The past two years have been rough for the Chicago Bulls. They took a huge swing when they traded for Nikola Vucevic at the 2021 NBA trade deadline, and they backed it up by signing DeMar DeRozan, Lonzo Ball, and Alex Caruso the following summer. But since then, all they have is one first-round exit to show for their roster aggressiveness.
While their middling success has largely been the team’s middle-of-the-pack play, Ball’s brutal injury luck has also played a huge part in their struggles. Despite signing with the team during the 2021 offseason, Ball has only appeared in 35 total games for the Bulls, and they can’t really count on him returning anytime soon. At least, that’s what NBA.com’s Sam Smith believes.
