As the remaining four playoff teams battle it out for an NBA Championship, the Chicago Bulls’ offseason is getting underway. After making a big-time trade for Nikola Vucevic and signing key pieces in DeMar DeRozan, Lonzo Ball, and Alex Caruso, nothing has gone Chicago’s way. Injuries have gotten in the way, but all they have to show for their moves is a first-round playoff exit in 2022.
Now, they’ll need to take a hard look in the mirror and decide what direction they want to go in moving forward. Are they willing to accept what seems to be a middle-of-the-pack team with hopes of finding another piece of the puzzle this summer? Or should they tear things down and start from scratch again? Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic thinks the latter could be smarter.
In a recent mailbag article, Mayberry detailed Chicago’s options this offseason. While he noted the front office’s apparent desire to keep the rester intact, he also stated that trading one of DeRozan or Zach LaVine could be the Bulls’ best path out of mediocrity.