{"id":28081,"date":"2020-01-03T07:00:38","date_gmt":"2020-01-03T12:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/?p=28081"},"modified":"2020-01-02T21:26:41","modified_gmt":"2020-01-03T02:26:41","slug":"chicago-bulls-are-finally-looking-at-a-playoff-berth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2020\/01\/03\/chicago-bulls-are-finally-looking-at-a-playoff-berth\/","title":{"rendered":"Chicago Bulls are Playoff Contenders"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Chicago Bulls<\/a> were a force to be reckoned with early in the 2010s. At the end of the 2010-11 season, the Bulls won 62 games. They ended up losing in the Eastern Conference Finals to the Miami Heat<\/a>. That was Derrick Rose’s<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0MVP season. As a result of that season, things looked up for the team’s future. Next season, the Bulls were able to win 50 games and capture the first seed in the East yet again.<\/p>\n

Derrick Rose ended up tearing his ACL<\/a>\u00a0in the first round of the playoffs in 2012. That spelled doom for the Bulls franchise. Consequently, the Bulls were never able to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals again. The past three years they have been in rebuild mode. They are currently ninth in the East and look revitalized. As a result of the rebuild, the Chicago Bulls are out of the bottom of the Eastern Conference and are fighting to make it to the playoffs for the first time since 2017.<\/p>\n

Chicago Bulls Are Finally Looking at a Playoff Berth<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Future Team of the 2020s<\/strong><\/h3>\n

These past three years the Bulls had high first-round picks and all three of them have been playing well. As a result of the great play, the Bulls are surging in the standings.<\/p>\n

For three years in a row, the Bulls had the seventh pick in the first round and they have hit on all three of them. First, in 2017 the Bulls drafted Lauri Markkanen<\/a><\/strong>. Markkanen has developed into quite the player. Currently, he is averaging 15.1 points per game and 6.6 rebounds per game.<\/p>\n

Wendell Carter<\/a><\/strong> was the next pick in 2018. Currently, he is averaging 11.7 points per game and close to a double-double with 9.8 rebounds per game.<\/p>\n

Lastly, they drafted Coby White<\/a><\/strong> with the seventh pick in the 2019 NBA draft. White is currently averaging 11.5 points per game. These three draft picks are doing well for them so far and they will be big pieces for the future.<\/p>\n

The star on this team is Zach LaVine<\/a><\/strong>. LaVine is a top 20 scorer in this league. The high flying wing is averaging 23.4 points per game which is good for 17th in the league. At only 24 he has shown he will be a star that can carry this team in the future. He developed from dazzling fans in the dunk contest to playing high-level basketball.<\/p>\n

The Bulls have complementary pieces that help complete the team. Tomas Satoransky<\/a><\/strong> adds three-point shooting (averaging 10.1 points per game and shooting 39.3 percent from three) to this team, Otto Porter Jr.<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0(averaging 11.2 points per game) helps provide depth<\/a> at the wing and Thaddeus Young<\/a><\/strong> (averaging 8.7 points per game) is a veteran presence that every young team needs. Due to three good drafts and good moves in the rebuilding years the Bulls look like they will be a team to watch out for in the 2020s.<\/p>\n

Chicago Bulls Capabilities<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The offense is the limiting factor for the Bulls. They rank 29th in offensive rating with 103.7 points per 100 possesions.<\/p>\n

On the defensive side, the Bulls are one of the elite teams in the league. The Bulls are fifth in defensive rating with 104.7 points per 100 possesions. They are ahead of teams like the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a>, Philadelphia 76ers<\/a>, and Denver Nuggets<\/a>. The teams that are ahead of them are the Milwaukee Bucks<\/a>, Toronto Raptors<\/a>, Boston Celtics<\/a> and LA Clippers<\/a>.<\/p>\n

All the teams mentioned besides the Bulls themselves are contenders. When looking at this trend, the Bulls should be a team that can join these teams in the playoffs if they remain a top-five defense.<\/p>\n

Recently, Chicago beat the Clippers. This is a win that a young team can use to reach the next level. They need to have more wins like this to gain confidence. The days of rebuilding are over for the Bulls. Now they will have to develop their young players and try and be a high-seeded team in the next two to three years.<\/p>\n

Main Photo
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>