Chicago Bulls
The 2021-22 Chicago Bulls can be defined by being in 1st place in the Eastern Conference on Feb. 24 but finishing 6th amidst a plethora of injuries, and losing to the Bucks in the first round in 5 games.
What did we learn?
The new-look Chicago Bulls electric preseason was for real.
The Bulls charged out of the regular season gate with a fury that put to rest all of the shit everyone talked about the offseason DeRozan deal.
A mid-range God and The King of the Fourth, DeMar DeRozan took over in crunch-time with his mid-range mastery time and time again. A professional scorer and tough shot-maker, DeRozan led the league in 4th quarter points by a substantial margin. DeRozan’s 612 fourth-quarter points were over 80 more points than Giannis’ 2nd place 528 and over 140 more points than Tatum’s 3rd place 469.
The fit between DeRozan and Zach LaVine was seamless, a stout one-two punch that averaged a combined 52 points a night. Aided by the newly acquired defensive-oriented and ball-moving Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso, the Bulls surprisingly had a really good defense to begin the season. Lonzo and Caruso don’t put up the biggest numbers, but they wow you with their unselfishness and hard-nosed permeable defense that gave the Bulls a nightly hustle advantage that doesn’t show up on paper.
Vooch could be a terrific third option on offense when he was on top of his game. There were plenty of times when it seemed like the Bulls could use more from Vooch, but there were also games where he put them over the top. However, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that his 3-point percentage dropped from 40 percent last season down to 31.4 percent. There were a lot of wide-open misses.
It was an ominous sign of things to come when Pat Williams was lost for five months due to wrist surgery just a week into the season. Then Lonzo was out with a knee, and Caruso was taken out by Grayson Allen. DJJ got hurt around that time, too. The Bulls were also the first team to really get hit by the protocols in December.
And yet, the Bulls still found a way to keep winning. DeRozan’s late-game heroics were the biggest reason why, but basketball is a team sport after all.
It wouldn’t be a Bulls season review if we didn’t sing, and sing LOUDLY, the praises of one of our favorite rookies ever, Ayo Dosumnu. Ayo went from a very beginning of the season WHO HE!? to a guy we regularly watched and adored on a nightly basis. Dosumnu was thrown directly into the fire, and the moment was never too big for him. He played with a calmness and poise far ahead of his years.
Here is a stat: In the 35 games this season that Ayo Dosumnu posted a positive plus-minus, the Bulls went 31-4.
The huge comeback against the Celtics in Boston at the beginning of the season that Dosumnu helped ignite was pure bliss. (We had money on the Bulls.) The Bulls outscored the Celtics 39 to 11 in the fourth quarter. IN Boston!
The 6-foot-4 Javonte Green stepped up into the starting lineup when called upon and wasn’t afraid to take on very tough defensive assignments guarding much taller players. Green is a high-energy player with a ton of speed. These Bulls had a plethora of speed and athleticism. (Until everybody kept getting hurt.)
Injuries caught up to the Bulls. They eventually got Pat Williams and Caruso back, but Lonzo never returned. The Bulls defense lost steam and they couldn’t hang with the East’s elite. The Bulls record against the top teams was atrocious.
From the All-Star Break until the end of the season, the Bulls went 8-15 with the #25 offense and #25 defense, and Chicago’s net rating of -7.1 was third-worst in the NBA, ahead of only the tanking Thunder and Blazers.
Drawing Milwaukee in the first round, the Bulls didn’t stand a chance against Giannis and the defending-champion Bucks, but it’s commendable that they at least didn’t get swept.
The Bulls can still hang their hats on the fact that it was the first time in the playoffs since Jimmy Butler was around back in 2016-17. And DeRozan’s historic stretch of eight straight 35-point games with 50% shooting was seriously scintillating and beautiful to watch. It was DeMarvelous. Any time that you are putting up numbers that haven’t been accomplished since MJ and Wilt, you deserve all of the recognition.
It’s clear that the moves the Bulls made to accelerate their timeline put a strong structure in place.
For the first time in a long time, people were back to watching and being excited about the Chicago Bulls.
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Additional Notes
Lost in the fact that DeRozan had his best season in the 13th year of his career was the notion that Zach LaVine deserves credit for not only being cool with the new guy taking over his team, but also for encouraging it, and for being the first to toot DeRozan’s horn.
Coby White saw less playing time this season with the emergence of Dosumnu, but he did put together his best shooting percentages yet: 38.5 percent from 3 on 5.8 attempts per game. (Some recent rumors have suggested that the Bulls might be shopping him.)
Troy Brown Jr. was another speedy, athletic Bull from this season. However, Brown struggled to find consistency in his game, and it was hard to ponder if the Bulls wished they had just held on to Daniel Gafford at last year’s trade deadline.
Picking up Tristan Thompson off waivers was a move that both worked and shows just how desperate things got for the Bulls in the end.
Stacey King is an absolute joy as the color commentator. “Drive home safely, Chicago. BEEP BEEP!”
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Did our preseason Over/Under prediction hit?
We were leaning towards the under until we saw the Bulls light up the preseason. Over 43.5 wins.
2021-22 Bulls record: (46-36)
Yes! Sometimes you can learn things from the preseason.
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What’s Next?
The #18 pick in the draft. KOC suggests Ohio State forward E.J. Liddell, who is older but could help the Bulls on the wing now. Sounds pretty good!
Zach LaVine’s free agency. Per ESPN’s cap-guru Bobby Marks: “LaVine is eligible to sign a five-year, $212 million max contract.” *whistles* Seems like a lot of recent chatter has been suggesting that LaVine is more than open to exploring his options. LaVine would fit in nicely pretty much anywhere and everywhere.
Having just played his best season at age 32, DeRozan is not getting any younger. There is no doubt that the Bulls will stay heavy in win-now mode.
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Favorite Bulls Highlights of the 2021-22 Season:
The King of the Fourth.
