Following a heated locker room exchange, capped off by a Rajon Rondo rant this week, the Chicago Bulls are in complete disarray at one of the more crucial junctures of the season. At (23-24) on the season, a lot of frustration has built up for the Bulls, a team that was expected to really take positive steps forward around their star veterans Dwayne Wade, Jimmy Butler, and Rondo.
That hasn’t happened and young players like Bobby Portis, Doug McDermott, and Michael Carter-Williams haven’t stepped up like the team expected them to and it has all fallen back on Butler and an aging Wade. The three young players, Portis, McDermott, and Williams average a combined 21.4 points per game. According to the veterans, their will to win, care-free attitude after a loss and inconsistency throughout the season is the problem with this team.
Wade and Butler have more than held up their end of the bargain, combining for 44 points per game, but the other veteran, Rondo, hasn’t lived up to expectations, only averaging 6.4 points and 6.5 assists per game. Rondo’s Instagram post, reflecting on his glory days with the Boston Celtics alongside Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett also infuriated Wade and butler, causing more tension on this Bulls team.
Rajon Rondo’s Instagram post said the following:
Sources tell me that @chicagobulls are seriously considering the rebuild way and blowing this roster up as soon as the trade deadline. #NBA
— Emanuel Godina (@emanuelcgodina) January 27, 2017
With that being said, team moral is a severe issue and many are calling for the Chicago’s front office to blow the team up and start over. Sounds like a logical decision if you ask me.
Chicago player’s reaction to the situation.
Wade: I want nothing but the best for this team and city. My heart and mind are in the right place trying to get this team to its potential.
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) January 27, 2017
Some Chicago Bulls role players reportedly believe Dwyane Wade & Jimmy Butler play ‘buddy ball’ instead of involving everyone else. (Y!)
— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) January 27, 2017
Sources tell me that @chicagobulls are seriously considering the rebuild way and blowing this roster up as soon as the trade deadline. #NBA
— Emanuel Godina (@emanuelcgodina) January 27, 2017
Also, the Bulls fined Wade and Butler following some pretty uncharacteristically critical statements made in a postgame interview this week from two even-keeled guys. They were also benched for the start of Friday night’s matchup against Wade’s former team, the Miami Heat where he spent 13 seasons.
Finger on the pulse here.