Chicago Bulls: 3 players surpassing expectations in first half of season

At this point of the regular season, the Chicago Bulls and first-year head coach Billy Donovan are largely surpassing expectations as a team. Although the Bulls fell short to the very much improved Phoenix Suns and veteran star point guard Chris Paul at home at the United Center on the night of Feb. 26, they are still largely trending in the right direction.

Following the loss to the Suns at home heading into the weekend, by the final score of 106-97, the Bulls now sport a record of 15-17. Prior to that loss to the Suns, the Bulls had won three games in a row and five of their last six. Still, winning five of their last seven games isn’t a bad way for the Bulls to come close to rounding out the month of February.

The final game this month for Donovan and the Bulls is set to come on the road north of the border on Feb. 28 against the Toronto Raptors, with tip off time set for 6 p.m. CT.

If the Bulls can notch a win over the Raptors to round out the February slate, it will go a long way to keeping them afloat in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. A key to success for the Bulls moving forward will be a handful of their players up and down the rotation that are elevating their own play this season when it matters the most.

Veteran role players, and a couple of pieces of the starting five, have the Bulls taking their game to a new level as a team this season. Here’s a look into three players in particular for the Bulls that have far surpassed expectations through the first half of the 2020-21 season.