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Report claims Chicago Bulls among top losers of the season

It’s been a rough season for the Bulls.
Nick Raguz|
© Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

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Chicago Bulls

The regular season is down to 20-something games, and by now, many already have a clear picture of the NBA landscape. The Boston Celtics have emerged as the cream of the crop, but behind them is a long and worthy list of contenders and pretenders.

 The Chicago Bulls, unfortunately, fall into the latter category. According to a report by Bleacher Report, the Bulls are considered one of the biggest “losers” of the season so far.

Sat out the trendline

The stage was set for the Bulls to make moves at the trade deadline that would benefit the middling franchise in the future. Chicago had soon-to-be unrestricted free agents DeMar DeRozan and Andre Drummond, while Alex Caruso’s trade value couldn’t be any higher. However, once the clock struck 3 p.m. ET on February 8th, the Bulls did nothing.

According to the Bulls’ chief basketball executive, Arturas Karnisovas, they didn’t want to take a step back and intended to remain competitive for this season and the ones to come. Karnisovas’ definition of “competitive,” though, could be debated.

“Does "stay competitive" mean ‘flounder around below .500, risk losing free agents for nothing (or worse, overpay to keep them), have no chance at winning a playoff series and enter next year worse off for the trouble?’ Because if so, Karnisovas' intentions, which fly in the face of the leaguewide trends that say hitting bottom is the best way to bounce back up to the top, make perfect sense,” Grant Hughes wrote.

Take a step back to move forward

The front office’s hesitation to take a step back is baffling. Experts know this team isn’t going anywhere near the top of the Eastern Conference. With an aging core potentially keeping its young guns from taking the reins and developing, the Chicago Bulls are stuck in a perpetual state of mediocrity.

“Ironically, the Bulls rank as one of this season's biggest losers because they're afraid of losing,” Hughes asserted.

Key games for the Chicago Bulls during the last stretch of the regular season

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Nick Raguz
NICK RAGUZ

Nick's journey has been an exciting fusion of basketball and the written word. A former basketball player himself, he possesses an insatiable appetite for all things NBA-related, spanning from the captivating tales of old-school NBA to intriguing statistics and the latest updates from the association.

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