The new NBA season is right around the corner. To help get ready for the 2024-25 campaign, we're looking at three questions each NBA team will face next season.
Here we have the Chicago Bulls, who began their long-awaited rebuilding process earlier this summer when they shipped Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder and lost DeMar DeRozan in free agency.
Can Lonzo Ball make an impact?
Ball hasn't played professional basketball since Jan. 14, 2022. After missing over two years of playing time, Ball will take months to get back into a rhythm. Furthermore, there's no guarantee he will ever reach his former level. Nevertheless, his passing ability and defensive IQ should both remain intact, which would significantly improve the Bulls' system on both sides of the floor.
The bigger question for Chicago is whether Ball can remain healthy long enough to make an impact for them. He is clearly dealing with a long-term knee issue and hasn't been tested when playing against full physicality since being cleared to return. As the upcoming season is a contract year for Ball, he will have a lot to prove, and his health will sit at the top of the list.
Chicago will undoubtedly be hoping to finally get a healthy season out of the elite playmaker, but it's unlikely the franchise is banking on it to happen.
Will Nikola Vucevic finish the season with the Bulls?
Outside of Ball, Vucevic is the last remaining veteran on the roster. His tenure with the franchise hasn't gone to plan, primarily due to Ball's injury and how it limited the Bulls' chances of success. Nevertheless, Vucevic has remained professional and performed well despite the circumstances. Last season, he averaged 18 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting 48.4 percent from the field.
With two years remaining on Vucevic's three-year, $60 million deal, the Bulls could field some enticing offers for the veteran big man. Vucevic deserves an opportunity to join a contending team. If he's willing to accept a bench role elsewhere in the NBA, he may not finish the season with the Bulls, especially if they continue to push toward a full-scale rebuild.
Will Coby White build on last season?
White finished second in Most Improved Player voting last season. The fifth-year guard finally figured things out and began to show why he was a lottery pick in the 2019 NBA draft. He averaged career-highs across the board, ending the season with 19.2 points, 5.1 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 50.8 percent from two-point range and 37.6 percent from deep.
Chicago will hope White's performances last season were a sign of things to come. If he can find consistency, either as part of the starting unit or when coming off the bench, he could become a core piece to the Bulls' rebuilding efforts. It will be interesting to see how he fits next to Josh Giddey or Lonzo Ball next season. Nevertheless, with his scoring and shooting ability, lining up next to an elite playmaker could help take his game to another level.
White put himself on the map last season. Now, he must prove his performances weren't an anomaly and that he can be an important part of the franchise's future.
