The best move at this point of the 2019-20 regular season for the 19-33 Chicago Bulls should be waiving the white flag in the playoff race.
After their latest loss at the hands of the Toronto Raptors on Feb. 2 on the road by the final score of 129-102, the Chicago Bulls fell to 14-games under .500 on the season. That is their lowest total number of games under .500 so far this season. The Bulls moved their record on the season to a lowly 19-33 after that thoroughly convincing 27-point road loss at the hands of the Raptors on Super Bowl Sunday.
However, the Bulls don’t have an easy road ahead. Head coach Jim Boylen now sees his team more than three games behind the Orlando Magic for the eight seed in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. The Magic are currently sitting on a five-game losing streak, which the Bulls aren’t taking advantage of with a three-game slide of their own.
The next two games for the Bulls sees them host rookie sensation forward Zion Willliamson at home at the United Center on Feb. 6. The Pelicans are on a roll since Zion returned to the lineup from his knee rehab. Then the Bulls face the towering starting five of the Philadelphia 76ers on Feb. 9 on the road.
Nothing will come easy for the Bulls within the next week or so.
With the trade deadline fast approaching on Feb. 6, the Bulls have little hope of making a realistic playoff run. About the only reliable production that the Bulls get offensively comes from shooting guard Zach LaVine, who was one of the bigger All-Star Reserve snubs in the East.
LaVine is having to do too much by himself with power forward Lauri Markkanen, small forward Otto Porter Jr., and center Wendell Carter Jr. also still dealing with various ailments. None of those three aforementioned usual Bulls starters look to return to the lineup before the All-Star Break.
The Bulls might be too far gone by the time that those three get back in the mix too.
Maybe the Bulls can utilize the stretch of games that comes against the Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards, and Phoenix Suns, starting next week to get back in the playoff race. But facing the Milwaukee Bucks in all likelihood in the first round of the playoffs in the East spells sure doom for almost anyone who faces them as the eight seed.
Trying to at least get good positioning in the draft lottery this summer seems like the best move for the Bulls at the moment. They’re moving further and further out of the playoff picture of late, and they should be sellers at the trade deadline.
Once again, the injury bug bit the Bulls hard at a horrible time. Defensive stopper Kris Dunn hurt his right knee in the loss to the Raptors last weekend, which hurts their depth in the guard rotation even more. He didn’t return to the game and could be out for at least a few weeks.