The demise of the Bulls’ DeMar DeRozan remains highly exaggerated

WASHINGTON — DeMar DeRozan knew the narrative existed.

He heard it throughout the 2021 offseason, after he initially joined the Bulls in a sign-and-trade.

Too old, best years were behind him, DeMar who?

His response?

Shove a career year in everyone’s face.

Eastern Conference All-Star, MVP candidate, and a career-high 27.9 scoring average in the 2021-22 campaign should have silenced the critics. It seemingly only put them on pause.

Because there it was again, building momentum into the start of this regular season. Sure, DeRozan was great last year, but he couldn’t do it again at age 33.

Not again. There would be a regression.

How about 37 points in an undermanned win on South Beach to start the year?

“I have no clue where people get that from,” DeRozan said of the perceived decline that his game was supposed to take. “In all seriousness, I don’t even know where you base that off or get it from. I know what I put into this game in the offseason, how much I love this game. I can assure you that not many guys in this league work as hard as I do. With that alone, those statements are BS as it is.”

DeRozan offered up several explanations of why that narrative exists, but didn’t see sturdy ground for any of them to stand on.

Maybe it was playing in Toronto all those years and unable to get past LeBron James in the East. Or maybe it was being traded to San Antonio post-Spurs dynasty, and seemingly falling off the NBA map for three seasons. Either way, what critics don’t seem to understand about DeRozan is the work he puts into his game, both physically and mentally.

“I can’t answer for someone else’s perception,” DeRozan said. “I learned so much in San Antonio that made me this person that I am today. Take away my years in San Antonio … Pop [coach Gregg Popovich] gave me a different perception of how to approach the game, and I’ve got the honor to say I’ve played for one of the greatest coaches of all time. In that moment it probably looked like I was taking a backseat or whatever it may be, but I learned so much from that.”

And the Bulls locker room has been reaping the rewards of DeRozan’s internship under Popovich.

Even when the news broke before the game with the Heat that Zach LaVine would be out (left knee), it was DeRozan who made sure not a single player hung their head.

Then when DeRozan felt he had moved the chess pieces around as much as possible through the first half against Miami, the veteran knew it was time for him to take over. Nine points and four assists heading into the third quarter, quickly ended up being 28 points and eight assists entering the fourth, as DeRozan went 7-for-9 in giving the Bulls a 10-point lead.

“That’s expected, my MO,” DeRozan said. “Beginning of the game help us get shots, then kind of walk the game down. When it gets to that time to win the game, I try and go out and do my job to the best of my ability.”

An ability that’s been on display since he arrived last year.

While LaVine may have the max contract and be the face of the team, DeRozan remained its heart. That’s what the naysayers seemed to be missing with him. His coach sure hasn’t.

“I think the amount of time he’s spent with Kobe Bryant and past great ones, his whole routine, the grind he puts himself through the entire summer, prepares him for these situations,” Donovan said of DeRozan’s latest showcase.

It also prepares DeRozan to have the armor to laugh off the critics.

“It won’t change the way that I approach the game, my passion for the game, things I put in,” DeRozan said. “They can say what they want. Everybody has freedom of speech, right?”

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Blackhawks announce their 2022-23 Reverse Retro sweatersVincent Pariseon October 20, 2022 at 3:35 pm

We have seen the Chicago Blackhawks announce lots of amazing sweaters over the years. They are one of the best in the league each year. Now, along with the rest of the National Hockey League, they have announced their 2022-23 Reverse Retro jerseys.

The idea for these is to take a sweater from their old catalog and reverse it by flipping the primary color with the secondary color.

You might remember when the Hawks had the red-shouldered black jersey during the shortened 2021 season. It was a really nice look that served that team well.

In this edition of it, the Blackhawks have a very old-school-looking jersey. It is a red and black jersey with stripes across the body with the word Chicago in one of the middle torso stripes. It also has the traditional Blackhawks logo on the shoulder which is a nice touch.

The Chicago Blackhawks announced their new Reverse Retro sweaters.

The Chicago Blackhawks/Adidas/NHL have announced their 2022-23 Reverse Retro sweaters!

These are AWESOME! pic.twitter.com/hw0NEkloWI

— DaWindyCityFS (@DaWindyCityFS) October 20, 2022

It is a really nice old-style jersey for this team that has already redone a lot of jerseys over the last few years. We haven’t really seen the Hawks do anything like this with the stripes and word “Chicago” on the jersey which is a really nice touch.

This might be the last year that legends like Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews play on the Blackhawks so it will be cool to see them have just the word Chicago on their chest while wearing these. Once they hit the ice with them on, it should look very sharp.

One thing that should be noted is that the Detroit Red Wings have a very similar look to the Chicago Blackhawks with this second round of Reverse Retros. These two teams came to the NHL at the same time and have been rivals ever since.

It is a really nice touch by Adidas and the NHL here. We probably won’t see them play against one another while wearing them because of the fact that they are so similar (and the Hawks have the Red Wings in their home opener in their only visit to Chicago) but it is still really cool to look at.

The fact that Detroit’s is very similar is a really nice touch by Adidas/NHL.

These are so amazing. pic.twitter.com/vNaSVdvaYB

— DaWindyCityFS (@DaWindyCityFS) October 20, 2022

This isn’t a winning season for the Chicago Blackhawks so it is nice to know that they will at least be looking good. These Reverse Retros that they just announced on Thursday are a nice touch. The extra old-school look is a nice touch and one that everyone should admire as the season goes along.

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Blackhawks announce their 2022-23 Reverse Retro sweatersVincent Pariseon October 20, 2022 at 3:35 pm Read More »

Two Bulls veterans are changing the energy off the bench

Goran Dragic and Andre Drummond are critical bench pieces for the Bulls this season

The Chicago Bulls won their season opener, 116-108 against the Miami Heat. It was a huge win for a team that was without arguably their best player in Zach LaVine and best playmaker in Lonzo Ball. Moreover, they were facing the No. 1 seed in the east from a season ago.

The heroics of DeMar DeRozan (37 points, nine assists, and six rebounds) were pivotal in the win. Additionally, there was another factor that helped them pull off the upset and will determine how far the team goes.

Last season, Chicago had one of the least effective bench units. They ranked towards the bottom of the league in bench points.

Chicago did not make many moves this off-season, but they did add two battle-tested veterans in Goran Dragic and Andre Drummond. Their presence was felt off the bench last night. Dragic connected on four 3-pointers (including a ridiculous circus shot) in the second quarter to keep them in the game. In addition, Drummond had nine points and five rebounds.

This is the type of change Chicago needed to make off the bench. Without Lonzo, the Bulls were smart to bring on Dragic who can teach the young guards while providing a spark off the bench. Additionally, Drummond gives them a reliable big off the bench who can post a double-double on any given night.

Dragic and Drummond are contributing to a deeper Bulls team from a season ago. Their play both on and off the court is going to provide a lethal spark to a dangerous team.

Follow us on Twitter at @chicitysports23 for more great content. We appreciate you taking time to read our articles. To interact more with our community and keep up to date on the latest in Chicago sports news, JOIN OUR FREE FACEBOOK GROUP by CLICKING HERE

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Listen to The Ben Joravsky Show

Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky riffs on the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty, and interviews politicians, activists, journalists and other political know-it-alls. Presented by the Chicago Reader, the show is available by 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays at chicagoreader.com/joravsky—or wherever you get your podcasts. Don’t miss Oh, What a Week!–the Friday feature in which Ben & producer Dennis (aka, Dr. D.) review the week’s top stories. Also, bonus interviews drop on Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays. 

Chicago Reader podcasts are recorded on Shure microphones. Learn more at Shure.com.

With support from our sponsors

Chicago Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky discusses the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty on The Ben Joravsky Show.


MAGA flip-flops

Men from Blago to Bolduc are trying to sing a new song.


Just like we told you

The Bears finally make their play for public money to build their private stadium.


The choice is yours, voters

MAGA’s Illinois Supreme Court nominees are poised to outlaw abortion in Illinois—if, gulp, they win.

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Listen to The Ben Joravsky Show Read More »

Listen to The Ben Joravsky ShowBen Joravskyon October 20, 2022 at 7:01 am

Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky riffs on the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty, and interviews politicians, activists, journalists and other political know-it-alls. Presented by the Chicago Reader, the show is available by 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays at chicagoreader.com/joravsky—or wherever you get your podcasts. Don’t miss Oh, What a Week!–the Friday feature in which Ben & producer Dennis (aka, Dr. D.) review the week’s top stories. Also, bonus interviews drop on Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays. 

Chicago Reader podcasts are recorded on Shure microphones. Learn more at Shure.com.

With support from our sponsors

Chicago Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky discusses the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty on The Ben Joravsky Show.


MAGA flip-flops

Men from Blago to Bolduc are trying to sing a new song.


Just like we told you

The Bears finally make their play for public money to build their private stadium.


The choice is yours, voters

MAGA’s Illinois Supreme Court nominees are poised to outlaw abortion in Illinois—if, gulp, they win.

Read More

Listen to The Ben Joravsky ShowBen Joravskyon October 20, 2022 at 7:01 am Read More »

Bears predictions: Week 7 vs. Patriots

The Sun-Times’ experts offer their picks for the Bears’ “Monday Night Football” game at the Patriots:

RICK MORRISSEY

Patriots, 24-13

Something tells me that Bill Belichick is going to figure how to control Justin Fields the runner and dare him to beat him through the air. This probably isn’t the game to look for signs of progress from Fields.Season: 4-2.

RICK TELANDER

Patriots, 28-19

A Bears win in Gillette Stadium on a Monday Night game doesn’t seem possible under any conditions. That is, even if the Bears were the better team, which they’re not. The Bears have found interesting ways to lose, and Belichick will give them a fresh one.Season: 4-2.

LAURENCE HOLMES

Patriots, 28-9

Belichick was too effusive with his praise of the Bears and his history against young quarterbacks can’t beignored. Even with extra days to prepare, this doesn’t add up to a win. Season: 3-3.

PATRICK FINLEY

Patriots, 20-9

Call it the curse of a Mooning McMahon: the Bears are 1-8 against the Patriots since beating them in Super Bowl XX. The lone win –in in 2000, Belichick’s first season– was so long ago that the Bears’ punter in that game, Louie Aguiar, is now in his sixth year of AARP eligibility. Season: 3-3.

JASON LIESER

Patriots, 24-13

The Patriots’ defense is always a challenge, and now their offense is starting to click. That’s scary for the Bears, who don’t seem to have a handle on any aspect at the moment. Season: 3-3.

MARK POTASH

Patriots, 23-13

After a disappointing loss to the Commanders on a short week, the Bears should be better following a mini-bye of self-scouting and reflection. But they’re at the wrong place at the wrong time against the Patriots on the road on “Monday Night Football.”Season: 4-2.

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Chicago Bulls stun the Miami Heat in their season debutVincent Pariseon October 20, 2022 at 1:00 pm

The Chicago Bulls came into thier opening game (on the road) against the Miami Heat down both Zach LaVine and Lonzo Ball. They aren’t going to get Ball back for a while but the LaVine news dropped not long before the game.

That is a tough way to begin the year, especially against the team that was in game seven of the Eastern Conference Final just a year prior. The Heat are good and they swept the Bulls during the 2021-22 season making it even more daunting.

It would be hard to beat that at full strength let alone down two of their best players. That is why the big 116-108 win for the Chicago Bulls was extra impressive. They hit the road and defeated an elite opponent against all odds.

Nobody knows what to make of this upcoming Bulls team as nobody really knows what they are in the long term but this was a great start. Everyone there contributed exactly what they needed to in order to secure a much-needed season-opening win.

The Chicago Bulls got a little bit from everyone to secure a really nice first win.

There were some solid season debuts for the Chicago Bulls in this game. It all starts with DeMar DeRozan who naturally will carry the offensive load when LaVine is out of the lineup. He had 37 points with six rebounds and nine assists. It’s certainly not a bad way to start the season.

Ayo Dosunmu is a starter to begin the year after a really nice rookie year last season. He had 17 points and six rebounds to go with four assists. His role is certainly expanded with this group now and it is his time to show that he can handle it.

Nikola Vucevic had 15 points, 17 rebounds, and two assists in this one. With those 17 rebounds, he clearly had a big hand in the Bulls winning this game.

Outside of DeRozan’s 37 points, the scoring was a team effort as the whole group contributed. They had five players with double-digit point totals which makes it clear that this group can score in bunches when everyone is right. Doing it against this Heat team makes it even better.

It is really nice to begin the season 1-0. There is a lot of basketball yet to be played this year but everyone can enjoy this first win over a great team. Their next game will come on Friday night against the Washington Wizards. It would be amazing to see the Bulls keep it going.

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Chicago Bulls stun the Miami Heat in their season debutVincent Pariseon October 20, 2022 at 1:00 pm Read More »

Cubs: Anthony Rizzo’s ALCS home run comes in Yankees lossVincent Pariseon October 20, 2022 at 12:00 pm

The Chicago Cubs are not participating in the postseason for the second season in a row. It is largely by design as a retool is going on for the northsiders. However, there are plenty of former Cubs to keep an eye on through the 2022 MLB Playoffs.

On Wednesday, the afternoon featured the San Diego Padres and the Philadelphia Phillies. Yu Darvish made the start for the Padres a night earlier but took the loss. Kyle Schwarber, who had a huge day off of Darvish on Tuesday, was in again on Wednesday.

San Diego erased a 4-0 deficit and now the series is tied at 1-1. It is going to be a great finish that will certainly continue to have some Cubs’ influence.

Later in the night, the New York Yankees (following a huge winner-take-all-game-five victory) took on the Houston Astros. Of course, former Chicago Cubs legend Anthony Rizzo hits right in the middle of their order.

There are plenty of great former Chicago Cubs playing in the 2022 postseason.

In this game one of the series, Rizzo hit a big home run which was his second of the playoffs. The Astros had a 4-1 lead at that point so it just brought it up to 4-2 which would hold as the final score. Although it was nice for Rizzo to get that big hit, it wasn’t enough for his team to win.

The Astros are trying to get into the World Series for the second straight year and the fourth time since the Cubs won it all in 2016. It is an impressive run for a team that takes a lot of heat off the field for obvious reasons.

The NLCS and ALCS have been magnificent so far and there is a lot more to come. Rizzo’s Yankees trail the Astros 1-0 in the series and as mentioned before, the NL series is tied at one all.

Game two of the ALCS takes place on Thursday night as the Astros will host the Yankees again. On Friday, the National League Championship Series will transition over to Philadelphia. It is going to be great to see a series this big return back to the City of Brotherly Love.

For Cubs fans, watching Schwarber, Rizzo, and Darvish play is going to be fun in addition to some other greats like Aaron Judge, Jose Altuve, Giancarlo Stanton, Juan Soto, and Manny Machado. Playoff baseball, no matter what, is so amazing.

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Cubs: Anthony Rizzo’s ALCS home run comes in Yankees lossVincent Pariseon October 20, 2022 at 12:00 pm Read More »

The optimal roster around Joel Embiid? The 76ers feel they’ve found iton October 20, 2022 at 1:21 pm

INSIDE MCALISTER FIELDHOUSE on The Citadel’s campus in Charleston, South Carolina, all eyes are fixed on a conversation between Joel Embiid and P.J. Tucker.

For the second straight day of training camp in late September, the new Philadelphia 76ers teammates engaged in a long — and loud — discussion over basketball tactics. Among today’s topics: How Tucker and the Miami Heat suffocated Embiid in the post during last season’s Eastern Conference semifinals.

Tucker gestures how he fronted Embiid in the paint — doing everything he could to make his life difficult before he even got the ball in his hands — and ways Embiid could counter.

“Every day [we work on] ways to combat everything he does,” Tucker said. “And me guarding him now and trying to help him out, understand the reads of what people want to do, that’s what it’s about.

“It’s knowing that, and being ready for it all.”

Tucker’s not alone. For the past several years, the 76ers have tried to optimize Embiid’s prime with hopes of deep postseason runs. But each time, flawed roster constructions have prevented the kind of breakthrough that normally follows a perennial MVP finalist.

There was Embiid’s ultimately doomed partnership with Ben Simmons, a point guard whose lack of a reliable jump shot forced the 76ers to build offenses in which pick-and-rolls — the lifeblood of the modern NBA — were rare occurrences.

There was the disastrous yearlong pairing with fellow big man Al Horford, the player who gave Embiid fits for years with the Boston Celtics and gave him almost as many as a teammate.

2 Related

And there has been a series of one-way players over the years, from Matisse Thybulle and Seth Curry to Marco Belinelli and T.J. McConnell, who have helped win plenty of regular-season games but are the kinds of targets — at one end of the floor or the other — that Eastern Conference playoff teams routinely exploited.

This summer, the 76ers were determined to change that. They re-signed superstar and elite pick-and-roll partner James Harden at a discount big enough to also land free agents Tucker and Danuel House Jr., two rugged defenders who can knock down open 3-pointers.

Philly traded injured guard Danny Green and a first-round pick to the Memphis Grizzlies for De’Anthony Melton, adding another high-octane perimeter defender to a roster that lacked them last season.

Philadelphia enters its first full season with one of the best pick-and-roll tandems in the league, quality 3-point shooting to give Embiid ample space to operate and enough versatile defenders to attack opponents.

Put it all together, and the 76ers — despite a rocky first impression Tuesday — are deeper, more balanced and better constructed around their 7-foot anchor than at any point in The Process era.

“There’s no weak links around the horn,” Tucker said. “You want to [pick on] somebody? Go ahead. We got everybody.”

SIMPLY BREAKING THROUGH to the East finals — a feat the 76ers haven’t accomplished in more than 20 years — means nothing to Embiid.

“The whole notion of getting to the first round, second round, conference finals, Finals, that don’t matter,” Embiid said. “If you don’t win it all, it doesn’t matter why you lost. It probably makes it even worse … you feel like you just frickin’ wasted time.

“‘Congrats, you made it to the conference finals. Congrats, you made it to the Finals.’ Did you win anything? Nope.”

P.J. Tucker, left, and the Heat knocked out Joel Embiid and the 76ers in the second round last season. Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Some of those failures can be attributed to untimely injuries to Embiid: an orbital bone fracture colliding with a teammate in 2018 and facial fracture and thumb injuries suffered last spring. One playoff defeat can be blamed on the Toronto Raptors and Kawhi Leonard, whose miracle four-bounce buzzer-beater in Game 7 stunned the 76ers in the 2019 East semifinals.

But much of the burden falls on a poor design — namely, various roster constructions surrounding Embiid: the awkward fits with Simmons or Horford, the accumulation of too many limited role players or even the decision to move on from Jimmy Butler after that heartbreaking loss to the Raptors.

No matter what formula Philadelphia tried, the result was the same: an early playoff exit. Changing the fit around Embiid, and in turn changing the 76ers’ playoff fortune, has been president of basketball operations Daryl Morey’s mission since he was hired by the franchise two years ago.

After the collapse against the Atlanta Hawks in 2021, and the subsequent trade request by Simmons, Morey bided his time before moving on the Simmons-Harden swap in the final hours before the February trade deadline.

It didn’t take long for the two stars to begin to find chemistry.

Embiid and Harden ran the second most pick-and-rolls in the league after the All-Star break, with only Hawks duo Trae Young and Clint Capela accounting for more. Philadelphia’s star tandem averaged 1.15 points per direct pick on those plays, per ESPN’s Stats & Information research — the fifth-best mark among the 39 pairings that ran at least 150 such plays.

WednesdayKnicks-Grizzlies, 7:30 p.m.Mavs-Suns, 10 p.m.

FridayCeltics-Heat, 7:30 p.m.Nuggets-Warriors, 10 p.m.

*All times Eastern

Harden’s arrival raised Philadelphia’s ceiling, but it wasn’t enough on its own to change the franchise’s playoff fate. Harden, who has infamously flamed out in numerous playoffs, had his struggles for the 76ers, including a 4-for-9 stinker in Philadelphia’s season-ending Game 6 loss to Miami last season.

Morey identified another issue: 76ers coach Rivers was hamstrung by too many specialists surrounding his stars.

“[What] we saw in the playoffs was our inability to play both ends,” Morey said. “Like when Doc had to go to the bench, it was choosing all offense, no defense or all defense, no offense.

“That gets pretty challenging in the playoffs.”

It turned out, however, that both Morey and Embiid had a similar solution in mind. Enter Tucker, a versatile lockdown 3-and-D wing who had been part of the Houston Rockets with Morey and Harden for several seasons. After that Game 6 loss, Embiid said he’d never played with someone like Tucker before, citing his defensive energy and toughness.

Tucker, Melton and House have supplanted Thybulle, Shake Milton and Furkan Korkmaz — three players who got significant minutes during the playoffs last year — in Philadelphia’s rotation.

“I do think Joel set the tone very helpfully for my negotiations [with Tucker],” Morey said with a laugh. “Asking for a specific player … I would ask all future 76ers to please don’t do that.”

EMBIID HAS ECHOED a similar retort whenever referencing the hype surrounding the 76ers’ revamped roster in the lead-up to the season.

“We have a long way to go.”

Tuesday, when Philadelphia opened its season with a 126-117 loss inside TD Garden against the defending East champion Celtics, Embiid’s words of caution proved prophetic.

The Celtics, playing without injured starting center Robert Williams III, beat the 76ers with the quickness created by their smaller lineups. Boston outscored Philadelphia by a 24-2 margin in fast-break points — a disparity so staggering that Embiid double-checked it on the box score during his postgame news conference.

“It starts defensively,” Embiid said. “Really, it’s all about defense. We scored, whatever, 117 [points], and we were not good offensively today.

“We didn’t get any stops all night. So, that’s where it starts. I think we’ve got potential. But every possession we’ve got to play hard, and have each other’s backs.”

There were flashes of optimism for Embiid and Philadelphia. Even with the elite defenders Boston can throw at teams — including reigning Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart — Harden and Embiid found success operating in the pick-and-roll.

Late in the second quarter, Harden came around an Embiid pick and dropped a pocket pass that Embiid caught and finished over a fouling Celtics forward Noah Vonleh. On another play midway through the third, Harden came around another screen and expertly faked the defense into giving up a wide-open floater.

“We’ve got to find ways to get into that action more,” Harden said postgame.

Embiid bemoaned the ball sticking too much and the 76ers falling into old habits. He was right to: According to Second Spectrum, Philadelphia had a 3.5-second average touch length against Boston, the team’s third-highest mark in a game since the start of last season.

Still, despite how ugly things looked for Embiid and the 76ers Tuesday night, he and Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown all had the same message: It was the first of 82 games.

But while it was the first of 82 for a battle-tested Celtics core coming off an NBA Finals appearance, it was the first regular-season action for Philadelphia’s revamped roster — an experience gap Embiid said only time can shrink.

“That’s a team that just went to the Finals, and they’ve been together for so many years,” Embiid said postgame. “We still felt new, with a lot of new guys trying to find the right fit and the right way to play.

“We’ll be fine.”

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The optimal roster around Joel Embiid? The 76ers feel they’ve found iton October 20, 2022 at 1:21 pm Read More »

Chicago Bulls: 3 possible outcomes for the upcoming seasonAnish Puligillaon October 20, 2022 at 11:00 am

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The Chicago Bulls are back! They kicked off their season in Miami on Wednesday with a win and while the Chicago Bulls didn’t add any star power, they did solidify their bench.

Their bench unit features multiple guards who can handle the ball, several athletic wings, and an actual backup big man in Andre Drummond.

If this Bulls team stays healthy and is given a real chance to gel, it has a chance to be one of the deepest teams in the league, solving the biggest issue from last season.

However, they’re not getting much love from the national audience, as evidenced by their rankings in the power rankings:

ESPN: 17thThe Athletic: 17thBleacher Report: 18thThe Ringer: 18thNBA.com: 17th

The Chicago Bulls season can go a lot of different ways during this season.

The book has been seemingly written about this Bulls team and it appears to be unanimous across league experts.

While the level of optimism among the fanbase surely places the Bulls higher among the rest of the league, their performance against top teams a year ago in combination with the injury bug and their roster on paper objectively places them outside the contention tier in the NBA.

I wrote previously about the different things we should expect from this Bulls team if we truly expect them to contend including another ascension from Zach LaVine, a breakout year from Patrick Williams, and the emergence of Ayo Dosunmu as a reliable point guard.

However, these are not givens and it’s why many are still low on the Bulls this season. ESPN forecasts the Bulls to win 44 games this season, but other analytics sites such as FiveThirtyEight have them at 35-47, good for the 11th seed in the East.

In this slideshow, I take a look at where the Bulls team expectations lay this season and what describes a successful/exceeding expectations type of season, an underwhelming season, and lastly what this fanbase should ultimately expect from the Chicago Bulls in 2022-23.

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Chicago Bulls: 3 possible outcomes for the upcoming seasonAnish Puligillaon October 20, 2022 at 11:00 am Read More »