The Chicago Bulls spent much of the first half of the 2020s with a clear vision in mind. With a quartet of Lonzo Ball, DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Nikola Vucevic, Chicago planned to overwhelm teams with an offensive juggernaut that could create at all three levels.
Unfortunately, Chicago's first-round exit in 2021-22 was the highlight of its run—and the recent Lonzo Ball trade has officially brought its previous strategy to an end.
The Bulls won 46 games during Ball's first season with the team, seemingly revealing a level of genius behind its calculated risks. Unfortunately, injuries and inconsistency would become the theme for a team that went 40-42, 39-43, and 39-43 in the three years that followed.
After accepting that it was time to move on from its flawed vision by parting with DeRozan in 2024 and LaVine in 2025, the Bulls decided to trade Ball just two days after the NBA Draft.
BREAKING: The Chicago Bulls are trading Lonzo Ball to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Isaac Okoro, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/W0FTrRhe7y
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 28, 2025
One can't help but lament how long the Bulls waited to finally accept their reality, but it's worth applauding that they've moved on from a formula that no longer worked for them.
Bulls finally embrace life after the Ball-DeRozan-LaVine core
It's fair to question how this Chicago team would be viewed and remembered had injuries not played such a significant role in its shortcomings. It won 40 games in 2022-23, for instance, despite not having Ball on the court a single time all season.
They also won 39 games in 2023-24 with Ball missing another full campaign, which certainly paints the picture of the Bulls being a postseason-caliber team when healthy.
Unfortunately, injuries are a part of the game—and knowing when to pivot is an essential strength. Chicago failed to adapt in time to maximize the returns from deals that sent Ball, DeRozan, and LaVine elsewhere, let alone salvage their years as teammates.
The silver lining is that the era of understandably stubborn optimism has passed, thus making way for a more realistic vision to take hold.
Chicago has loaded up on promising young players, positioning itself to build around a new core of productive individuals. Coby White appears to be the leading candidate to take on the role of No. 1 scorer after averaging 22.9 points per game after LaVine's final outing with the Bulls in 2024-25.
Chicago went 19-15 during that time, thus implying that the path to redemption will be easier to manage than some might've previously presumed.
It's unfortunate that none of Ball, DeRozan, or LaVine will be around to contribute to the Bulls' next generation, but those difficult decisions were essential to embrace. Chicago can finally empower the key contributors to its youth movement to realize their potential and escape the shadow of the veterans who went as far as they could.
In the end, a sad farewell to Ball has enabled the Bulls to move on from a trying time in franchise history and accept a new and potentially brighter future.