Chicago Bulls
The 2022-23 Chicago Bulls can be defined by winning six fewer games than last season and missing the playoffs.
What did we learn?
The Bulls were mid, finishing as the 10-seed in the East.
Chicago did win the first play-in game in Toronto, completing a 19-point comeback thanks in large part to Mari DeRozan, DeMar DeRozan’s daughter, sitting courtside and screaming so shriekingly loud that the Raptors missed 18 free throws.
The Bulls then lost to the Heat in the second play-in game, melting away in the final minutes after having a 6-point lead with seven minutes left. It was a sight all too familiar for Bulls fans as the Heat ended the game on a 15-1 run over the final 3:47. The Bulls missed their final eight shots.
Crunch time was an issue all season long. Chicago held the 4th-worst clutch record in the NBA at 15-23 after being 25-16 and No. 4 last season with all of DeRozan’s late-game heroics.
DeRozan still played his heart out and gave it everything he had, an All-Star for the second straight season. But the Bulls had a negative net rating with DeRozan, LaVine and Vooch on the court together. A “big 3” that doesn’t appear to be getting them anywhere.
LaVine put the knee injury that plagued him at the beginning of the season behind him, increasing his burst and scoring as the season progressed. His numbers ended almost identical to last season. LaVine’s 3-point shot was absolutely crucial to Bulls wins this season. In the 33 games that LaVine shot better than 37 percent from 3, the Bulls were 27-6. In all other games, the Bulls went 13-36.
Vooch was an NBA Iron Man, playing all 82 games for the Bulls. His base numbers somehow were identical to last season. He improved both his 3-point and free-throw percentages. It was an all-around good season for him.
But the bigger big-picture problem is that 23-year-old Wendell Carter Jr. is basically just as good as 32-year-old Vooch already, and the price the Bulls paid for Vooch includes the Bulls’ first-round pick in this year’s draft (No. 11) in addition to the fact that the Magic already selected Franz Wagner with another lottery pick recouped in the trade. (Not to mention that former Bull Lauri Markkanen just turned into an All-Star and the NBA’s Most Improved Player.)
Patrick Williams joined Vooch as an 82-game Iron Man. He constantly guarded the opposing team’s best player and shot 41 percent from 3. However, Williams was not always trusted by Billy D to play in crunch time, and he would go through stretches of bewildering unaggressiveness.
Patrick Beverley showed up in late February off the buyout market and instantly made a difference, a defensive spark that was contagious. Caruso had another season as an excellent role player, providing elite perimeter defense that earned him a spot on first-team All-Defense.
Opposite of last season, the Bulls actually had a lot of momentum going after the All-Star break and were a good team for the last three months of the season. They rocked a 14-9 record after All-Star and the No. 1 defense after January 1st. Yes, you read that correctly — the Bulls finished with a top-5 defense on the season.
It was the Bulls’ offense and their choice of shot selection that was a huge hindrance. Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Artuas Karnisovas said it best, “It will be a priority for us to change our shooting profile because it’s very difficult for us to go into every game with such a deficit. We’re last in 3-point rate. We’re last in 3-point field goals made. It’s almost like we’re going into every game with an eight-point deficit to make up.”
If the Bulls seemed to have a strong foundation after the Vooch trade and splash of the 2021 offseason, that foundation has crumbled with Lonzo’s absence and withered with aging DeRozan and Vucevic.
The evidence is clear and suggests that the Bulls are stuck in the middle and need to make a change.
Vooch is an unrestricted free agent, but how can this team expect any different results by bringing back the same team?
The Bulls did nothing last offseason. The Bulls did nothing at the trade deadline.
More than anything, it’s time to make a move.
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Additional Notes
Ayo was a great find in the second round of the draft and is a fine role player. He does have some turnover tendencies, but he is a winning player any team would be lucky to have.
A lot of Bulls fans will tell you that if Billy D did not sub in Pat Bev for Coby White at the end of the second play-in game vs. the Heat, the Bulls would have won that game. White had 14 points off the bench and drilled 4-of-6 3-pointers. Pat Bev went scoreless in 27 minutes.
Javonte Green only played 32 games this season, and the Bulls missed his energy and speed.
We sure did not see much from the No. 18 pick in last year’s draft, Dalen Terry, who played just 38 games and averaged 5.6 minutes.
Last, but not least, Goran Dragic was here for 51 games. And for the first three months of the season, he was No. 4 on the team in usage.
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Did our preseason Over/Under prediction hit?
Really hope the Bulls are fun again, but just can’t take their Over in the loaded East. Under 42.5 wins.
Bulls 2022-23 record: (40-42)
Yes indeed. It was a little sweaty with the Bulls’ late push, but it was never too much of a concern.
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What’s Next?
No first-round pick is a tough look. Again: perhaps more than any team, the Bulls need to make a trade.
The Bulls could use a floor general and shooting. For the latter, how about Seth Curry?
Vooch is a free agent and the biggest question here. They can’t afford to lose him for nothing, but the Bulls also cannot be a tax team for 40 wins and missing the playoffs. Right? Right.
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Favorite Bulls Highlight of the 2022-23 Season:
Still a mid-range master.
