Top Six Bulls Stories of 2023
2023 was an overall frustrating season to be a Bulls fan. The underachieving team somehow made the 2023 Play-In Tournament but couldn’t make the actual playoffs. After an offseason that barely moved the franchise’s needle, the new season began with more underachieving, but the final month of the year saw the team try to dig itself out of the hole it had created. We’ll cover all this and more in our six biggest Bulls stories over the past 12 months:
Bulls win in Paris
The Bulls had the opportunity of a lifetime when traveled to Paris to play the Detroit Pistons on Jan. 19. With NBA legends and dignitaries on hand, Joakim Noah among them, the Bulls breezed to a 126–108 victory. Seven Bulls scored in double figures, including all five starters. Zach LaVine scored a game-high 30 points, DeMar DeRozan scored 26, and Nikola Vucevic shined with 16 points, 15 rebounds and six assists.
DeRozan has second straight All-Star selection
In a season where it was hard to find many bright spots, DeRozan continued to shine as the Bulls’ most important player. His reward for that was his second All-Star selection in as many seasons in Chicago and his sixth overall. As a reserve for Team Giannis, he had a line of eight points, six rebounds and five assists. It was modest compared to some of the other All-Stars’ stats, but it helped his team to a 184–175 victory.
Bulls earn victory in Play-In Tournament game
Having finished 10th in the Eastern Conference, the Bulls traveled to Toronto to face the Raptors as part of the NBA Play-In Tournament. They trailed by 12 early in the fourth quarter of this do-or-die game but stormed back to escape Canada with a 109–105 victory. LaVine had 39 points, and DeRozan scored 23, but it was the screams of DeRozan’s daughter Diar affecting the Raptors’ free-throw shooting that had everyone talking afterwards. The Bulls lost the next Play-In game to the Miami Heat, who then made an improbable run to the NBA Finals.
Caruso named to All-Defensive First Team
With the NBA retiring Bill Russell’s jersey number throughout the league, Alex Caruso will be the final Bull ever to have 6 on his front and back. But Caruso is a darn fine player for the number to go out with this franchise. His hustle defensive intensity have won the hearts of every Bulls fan, and he was rewarded with his first All-Defensive Team selection, making the first team. He would have fit right in with past Bulls teams that really emphasized defense.
Vucevic receives contract extension
Vucevic has been described as a lot of things since the Bulls traded for him, but one quality that is indisputable is his reliability. He has started every game he’s played since coming to Chicago, didn’t miss any time during the 2022–23 season and is averaging a double-double for his career. The Bulls rewarded him with a three-year, $60 million contract extension during the offseason. Recently sidelined with a groin strain, he will entered the New Year with a scoring average of 16.7 and as the team’s top rebounder, averaging 10.4 boards a game.
Bulls finish 2023 with winning stretch
After losing every game they played in the NBA’s inaugural In-Season Tournament, the Bulls sat at a putrid 5–14, and fans were calling for drastic changes to happen soon. Since then, the Bulls have gone 10–5 and played themselves back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture despite remaining below .500. Perhaps not so coincidentally, LaVine has been out with a foot injury since the team’s last In-Season Tournament game. It will be very interesting to see what 2024 holds for him as well as the Bulls in general.
