The Chicago Bulls are looking to build on their playoff appearance from last season as the 2022-23 regular season kicks off next week.
For the Bulls to do so, Nikola Vucevic will need to bounce back after a disappointing 2021-22 season.
On Friday, Bleacher Report released their top 100 NBA player ranking, which landed the Bulls big man at No. 66.
Andy Bailey explains:
Nikola Vučević averaged 21.3 points, 11.6 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game while shooting 37.3 percent from deep over three seasons from 2018-19 to 2020-21. Then, each of those numbers tailed off in 2021-22, as Vooch struggled to adjust to life alongside two high-volume scorers in DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine. Maintaining his value may depend on being more of a gap-filler who can scale his game down a bit.
Bailey is right — Vooch may be set to hit the next portion of his career offensively as more of a ‘gap-filler’ as opposed to being a No. 1 or No. 2 option, especially for a team who is hoping to become a contender.
In a contract year, a strong start in the first-half of the season for Vucevic is crucial for not just Chicago’s season but for his future in the Windy City.
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