Just by casually checking the NBA standings and results, it seems pretty clear that no teams are especially motivated to capture the No. 9 and 10 seeds in the East.
Except maybe the Bulls. They used a big fourth quarter to beat Brooklyn 116-110 on Thursday at the United Center, stretching their win streak to four games.
With Josh Giddey expected to miss a few games with an ankle injury, Coby White stayed hot, scoring 31 points. Over the past seven games, White has averaged 28.6 points, while shooting 48.6% from the field.
Kevin Huerter and Tre Jones added 18 points each, while Julian Phillips scored a career-high 16.
The Bulls (28-38) have been sitting in 10th place, good enough for the final play-in spot for at least a month. They started the night closer to ninth (two games behind Miami) than 11th place (4½ ahead of Toronto). The Bulls recently went 3-7 over a 10-game stretch and lost no ground.
Most teams are thinking about lottery chances this time of year. The Bulls currently have the eighth-worst record in the league and falling any farther will be a difficult task, considering how little teams behind them are trying.
Brooklyn (22-44) played its starters down the stretch, so it seemed like the Nets were trying to win, but they were outscored 34-18 in the final quarter. Brooklyn has now lost 9 of its last 10 games, with the lone win against the Lakers on Monday.
The Bulls could pass up some teams if they keep winning, but the real consequence would happen if the Bulls get to that second play-in game.
Lose and they assume their spot in the lottery. But if they win two play-ins and take the No. 8 playoff seed in the East, then they'd be locked into the No. 15 overall draft pick, with no chance of moving up in the lottery.
So that's the day the Bulls tank? What if their opponent tanks even harder?
Before the game, Bulls coach Billy Donovan repeated his preference for trying to win every game. Anyone who's followed the Bulls through their multiple rebuilds can confirm — trying to lose carries the risk of creating a team of losers.
“At some point you're going to want (young) players to be in a situation where they can impact winning,” Donovan said. “That has to start right away.”
Donovan then tailored his answer to another question fans have been asking: Why not play rookie Matas Buzelis down the stretch in every close game? Donovan talked about Buzelis “playing tired” sometimes and adjusting to an 82-game schedule.
“I think the worst thing you can do with him is, 'Hey, don't worry about it, you're a young guy,'” Donovan said. “No, you've got a responsibility to the organization and to the team. At some point (the excuse of being young) ends for all of them and it might as well end now. That's my opinion.”
There should be plenty of chances for teams to gain ground on the Bulls, if any of them actually care. The Bulls are headed out on a six-game road trip through the West and Giddey could miss the whole thing. But falling out of the play-in seems nearly impossible at this point.
Donovan went with a newcomer lineup down the stretch, using Huerter, Jones and Zach Collins with White and Phillips for the majority of the fourth quarter. In addition to points, Phillips also set a career-highs in minutes (34), rebounds (7) and assists (5).
The Bulls did a nice job of pushing the pace late, with White or Jones usually taking the ball full speed at the Nets' defense, which inevitably created an open lane to the hoop or open shot for someone.
“They do a good job of that,” Phillips said. “It can be kind of tough sometimes (keeping up), they be flying. But I think everybody's pretty well conditioned.”