DENVER – The Bulls were taking on water even before the Feb. 2, Zach LaVine three-team trade, losers of nine-of-12 games and sinking fast.
The feeling league-wide after LaVine was dealt? Women and children exit first.
Six weeks later, however, even those down in steerage are dry, and suddenly the run-and-gun Bulls are becoming a tough out from night to night, winners of 10 of their last 15 games after outlasting the Nuggets on Monday 129-119.
“They might be the best running team in the league right now,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone commented before the game.
He then saw it firsthand, as the Bulls (32-40) outscored the home team 34-24 in that final stanza.
That up-tempo is part of it, but they might also be the most stubborn.
While the rest of the world was telling them to tank in the wake of the LaVine trade, the coaches and players dug 10 toes into the sand and decided they had other plans.
“I just think we kind of embraced the challenge and took pride in showing that people kind of wrote us off when Zach got traded,” veteran Nikola Vucevic said. “I think we’ve really come together as a group, our chemistry has been really good. When you lose someone, a player like (LaVine) it opens up opportunities for other players, and guys have really stepped up – Josh (Giddey), Coby (White), Tre (Jones) before he got hurt, Kevin (Huerter). Like Kevin wasn’t playing much in Sac (Sacramento), and he came here with kind of a chip on his shoulder and showed he can still contribute at a high level, and he has been.
“It’s just the way it is in this league, you can’t dwell over what happens. Teams make decisions, front offices, and that’s their decision. We as players, we focus on what we can do to become the best versions of ourselves.”
And while this roster still has its flaws, specifically starting with executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas unable to figure out how to get a superstar talent in a Bulls uniform in his fifth season in that chair, they have also at least found an identity.
White sure has, getting back-to-back Eastern Conference Player of the Week honors and then dropping 37 on the Nuggets with chants of “Coby White … Coby White …” coming from the crowd.
“Confidence is high,” White said of his latest performance. “Like I always say, it isn’t just me, it takes a village. Family, teammates, the organization, continues to push me.”
That’s why the hope from inside the locker room is this new version of Bulls basketball gets a chance to continue building on the continuity. Not that they have much of a choice. With the way Karnisovas has set up the roster it will be a lot of returning faces for at least one more season, plus the addition of a first-round draft pick in June.
There’s always trades that could be had, but not as many as one would think.
One player that suddenly is buying in and would like to finish out his contract for another season? Vucevic, himself.
A bit surprising, especially after good friend DeMar DeRozan was traded last summer, Alex Caruso was sent to Oklahoma City, and then the LaVine trade. All signs pointed to Vucevic being traded by the Feb. 6 deadline, and when he wasn’t there were concerns that he would be checked out.
He made it very clear on Monday he’s far from that. He’s still all in.
“Who knows what happens in the summer, but right now I’m focused on this group of guys,” Vucevic said. “I’ve really enjoyed playing with them. Guys with good character, guys that really want to win, they care. We play for each other, we compete, and that’s what you want.”