Da Bulls

Ah. The agony of being a sports fan. The agony of trades not made. Under-performing athletes. The spectre of career-ending injuries. And the simple fact of athletes whose playing style does not mesh.

So much can—and does—go wrong.

When Bulls' president of operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley teamed up to extract the Bulls from the pit of manure left by the disastrous regime of John Paxson and Garfield Forman, Bulls fans were made glad.

No more Jim Boylens, right?

The duo certainly got off to a great start, hiring a proven winner in coach Billy Donovan. They made a decisive trade, unloading injury-prone Wendell Carter Jr. for the established (and talented) Nikola Vucevic.

Finally, Zach LaVine had a co-scorer on the court with him. This was truly disturbing.

Over the summer of 2021, they signed free-agent DeMar DeRozan. Signed gritty free-agent point guard Alex Caruso. And traded for another point guard, the do everything Lonzo Ball.

All of a sudden, the Bulls were a legitimate NBA team. For the first-half of the 2021/22 season, the Bulls were number-one in the Eastern Conference. While the element of surprise no doubt aided their cause, they were legitimate. They won.

But then Ball injured his knee in mid-January. And he hasn't played since. Reports are scarce, but Ball can't even run at full-speed. He has trouble climbing stairs. An injury so common that it didn't set off a single alarm now appears to be the end of a very promising career.

I can't claim to have been aware of his critical importance to that team at that point, but without him the Bulls disappeared. They floundered. It is apparent he was the motor that made everything happen.

Over a year later, the largely unchanged team has a gaping hole at point guard. Their interior defense is softer than room temperature butter. And rugged strong forward Javonte Green hasn't played in a month.

They routinely get out shot at the three-point line and find ways to lose, even when the opposition's best player (or players) are on the bench. Or are no longer with the team, as evidenced by the Bulls' gruesome eleven-point loss to the Brooklyn Nets, who were without two guys named Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant.

Yep. They did that. And have been all season long.

It is clear to all within the city that the Bulls' talent as individuals outweighs their talent as a group. They don't jibe. There is very little flow. And that pesky absence of defense doesn't go away.

Which is why frustrated Bulls fans looked forward to the recent NBA trading deadline. It was a chance to address the yawning holes on this team. But as one of just two teams not to make a single move, it is clear that Karnisovas and Eversley don't see anything wrong.

Perhaps they look at the NBA standings upside-down?

With an expiring contract, Vucevic is free to walk in free-agency. And their sole chance to recoup something from his acquisition walks along with him. Other players with sizeable trade value also remain with the team.

Why?

I don't have a bone with any player on the Bulls. My view is that they're a solid group of individuals who largely act like grown-ups. Taken by themselves, they're all talented basketball players. But they just

don't.

Fit.

Kudos to Karnisovas and Eversley for single-handedly lifting the Bulls from the malaise of the GarPax era. But they should also be able to see this team isn't working. They need to swallow their pride and admit as much and make the tough decisions that could restore this team to contention.

But they did nothing. N-O-T-H-I-N-G.

There's a hoary old cliche which says sometimes the best trades are the ones you don't make. But that doesn't apply here. Not even close.

Just a year ago the Bulls' future looked shiny. Today? Well, the Cubs and White Sox spring training camps open in just a few weeks.

Hope springs eternal.