Chicago Bulls: What will constitute a “successful” season?
By Luke Askew
The Chicago Bulls are at an interesting point in their rebuild. What do the Bulls have to do in 2018-19 in order for the season to be a success?
During the 2017-18 NBA season, the Chicago Bulls’ success was measured by how many wins and losses they had. That’s pretty normal for a professional sports team. What isn’t normal, though, is the backward way of thinking that comes with tanking.
The Bulls were considered “successful” last season if they lost as many games as possible – the more the merrier!
It’s easy to look back now and think that the development of Zach LaVine, Lauri Markkanen and Kris Dunn were also factors in terms of how “successful” the team was. In reality, however, if all three of those guys had terrible seasons but the Bulls ended up with the no. 1 or no. 2 overall pick, most fans would’ve been content.
Markkanen’s production was a surprise to almost everyone, LaVine’s inconsistencies weren’t a surprise to almost anyone and Dunn was expected to take the step in the right direction that he did. So really, every positive thing those guys did was just a cherry on top of the draft pick they were tanking for.
I know some people will get mad at me for thinking the success of Lauri Markkanen was a huge surprise, but let’s be honest… Did anyone really expect him to make the All-Rookie first team and have a chance at being a franchise player?
If you did, kudos to you.
The Bulls measurement of “success” last year came in one very simple way: the number of losses they ended the season with. During the 2018-19 NBA season, however, there will be way more factors when determining the success of the team.
How will the Bulls “success” be measured?
The Chicago Bulls are one of the biggest question marks in the entire league right now. How well will Jabari Parker fit in at the 3? Can Parker stay healthy? Will LaVine improve on defense? Will Markkanen regress? Will Wendell Carter Jr. prove he’s worthy of being a starter? Will Dunn’s offensive game improve? Will Fred Hoiberg keep control of the locker room?
These are all great questions and will all factor into how the Bulls’ “success” is measured.
If Parker stays healthy and forms a nasty duo with Markkanen, the Bulls will be set. However, if Markkanen and Parker both play well individually, but clash as a tandem, then the front office will have an incredibly difficult decision to make. Who would they go forward with?
This is just a brief look into all the ways the Bulls’ level of “success” will be measured in the 2018-19 season. It’s pretty complicated stuff.
Unless it’s not?
The Bulls have a chance to do something they didn’t get to do last year – win games. I’m not able to predict the future and tell you which players will thrive and which players won’t during their time in Chicago, but if the Bulls are winning games, does it really matter?
Maybe, the Bulls’ level of “success” should just be based on whether they beat teams with inferior skill and lose to teams with superior skill. I know it almost seems too simple, but how else can we really judge this team?
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If the Bulls win a good amount of games this season (35? 40?), then that probably means all of the other stuff worked itself out. As a Bulls fan, I’d consider that a success.