With high-octane backcourt and promising rookie, Bulls have path from mediocrity

Another game, another win for… the Chicago Bulls?

After dealing franchise stalwart Zach Lavine at the trade deadline, the Bulls have won eight of their past 10 games, including a 10-point win over the Denver Nuggets on Monday night. Headlining this surge in competitiveness is a group that could launch a new era of competence for a franchise that has been mediocre for a decade.

The ringleader for Chicago is guard Coby White, who has averaged 30.6 points during this 10-game stretch. With Lavine with the Sacramento Kings, White is freed to become the alpha scorer for the Bulls. His emergence as a legitimate No. 1 option has opened the door for his backcourt mate, Josh Giddey, to flourish. 

Acquired from Oklahoma City in the offseason, Giddey has started at guard with Lavine gone and blossomed into a floor general. Over the past 10 games, he has nearly averaged a triple-double (22.8 PPG, 9.5 RPG and 9.7 APG). His efficiency is through the roof as well, as he is hitting 58.3 percent of his shots in that span, including 47.6 percent from beyond the arc.

This newly prolific backcourt is the engine propelling the Bulls through their unforeseen hot streak, but another youngster is giving a peek at what might be possible for a franchise that has been desperate for stars since Derrick Rose suffered a torn ACL in 2012.

Though his play through this stretch has largely mirrored the inconsistencies of his rookie season as a whole, forward Matas Buzelis has flashed the potential that had some scouts projecting him as high as the first overall pick last summer, before he fell to the Bulls at 11.

In a game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday, Buzelis scored a career-high 31 points as part of an eye-popping offensive effort from Chicago, which won 143-115 against the healthy Lakers. Buzelis was everywhere on the court, scoring on all three levels and consistently giving LeBron James a handful on the defensive end.

Buzelis followed his career-best game with a subpar 10 points against the Nuggets on Monday. But that flash of brilliance that revealed itself against the Lakers gives the Bulls reason to believe he could develop into a special player.

With the East being as poor as it is this season, it is incredibly difficult for the Bulls to tank. At 32-40 and ninth in the Eastern Conference, they are a prime candidate for the play-in tournament.

So instead of tanking, Chicago has embraced the chaos this young, fun team could bring to the play-in and potentially beyond. And with the class of big men in the draft being deep — that's the team's biggest need — Chicago can afford to let this iteration run its course. 

What matters most is that the Bulls finally have a future to look forward to again.