Chicago Bulls: Player grades through the All-Star break

CHICAGO, IL - FEBRUARY 9: Robin Lopez #42 of the Chicago Bulls hhi-fives teammates during the game against the Chicago Bulls on February 9, 2019 at United Center in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)
CHICAGO, IL - FEBRUARY 9: Robin Lopez #42 of the Chicago Bulls hhi-fives teammates during the game against the Chicago Bulls on February 9, 2019 at United Center in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images) /

The NBA is currently on pause. The annual All-Star break is in full effect and teams are gearing up for the last leg of the season. How have the Chicago Bulls done thus far?

It’s no secret that the NBA season is a grind. The travel schedule is tough, back-to-back games are exhausting, and sometimes your coach still makes you practice ridiculously hard (only if your coach is Jim Boylen, though). The All-Star break is a well-deserved time to kick your feet up and take a deep breath.

While some NBA teams are using this year’s All-Star break to prepare for a playoff run, other teams are using the break to make off-season vacation plans. You can go ahead and include the Chicago Bulls in the latter.

The Bulls are currently 14-44 – good for the fourth-worst record in the association – and are desperately trying to figure things out. They’ve looked much better as of late, but that might actually be worse for them. Some NBA fans favor growth over tanking, some favor tanking over growth. There are legitimate arguments to be made on both sides.

The Bulls right now are stuck somewhere in the middle. They’re bad enough to masquerade as a tanking team, but they’re improving enough to masquerade as a team trying to win games.

Let’s forget the team aspect for a little and simply focus on the individuals.

Here are individual player grades for the six most important Bulls through the All-Star break.