Chicago Bulls are one of the most storied NBA franchises. Unfortunately, their glory days are long behind them. The era of Michael Jordan came and went, and the Bulls never looked the same. Of course, it is hard to recuperate from losing the best player the game has ever seen. Yet, despite that circumstance, we expected more, and we received nothing. These days, the Bulls are only a shadow of the once-storied franchise.
In the early 2010s, the franchise was returning. Still, injuries derailed the career of the youngest MVP ever, Derrick Rose. Rose took the NBA by storm, and Chicago finally looked happy again due to the on-court performances of their Bulls, but the basketball gods had different plans. Knee injuries took Rose’s explosiveness, and after a few struggling years with the Bulls, with no success to brag about, Rose became a journeyman before ending his career not so long ago.
Despite everything we said, the Bulls still remain a popular NBA team. The City of Chicago loves basketball, and they still hope the glory days will return. We wouldn’t be so hopeful, especially when you look at the last few years in the windy city. We don’t expect you to go to your Stake.com account and place a bet on the Bulls to reach the playoffs anytime soon. Still, we hope you have enough patience to stick with us for a few more minutes as we speak about what’s transpiring in Chicago in 2025 regarding the Bulls. Despite being on their worst run in the last few years, the 2025 season is still not over, and considering the number of games in a year in the NBA, anything is possible.
2024-2025 Regular Season
Despite the bleak predictions at the start of the season, the Chicago Bulls are still on the hunt for a playoff spot. The East hasn’t been this tough since LeBron James’s days, but there’s still hope for the Bulls to make it. At the moment, they’re occupying position number 10, w, which would take them into the play-in. A direct playoff spot is only three wins away, but reaching there will take much more than the current Bulls are showing.
With almost half the season behind us, we can already tell the Bulls are not a playoff-caliber team. Fans of sports betting do not see them as a quality enough team, and their odds of making the playoffs this year are slim. Also, many people are figuring it could only be a matter of time before the Bulls start tanking. Getting a good draft pick is imperative for the Bulls, as they don’t have any trade assets to send in exchange for a franchise player. The ones they had in years past haven’t been up to the standard.
When writing this article, the Chicago Bulls have 18 wins and 21 defeats. As we said, this is enough for a play-in spot, but they’re not far removed from going directly to the playoffs. Neither the fans nor the front office know whether they want to reach the playoffs or tank for a better draft pick. The worst part is that some of their future picks do not even belong to the team, so tanking is not entirely an option before a few more years pass.
Their roster building is subpar, and you can tell this by simply looking at the players the Bulls have at their disposal. Coby White, Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, Talen Horton-Tucker, Josh Giddey, Carter Jevon, and permanently injured Lonzo Ball are not world-beaters. Both the present and the future of the Chicago Bulls look bleak. Many players we mentioned are on massive, expiring contracts and on the trade block. The worst part is that many of them are also untradeable. Their coach, Billy Donovan, is looking out of his depth at times, while sometimes it appears that he hasn’t been dealt a good hand and is getting the best out of his boys.
Donovan’s current position is safe, as it’s expected that he will be working with a completely new roster in no time. Therefore, an assessment of his work will be done in the future, despite fans and pundits expecting the Bulls to be active on the market and sell their players at a lower rate to try and shed some of their salaries and get a better drafting position.
Whatever happens in the next few weeks, one thing is for sure: They’re playing the next game with the team they have at their disposal right now. According to different NBA predictions, this team has slim chances of posing serious competition to any of the top guns in the East. Still, in their current assembly, these are the players to watch on this Chicago Bulls roster.
Coby White
This is a player that all Bulls fans like. He did well last year and showed signs of constant improvement. Unfortunately, this year, Coby was playing a bit slower than we’re used to, at least in the first half of the year. What’s noticeable is that he is now more turnover-prone than last year, his assist numbers dropped, and defensively, he’s one of the worst guards in the league. On the bright side, his shooting percentage is better because he needs to be in the spotlight. He scores more points with a much better efficiency, which is especially seen in his mid-range scoring.
In the past, during his Bulls years, White often had moments in season when his performance would drop, followed by streaks of good performances. We can only hope his good side will pop off during the second part of the year, as the Bulls that want to go to the playoffs need it. But, as we said, he is fine offensively and improves in that domain; it’s all fine, but his defense took a massive drop, and it is hard to imagine that he will do better in the next games. Bad defense is a plague that took over the Bull’s roster, and they can’t get over it no matter how much they try.
Patrick Williams
Williams is a player on a comeback mission. During the last few years, he was a player on the Bulls and constantly improved his all-round game. Unfortunately, he got injured in the previous year, and his career was derailed. Despite this, his improvement can’t be neglected. When it’s time to extend him, he will easily command somewhere between $17 million and $20 million. His value is undeniable, but this year is not the year he should be judged. Offensively, he is limited despite a fine 3-point shot and mid-range sniper. No rebounding is a major flaw, but the accent this time needs to be on his poor defense. As we said, this is a disease that plagues the entire Bulls franchise.
As a young lad and a good role player, PWill has enough time for a turnaround. It will not be easy due to the severity of his injury, which obviously left a lasting impact. A decent role player on his bad days and a good rotational piece on his good days, PWill has a future with the Bulls. His comeback is worth monitoring despite the bad outings this year.
Josh Giddey
What makes Giddey a piece worth monitoring on the court is his age. With only 22 years of age, Josh is a youngster still looking for his footing in the NBA. He might be one of the top players in his position for a few more years if the Bulls develop him the right way. Josh Giddey was exchanged for Alex Caruso, and as such, he will be often compared to his predecessor. Caruso is a better shooter and defender, but Giddey has youth on his side and still has enough time to improve in both domains.
The Bulls should be lucky to have a talented player on the roster to develop, but it is also sad that he is defensively as bad as the rest of the squad. Like Coby White, Giddey is an inconsistent player with good and bad streaks. On a championship-contending team such as OKC Thunder, he wasn’t cut it, but on the Bulls, he can be more relaxed in his on-court performances. Developing without pressure is easier, but you can never truly judge a player without competitiveness.
If the Chicago Bulls decide to change the playoffs this year, most of their ambitions will run through Giddey. He is an experienced international player who has that Euro-ball style to his game. The Bulls need to see a facilitator in him and pair him with White and the rest of the squad to get the best out of this team. If their stars align, Chicago fans of basketball may be blessed with some postseason ball.
Jalen Smith
Smith is a breath of fresh air on this Bulls roster. He is the only one playing up to his standards and has an upward trending trajectory. Jalen is a young player with a lot of potential, and he needs to be groomed into a player who will carry this franchise. He is shooting poorer than in his Indiana Pacers days, but that’s because he is no longer fed the ball by Haliburton. Despite not playing up to the standards set last year, he is still far above the averages he set throughout his career. Unlike the rest of the Bulls roster, Smith has improved his defensive numbers and is better defensively now than ever. All that is left is for him to steady his hand and increase his FG%. If the Bulls decide to tear up their roster and start over again, Jalen Smith is one of those players who deserves to stay out. His contract will not be astronomical, his on-court performances are good and will only be better, and he has youth on his side, too.
Nikola Vucevic & Zach LaVine
Here, we have two of the biggest superstars in NBA terms, Vuc and LaVine. They are on this list for two reasons – expectations are high around them & they might be the pieces moved on the chessboard for the Bulls’ future. Both Vuc and LaVine are known quantities. The issue with both is that the modern NBA no longer has too much use for them. Tanking teams do not want them as they’re on massive salaries. The teams chasing championships do not want them as they lack the qualities the modern game requires. Vuc and LaVine have little to no options. Their best bet is to play for the Bulls at the top of their game. Both are seasoned professionals who could play some winning basketball later in the year instead of being focused on the offseason as in the years past.
Summary
The Chicago Bulls are no fun. It is a franchise on a decline. They have been on a downward spiral since the late 90s. It is hard to imagine that the Bulls will ever repeat their years of success under Phil Jackson and Michael Jordan. No one is even expecting that from them. But even 10% of those years would suffice for Bulls fans today. A quarter of a century has passed with nothing to show for it. A constant carousel at coaching positions, paired with no superstars, and constant years between tanking and playing well marred with players who do not care for the city and the team.
We hope for better, but expect more from the Chicago Bulls. Yet, it is hard to imagine that they can get anywhere with their approach to roster building. Someone needs to tear this franchise from top to bottom. Despite the logic saying that the Bulls should tank and look to rebuild through the draft, that little something close to the purest form of basketball screams that Coby White, Zach LaVine, Vucevic, and Josh Giddey should be allowed to play to the best of their abilities. Even a first-round playoff exit sounds about right now.
Chicago Bulls are going downhill fast and their head coach isn’t pleased
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