The 2022-23 season thus far has not gone as the Chicago Bulls had likely hoped, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t still time left on the clock to right the ship. With 15 games remaining on the schedule, the pressure is on for the Bulls to begin racking up wins and climb back into the playoff picture. If they fail to do so, it would be seen as a colossal failure for this team that was constructed to win now by a front office that has struggled to earn the faith of its fanbase.
Fortunately, it appears the Bulls are building a bit of positive momentum after overcoming their struggles on the road and defeating the Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets. The Bulls have now won four of their last seven games coming out of the All-Star Break, which is a testament to how this team just needed a little time to sort their issues out.
The addition of Patrick Beverley has no doubt helped the Bulls get back on track, but they’re still far from where they need to be. Chicago currently has the 7th most difficult remaining strength of schedule, so they’ll really need to step things up if they want 2022-23 to be a season worth remembering.
When does the Chicago Bulls’ 2022-23 NBA regular season end?
To keep things fair for each playoff team, the NBA 2022-23 regular season is scheduled to end after all games are completed on April 9. All 30 teams in the league will play on that day, with each Eastern Conference team tipping off at 1 p.m. ET with the Western Conference following up afterward at 3:30 p.m. ET.
For the Bulls, their last game is scheduled to take place against a relatively favorable opponent, the Detroit Pistons. Chicago will host the game, which is a good sign, considering the team currently holds an 18-15 record at home while struggling to a 13-21 record on the road.
The Chicago Bulls will also be defending their current 14-game win streak against the Detroit Pistons, which dates all the way back to March 2019. Since the Bulls have playoff aspirations and the Pistons are jostling for the top spot in the upcoming draft lottery, I doubt Detroit will care too much if the win streak extends itself into next season.
There are likely to be more important things on the line as well, as Chicago figures to be one of the prime candidates racing for a qualification spot in the 2023 NBA Play-In Tournament. While the top 6 seeds in the Eastern Conference will advance to the playoffs outright, the 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th-seeded teams will battle it out for the final two playoff spots.
Here’s an update on the Eastern Conference playoff race as of March 12, 2023.
- Milwaukee Bucks (48-19)
- Boston Celtics (47-21)
- Philadelphia 76ers (44-22)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (42-27)
- Brooklyn Nets (38-29)
- New York Knicks (39-30)
- Miami Heat (36-33)
- Atlanta Hawks (34-34)
- Toronto Raptors (32-36)
- Chicago Bulls (31-36), 15 games remaining
- Washington Wizards (31-36)
- Indiana Pacers (31-37)
- Orlando Magic (28-40)
- Charlotte Hornets (22-47)
- Detroit Pistons (15-53)
Whichever two teams advance are likely destined for a first-round matchup against either the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, meaning the Bulls can potentially exact revenge against the team that embarrassed them in five games during last year’s playoffs. Whether or not Chicago is capable of accomplishing such a feat remains to be seen, but this team needs to dig up anything they can to use as motivation if they wish to salvage an otherwise disappointing season.