The Chicago Bulls had a very up-and-down season in 2021-22. They were one of the best teams in the NBA in the first half but then things started to fall off a bit. They ended the season as the sixth seed and avoided the play-in series that the NBA has now.
That earned them a date with the then-defending champion Milwaukee Bucks which they lost in five games. It was their first year back in the playoffs with this regime in charge and this new core so there is plenty to build on.
Over the offseason, the big story was the contract of Zach LaVine. He was ready to hit free agency and join whatever team he wanted. Instead, he made the very boring (and amazing) decision to stay with the Chicago Bulls. He wants to be a part of what he has helped build going forward.
Wednesday is the day that they begin their quest to reward him for their loyalty as they have their first game of the season. They are on the road ready to take on the Miami Heat in the first tilt of the season.
The Chicago Bulls have a very hard matchup to open the 2022-23 season.
Of course, Miami came so close to a berth in the NBA Finals last season. They lost in game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals to the Boston Celtics. Now, they are coming into this season hungry to get back there and force a different result.
The Heat are led by former Chicago Bulls star Jimmy Butler. He has been an amazing player in his NBA career and now he is just searching for that championship. It should be a lot of fun to see Butler and the Heat work this season.
We can only hope that the Bulls are one of the teams that slow them down. That starts in this opening game. The Bulls lost all four meetings they had last season and 11 of the last 13 which is a big problem. Overcoming that right off the bat would really set the tone.
It is going to be hard without Lonzo Ball who the Bulls figure to be without for a long time. LaVine along with DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic is the big three that are going to try to work around that in the early parts of the season.
Unfortunately, LaVine is going to miss the first game of the season. It is his left knee that he is trying to manage this season which is causing him to miss this game and maybe the next one.
Guys like Ayo Dosunmu and Alex Caruso also figure to have a big impact on the team as well. Both of them were impressive in different ways last season and want to carry it forward with another year under their belt in a Bulls uniform.
It is exciting to have the NBA back as it is just another sport to follow in Chicago. With the way the rest of the teams in town have played lately, the Bulls can provide a spark. This is a very important season as they grow with this core.
