After starting the season on a five-game win streak, the Bulls have cooled off significantly and enter Wednesday’s contest against the Cavaliers having lost eight of their last nine games. Notably, the one win in that span, a 129-126 victory over the Hornets, was punctuated by starting center Nikola Vucevic being benched for the final 19 minutes of play in favor of Zach Collins and Jalen Smith.
Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune writes that the decision only underscores one of the prevailing questions of the season: what he’s doing with this young Bulls team that loves to play fast and frenetic, as opposed to his usual slow, deliberate pace.
“Those questions do creep into your mind and you think about it and you get caught into it, especially when things are not going well,” Vucevic said. “I think it’s natural, it’s human nature, but you just have to find a way to limit it as much as possible.”
Poe writes that the Bulls still need Vucevic, but that this could help them try to picture a world in which the longtime center isn’t starting anymore. However, according to coach Billy Donovan, there are no changes on the immediate horizon.
“I wouldn’t want to take one game and sit there and say, ‘OK, after one game, we’re going to change everything,’” Donovan said. “I don’t think that would be fair.”
Poe notes in a separate article that in Chicago’s next game, a 114-104 loss to the Pelicans, Donovan returned to his usual big man rotation down the stretch, keeping Vucevic in the game while Collins and Smith were limited to 12 and 13 minutes, respectively.
We have more from the Bulls:
Matas Buzelis has been tasked primarily with guarding larger forwards for the first part of the season, but Donovan’s willingness to utilize two-big lineups could see the second-year forward guarding more on the perimeter in games to come, writes Kyle Williams of the Chicago Sun-Times. “I think Matas has the foot speed and length to be able to do that,” Donovan said. “Certain guys will be a little bit more dynamic and [a] little bit more challenging, but I feel pretty confident with his foot speed and his length that he can guard multiple positions.” Williams notes that, according to Donovan, any such defensive change wouldn’t impact how Buzelis is used offensively.
Despite public assurances from Vice President of Basketball Operations Arturas Karnisovas that the Bulls plan to keep Coby White, there are questions within the organization around whether the team will be willing to pay White when he hits unrestricted free agency this summer, Poe writes in a trade-season-centered article. Poe notes that if Chicago isn’t planning on signing him to a deal similar to the one they paid Josh Giddey last summer, the best move would be to shop him now. The Bulls under Karnisovas have been tentative when it comes to in-season deals, Poe writes, but failing to improve the roster either in the short or long-term would be a major misstep by the front office.
The Bulls decided to run it back with the roster they have this season after a strong 20-game end to the season last year, Joe Cowley writes for the Chicago Sun-Times; they should use the most recent 5-15 stretch to decide to tank for the rest of the season. Cowley adds that, without a “real” All-Star and given that the Bulls are not considered a desirable free agent landing spot around the league, a full tank is needed ahead of the loaded 2026 draft class. Otherwise, the team will once again end up in a worst-of-all-worlds middle zone.