Another year, another empty trade deadline for the Chicago Bulls. Despite constant calls from the fanbase for the Bulls to sell their assets and reset the roster, Chicago stood pat. They kept DeMar DeRozan, they kept Andre Drummond, they kept Alex Caruso – they kept everybody. Nobody came in and nobody went out.
At the beginning of the year, it looked like the Bulls were headed for a top lottery pick – a trend that likely would have included them resetting their roster at the deadline. But since their 5-14 start, they’ve turned things around a bit, which could end up being a bad thing for the future of the franchise.
Because of their recent play, Arturas Karnisovas is satisfied with where the Bulls are at. That’s not an assumption. That’s what he said. (H/t Elias Schuster of Bleacher Nation)
“Last time, with a few of you, I spoke when we were [5-14]. I was not very happy,” Karnisovas told reporters after the trade deadline on Thursday. “I’m much happier now. I’d like to smile more. But, again, this team is very competitive in every game and we have aspirations to compete for the playoffs. Such a conference with parity, and each team is trying to get an edge. So I’m looking forward to [watching] these players compete with 30 games to go.”
Karnisovas made it clear that the Bulls are content with just being a playoff team. For an organization as historically significant as the Bulls, that almost certainly won’t sit well with the fanbase. While Karnisovas is smiling, fans are getting more and more fed up.
