2) Chicago Bulls with concerning dips in play
Daniel Gafford, Center
The former Arkansas Razorbacks second-year 6-foot-11 center Daniel Gafford was another young Bulls player that got off to a decent start this season, but saw his play largely wane of late. Gafford had to be hoping to get off to a more consistent start out of the gates as a whole for his sophomore campaign in the NBA.
As one of the players that looked like a true gem find in the second round of the 2019 NBA Draft (specifically picked 38th overall by the Bulls), Gafford offered this frontcourt rotation a lot of value this season. He’s also been called upon to assume a much bigger role of late, in the absence of the injured third-year center Wendell Carter Jr.
But neither the per game stats, not the advanced metrics, look much better for Gafford this season than they did last. In fact, his efficiency did get much worse since he was inserted into the starting five. This opportunity should’ve been one that Gafford was able to run with. Instead, he’s bringing about new question marks to his ability to assume a bigger role in the near future.
The two worst game scores that Gafford posted on the season so far both came in the last two games. And he was a net negative on the floor in each of the last two games.
In total, Gafford has played in 15 games so far this season for the Bulls (three of which he’s started in), averaging around 15 minutes on the floor per game. And he’s averaged 5.1 points per game, 2.5 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.5 steals, and 1.2 blocks.