” category completely, they only received 3.1 percent of the votes when asked for the best fans. This meant at least nine other teams sat in front of them, including the Kings, Thunder, and Jazz. Yeah … I don’t know about that.
When push comes to shove, this survey really doesn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things. But it does give us at least a tiny bit of insight into how a handful of players currently view the Chicago Bulls organization. The fact they aren’t held in higher regard only further demonstrates just how much further they have to go to regain true relevancy.
