The Chicago Bulls have hit a little bit of a lull recently. They are still in third place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 39-25, only 3.5 games behind the first-place Miami Heat. However, they are currently riding a four-game losing streak and have a difficult schedule for the remainder of the 2021-22 NBA season.
Chicago has 18 games remaining in the season and they will be playing 12 of those against teams currently with a winning record. That will certainly be a difficult stretch to navigate before heading into the postseason and it will be even tougher given the current state of the roster.
Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso are both still sidelined from injuries sustained in January but should be getting back into the lineup in the coming weeks ahead of the postseason. Zach LaVine is in the lineup, but he is battling an injury of his own.
LaVine missed games heading into the All-Star break as he was dealing with some soreness in his knee. He was cleared to play during All-Star Weekend, but it is evident he is still dealing with something going on in his knee.
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Zach LaVine recently commented on it and shared that he isn’t 100 percent healthy. He isn’t going to be the remainder of the season, but shutting things down isn’t something he is considering.
“You can go look at it from my game with Golden State on. I’m not going to be 100 percent the same way. Now can I still go out here and contribute? I can still do that, but it’s just something I’ve got to fight through until the end of the season. I’m not going to be a person that shuts it down. We’re having a great year. I’m having a good year, so I’m going to go out there and help my team anyway I can.”
The Chicago Bulls are certainly happy to have DeMar DeRozan to help carry the load as he can do the heavy lifting with LaVine hampered. DeRozan has been up to the challenge and is a dark horse in the MVP conversation averaging 28.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game.
But, if the Bulls are going to challenge for an NBA title, they need LaVine playing as close to the top of his game as he can get. While he won’t be 100 percent, he is confident that he remains one of the best players in the NBA even when not at full strength.
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“I might not be 100%. But me at 80%, 70%, whatever it is, it’s still one of the best players in the NBA. So, damn sure one of the best players on the court when we play.”
It is certainly admirable for Zach LaVine to gut things out for his teammates. They need him if they are to make any noise in the postseason. Expect Billy Donovan to manage his reps as much as he can leading into the postseason so that LaVine can provide the Chicago Bulls with as much as possible once the playoffs get underway.
