The Future of the Chicago Bulls
It is clear that their is some major changes going on in Chicago and in the midst of a season no less.
Luol Deng being traded was not necessarily a surprise to those of us who follow situations like this closely, however, when it finally did happen it caught Bulls fans off guard and even rocked members of the Bulls squad, particularly Joakim Noah.
Noah avoided question about Deng for about week before finally saying that the trade “hurt.” Whether he meant that he was personally hurt by the move or if it hurt the team as a whole he did not clarify. Â He was clear that he was prepared to help his team keep moving forward.
…We’ve got to move on,†Noah said, sitting at his dressing stall after the Bulls’ 103-97 victory over Charlotte at United Center. “I feel confident in this team. We’re working really hard…It’s just, my brother’s not here no more.
-Noah
The Bulls do seem to be moving on and in a positive direction in the immediate future. Â They have won five consecutive games. Â They have began to get the No. 4 seed in the East, the Toronto Raptors in their sights.
They have managed this thanks in large part to Noah, who scored 19 points and picked up 14 rebound in the Bulls last game against Charlotte. The Bulls have also had D.J. Augustin, Tony Snell, Mike Dunleavy and Cartier Martin have stepped up in the absence of the injured Derrick Rose and the departed Deng.
Regardless of all this most feel Deng’s departure has closed the door on this team’s ability to contend for the Championship. Some have even gone as far to speculate that the Bulls could be out of title contention well into the future, with Carlos Boozer amnesty rumors and the health and level of play of Rose up in the air. Not to mention when Rose does return he may need to readjust to a whole new group of players.
What is the bigger picture for the Chicago Bulls?
Tom Thibodeau and management are obviously making some strategic adjustments but the end goal of these adjustments do not seem to be to win games immediately. Â Instead it seems the Bulls may be planning to rebuild, which could take a couple of seasons before they get back to a high level of play.
