The 2021-2022 Chicago Bulls are in the midst of a 5-game winning streak and currently sit second in the Eastern Conference with a record of 22-10. Most recently, the Bulls took down the Atlanta Hawks for the second game in a row between the two teams, and did so in dominating fashion.
Wednesday night’s Bulls win was quite possibly their best performance of the season so far, as seven players finished in double figures and the Bulls assisted on 38 of 52 buckets. It was a beautiful sight.
During the game against Atlanta, commentators Stacey King (welcome back) and Adam Amin posted a pretty stunning graphic to illustrate just how strong of a season the Bulls are having.
The graphic shows a comparison between the team’s current big three and one trio of past seasons — Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman. This year, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic have become a force to be reckoned with. And, they are not only approaching the status of that 90’s Bulls trio, but surpassing them in some areas.
The Chicago Bulls’ trio of LaVine, DeRozan and Vucevic are beginning to rival Jordan, Pippen and Rodman.
As you can see in the above graphic, those 90’s Bulls were a little more well-rounded, with an edge in assists and rebounds. However, this current big three is far more prolific when it comes to scoring.
As of late, these three have been especially good. Just a couple of nights ago, LaVine, DeRozan and Vucevic combined for a whopping 89 points, 26 rebounds and 25 assists while knocking down 11 three-pointers.
Vucevic, specifically, has been turning the heat up as of late. He has finally found his groove, reverting back to his All Star form. Now, the Bulls very well could have three All Stars representing Chicago in the 2022 NBA All Star Game.
These three will never be as iconic as Jordan, Pippen and Rodman. To make such a comparison would be silly. However, the current Bulls are doing things that those three didn’t quite do — and in a different era, understandably.
Today’s NBA is far more scoring-heavy, whereas back in the 90’s it was all about physicality and defense. Therefore, the difference between the two trios’ output makes sense.
Fortunately for these Bulls, they can indeed score. Before this year’s team, the Bulls hadn’t had a team that could score like this in what seems like forever — and maybe that’s accurate. Those Derrick Rose-led teams were also more focused on defense, and didn’t have three exceptional scorers like this current squad does.
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