The Chicago Bulls are coming off a victory over the Charlotte Hornets that makes them 4-6 over the course of their last ten games played. The Bulls are still without all-star guard Zach LaVine who remains in the league’s health and safety protocols until further notice.
That makes the upcoming stretch of games even more difficult than they already were going to be. Quite frankly, the Bulls don’t need any added difficulty to their remaining schedule. They enter the weekend one half of a game behind the Washington Wizards for the 10th spot in the east and face an uphill battle if they want to overtake them for the final play-in spot.
Not only do the Bulls need to address some of their own issues on the court, but they also need to do so against tough competition. Of the remaining 13 games on the Bulls schedule, 11 are against teams currently holding playoff spots in the eastern conference.
The Bulls are already struggling enough on both ends of the floor, now they are watching the clock tick on their playoff hopes and they are up against some of the best teams in their conference most nights.
The Chicago Bulls Schedule Picks up Quickly
There is no time to waste, the Bulls will get back to work on Saturday night in Miami as they take on the reigning Eastern Conference champions. If one time against the Heat isn’t enough, no worries. The Bulls will have an off day Sunday before once again playing the Heat in Miami.
Then, they continue their brief road trip by taking on the New York Knicks, who happen to be one of the hottest teams in the entire NBA right now. The week rounds out with a game back at the United Center against the Milwaukee Bucks followed by a Saturday night game against the Atlanta Hawks.
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That will be five straight games against playoff teams that are not only ahead of the Bulls in the standings but also are playing much better basketball right now. Three more tough games follow the first five as Chicago faces the Philadelphia 76er, Charlotte Hornets and Boston Celtics before finally getting a game they might actually be favored in.
On May 9th the Chicago Bulls will travel to Detroit to take on the Pistons in what will end a streak of eight straight games against playoff teams. The Pistons are exactly the opposite of that, as they currently are in last place in the eastern conference.
That point will put the Bulls through nine games of their remaining thirteen. If they have gotten by enough to remain at least alive in the playoff race at that point they will have to once again step up and beat some very good teams.
Their last four games include two games against the loaded Brooklyn Nets, one against the elite Milwaukee Bucks and one against another non-playoff team, the Toronto Raptors.
To sum things up, the Bulls have 13 remaining games. Of those 13 games, six come against eastern conference powerhouses in the Heat, Bucks and Nets. Five come against good to great teams like the Celtics and 76ers, and just two come against teams that are not playing for much at this point in the season.
It is hard to imagine a worse hand to be dealt at this point of the season than what the Chicago Bulls face. They face an uphill battle in getting to the playoffs this season. By the look of things, the Bulls may be playing meaningless games of their own sooner rather than later.
Keep an eye on how the weekend plays out as the Bulls will shift focus if they start falling behind in the race for the play-in tournament.