NBA Trade Rumors: Chicago Bulls Desperately Need to Gamble for Dwight Howard

The Chicago Bulls are off to a nice start to the 2012 season. Their 10-2 mark ties them for the best mark in the NBA with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

One year after finishing with the best record in the Eastern Conference, the Derrick Rose-led Bulls are poised to take the next step and make a run at winning the east.

To do so though, they need to take an aggressive approach and make a run at acquiring Orlando center Dwight Howard.

Without him though, the current Chicago frontcourt of Joakin Noah and Carlos Boozer is a big enough reason to doubt them.

In what may be a disturbing trend for Bulls fans, head coach Tom Thibodeau is finding a place on the bench for both big men in the fourth quarters of games.

To be honest though, neither is really doing much in the first three quarters either.

In Wednesday's win over the Washington Wizards, the duo combined for only eight points and 10 rebounds in a combined 44 minutes. They sat from late in the third quarter, coming out within a minute of each other and the game tied at 51, through the entire fourth quarter.

It was the second consecutive game that neither played a minute in the fourth quarter and the fourth time overall in the Bulls 12 games.

Thibodeau playing Omer Asik and Taj Gibson ahead of Boozer and Noah late in games says a great deal about where he feels the Bulls are with those two.

Which is why Chicago needs to take a run at Howard.

The Bulls are going to need a quality big man down the stretch and can win the lottery by acquiring Howard.

Pairing Rose and Howard together not only makes the Bulls possible favorites in the Eastern Conference, but perhaps to win the NBA championship as well.