1) Who’s first to go if Chicago Bulls blow it up
Wendell Carter Jr., Center
The one key player for the Bulls young core on this list that did not inspire much confidence and/or hope for the direction of his game in the regular season opener loss to the Hawks was the third-year 21-year-old 6-foot-9 and 270 pound center Wendell Carter Jr. He does need to find a point to turn his game around in the near future to hold a consistent spot in this starting five throughout the regular season.
Hopefully this season won’t turn out to be a situation where we see WCJ’s game regress in his third year, just like we did Markkanen during the 2019-20 campaign. It’s too early to tell how WCJ’s game will ultimately turn out this season and next, as his scheme and role shifts in the starting five might be more extreme than any other player in this young core.
WCJ is being asked to greatly develop his game this season. But the good news is that he definitely has the court vision, shooting fundamentals, basketball IQ, and physical tools, to pull off a lot of the progression that the coaching staff and front office has to be looking for out of him. Maybe it is just a matter of a few weeks or months before he puts it all together.
The fact of the matter for WCJ is that this is likely a make-or-break year for him. He did not look great throughout much of the preseason, and in the regular season opener. In the loss to the Hawks, he registered just six points, six rebounds, two assists, no steals, no blocks, and three turnovers. WCJ shot 2-of-5 from the field, 0-of-2 from beyond the arc, and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe.