Power Ranking Bulls' Roster Based on Regular-Season Performance
The Chicago Bulls enjoyed a mini-breakout during the 2021-22 NBA season, but as is so often the case, the sequel couldn't live up to the original.
With Lonzo Ball still missing in action, and the offense failing to connect without him, Chicago could never find its stride from a year ago. That team snagged the East's No. 6 seed; this one is seeded 10th and headed to the play-in tournament.
So, what happened this time around? Let's retrace Chicago's steps to this point by power ranking every player on the roster based on his performance.
The Bottom Tier
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Unranked: Lonzo Ball
The knee injury that knocked Ball out of last season early cost him this entire campaign. Even worse, it's already threatening his 2023-24 season, too.
Unranked: Justin Lewis
Lewis, who tore his ACL last summer, signed a two-way pact in July, was waived in October and wound up getting another two-way deal in March.
15. Marko Simonovic
A second-round pick in 2020, Simonovic logged even fewer minutes than he did as a rookie.
14. Terry Taylor
Taylor was squeezed out of Indiana by the Pacers' deadline dealing and wound up inking a two-way deal with Chicago in February. He has played nine minutes across three contests since.
13. Carlik Jones
Jones landed a two-way deal in December and later saw his contract converted to a standard deal. He hasn't shown much at the NBA level, but he was the G League's MVP.
12. Dalen Terry
The Bulls liked Terry enough to take him with last summer's No. 18 pick. Coach Billy Donovan still couldn't find a rotation role for Terry.
11. Javonte Green
This season could've been dramatically different for Green, who was injured on the very night in which he replaced Patrick Williams in the starting lineup. Green had knee surgery in January and has been seldom seen since.
The Middle Tier
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10. Andre Drummond
Drummond's strengths and weaknesses are clearly defined in his 11th NBA season. He stays active on the interior but can be exploited when he ventures away from it.
9. Patrick Beverley
The Chicago native joined his hometown team after landing on the buyout market following a deadline trade. Beverley has been a fixture in the starting lineup since, though his offensive limitations have never been more evident.
8. Ayo Dosunmu
On the heels of Dosunmu's All-Rookie second-team debut, the hope was that this Chicago native could take another step forward. Instead, he more or less orchestrated the same season (minus the three-point shooting, which really tailed off), but that's fine. Development isn't always linear, folks.
7. Derrick Jones Jr.
If Jones can't bounce his way to the basket, he doesn't offer a ton of offensive utility. He does, however, bring plenty of defensive versatility and elite explosiveness.
6. Coby White
With restricted free agency coming up and his minutes going down, White seemed one of the season's most logical trade candidates. He instead convinced Chicago to keep him by complementing his quick-strike scoring with more consistent decision-making and defense than he'd shown in the past.
The Top Tier
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5. Patrick Williams
No, Williams didn't have the breakout season so many Bulls' fans (and executives) wanted to see, but he was still solid more often than not. He could definitely be more aggressive on offense, but at least he became more willing to launch from long range (career-high 3.4 attempts per game) without sacrificing efficiency (41.3 percent).
4. Nikola Vučević
Talent-wise (and number-wise), Vučević has a pretty clear case for No. 3. He winds up one spot lower because, based on roster construction, his weaknesses can be more noticeable than his strengths. This number isn't completely a reflection of him, but it's worth noting Chicago has been 6.3 points worse per 100 possessions with him than without, per NBA.com.
3. Alex Caruso
If you only saw Caruso on the stat sheet, you'd wonder how a nightly supplier of 5.6 points and 2.9 assists lands this high. But that's why you watch the games. His energy is consistently high and contagious, and he's the closest thing this roster has to a two-way connector with Ball stuck on the bench.
2. Zach LaVine
Alarm sirens blared when LaVine, who had knee surgery in May, wasn't ready for opening night, and they sounded again during a rough shooting month in November. All should be quiet on that front, though, after he mostly just looked like himself beyond that point. He is one of the more dynamic offensive players in this league, and if not for that rocky start, he could have pushed DeMar DeRozan for top billing.
1. DeMar DeRozan
DeRozan's second season in the Windy City didn't have quite as many dramatic moments as the first, but otherwise, it read mostly the same. Last season, he averaged 27.9 points on 50.4 percent shooting with 4.9 assists against 2.4 turnovers. This season, he's at 24.7 points on 50.5 percent shooting with 5.1 assists and 2.1 turnovers.
