Bulls gear up for the final season push and have 27 games to prove it

DeMar DeRozan knows that very little has gone his team’s way this season, but at the same time no one was going to feel sorry for them. They now have 27 games to become a problem for the rest of the East.

Brandon Dill/AP

DeMar DeRozan had just one request for himself and his teammates over the all-star break.

“Breathe a little,” the Bulls veteran said, knowing what was in front of them starting this Thursday.

Made sense.

After all, DeRozan was well aware of what expectations were back in fall camp in Nashville, and what reality has now become in yet another underachieving season for the organization.

That doesn’t mean this group still wasn’t capable of making some noise, but it will only come through an effort and push that this core has yet to show the past few seasons.

“The last couple weeks have been kind of crazy for us with injuries, dealing with all the noise on the outside and the trade rumors,” DeRozan said. “Emotionally, physically, mentally, we took on a tall task and we pushed through it.

“Now we can kind of just breathe a little and gather our minds and emotions. Get some bodies back and get rejuvenated for the next 27 games. We’re going to need to put everything and more into those.”

And it likely still won’t be enough.

Enough to be a play-in team and maybe – just maybe – get out and reach the playoffs? Possibly. At least that’s the low-bar goal of the front office and the decisions that were made at the trade deadline. But DeRozan has also stated that he felt this team was capable of beating anyone. The right thing for a vet to say, but a buy-in that had very few customers.

“To go through everything we went through, it showed we’re right there,” DeRozan continued. “With fatigue, being beat up, coming back with fresh minds and fresh legs and fresh bodies, we should be able to run off everything we need to run off.”

 

KEYS FOR THE FINAL 27 GAMES

 

Key Players:

 

1. Coby White – The emergence of White as a serious Most Improved Player of the Year candidate has not only made the season-ending foot surgery for Zach LaVine manageable, but he’s made LaVine very expendable. White’s February was the latest example of that with the guard averaging 24.1 points, 6.2 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 44.7% from three-point range.

 

2. Nikola Vucevic – The big man was still getting his 17-plus points per game and a double-double machine, but his 27.5% from three-point range is his worst in almost a decade. If he can turn the outside shooting around it will only open the floor for an offense that could use some more efficient scoring.

 

3. Alex Caruso – It would be a shock if Caruso wasn’t again first-team All-Defense at the end of the season, but the key is to make sure the Bulls have his services over the final 27-game push. In the eight games he’s missed, the Bulls were just 3-5.

 

Key Games:

 

1. April 7 – at Orlando – The Magic is one of the teams the Bulls are chasing, and this will be their last crack at them, despite posting an 0-3 record in the season series so far.

 

2. Feb. 22 – vs. Boston – The Celtics became the third team in NBA history to have multiple 50-plus-point wins in a season, and the last time they saw the Bulls in late November, they hammered them by 27. That game was rock bottom for the Bulls, and they need to at least be competitive in Round 2.

 

3. April 9 – vs. Knicks – The Bulls have three matchups with Tom Thibodeau’s crew in the last nine days of the season. This is the last one at the United Center and is a must-win as well as a test in toughness. Thibodeau would like nothing more than to play spoiler for his former organization and has a 12-5 record against them since he was fired.

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