The Chicago Bulls season came to a close Wednesday night with a blowout loss to the Pistons. With that being said, for the last time, here are my team grades for the entire season.
Overall team grade: D
The Bulls have had their fair share of ups and downs throughout this season, but when it was all said and done, they finished the season with a meager 27 wins. This was their lowest win total since the 2003-2004 season.
Ironically, the Timberwolves last playoff appearance was 2004, and now that they seem to have half of the 2011 Bulls roster and coaching staff on their team, they have found their way back into the playoffs. In a weird way, it’s almost like the Bulls are in the playoffs.
No?
Okay – that was a little too much – but still.
When you finish the season with a 27-55 record, it’s hard for me to give a grade higher than a D, despite the amount of potential they flashed throughout the season.
I want to say the Bulls are better than their record shows and I actually believe that. But I can’t ignore the record when handing out the grade.
Even though they were a terrible team this year, the individual performances and improvements we saw throughout the season were enough to provide Bulls fans with a lot of hope going into next season.
The Players
After getting hated on in the draft, Lauri Markkanen had a stellar rookie season. He averaged 15 points and 8 rebounds per game while shattering a few rookie records along the way. I suppose that’s decent.
Kris Dunn went from zero to hero this season as he upped his scoring average by nearly 10 points from last season. Dunn averaged 13 points and 6 assists while contributing 2 steals per game on the defensive end.
Zach LaVine had his struggles but when the Bulls acquired him, they knew what they were getting into. He was in the midst of a long rehab and no one knew how he would return. The good news is that despite his struggles this season, he showed flashes of the player the Bulls need him to be. He also still managed to average 17 points per game which isn’t bad considering all the rust he had to shake off.
I know I mention this a lot, but that 35 point outburst against the Timberwolves was extremely important and I don’t think it was a fluke. LaVine has the talent to be All-NBA, he just needs to match his talent with consistency.
The moral of the story is the Bulls were terrible this season, but they have a lot going for them and next season should be different.
Tanking grade: B+
When the Bulls started the season 3-20, there was some false hope that they’d be in the running for the top pick in the 2018 NBA draft. Then Nikola Mirotic returned from injury and ruined those dreams for Bulls fans everywhere.
But lucky for the tank, the Bulls traded Nikola Mirotic to the Pelicans and ended up with another first-round pick. So not only did they trade the player that was delivering them win after win after win, but they also acquired an additional first-round pick for the upcoming draft that just so happens to be loaded with talent. That’s a pretty good move for the tank.
Where the tank went wrong is that the Bulls swept the Magic this season. I know it’s tough to say this, but those are games the Bulls needed to find a way to lose.
On the flip side of that, however, is the awesome fact that the Bulls got swept by the Nets this season. Now that is some good tanking.
The Bulls tanking season even ended on a high note with four straight losses. This means that they are now tied for the sixth-worst record in the association.
According to my estimations, there are six potential superstars in this upcoming draft. That means that landing a top-six draft pick should be the goal for lottery teams. With a little help from the ping-pong balls, the Bulls could be in good shape to get a future superstar.
Adding that next piece to the core of Markkanen, LaVine, and Dunn should make for a nice future.
So, with all that being said, the highly anticipated tank season for the Chicago Bulls went pretty well and I give them a B+ for their effort – or lack thereof?