Instant Karma

Wow, John Lennon really knew what he was talking about—instant karma will get you if you’re not careful.  Just ask Jimmy Butler and Dwayne Wade of the Bulls.

Back in January, Butler and Wade called out their younger teammates for lack of effort.  Six weeks later, the team is worse than ever, at 31-35 with a five-game losing streak and ever-diminishing chances of making the playoffs.  On Sunday, Butler scored 5 points against the Celtics to Wade’s 8 as the Bulls missed their first 12 shots on the way to a nine-point first quarter.  That’s what you call leading by example, not.  (NOTE: Things improved enough Monday for a 115-109 win over the Hornets to snap the streak.)

After the game, reporters did what reporters do, leading Wade to sigh, “I wish upper management could be answering these questions.”  Yes, as in why they chose to sign a then 34-year old guard at the same time they said it was time for the team to go younger.  Really, curious minds want to know.

The Bulls have mostly been wandering through the wilderness since Michael Jordan left after the ’98 season.  Tim Floyd, Eddy Curry, Scott Skiles, Derrick Rose: such are the signposts to disappointment.  You’d never think that this was an organization that made the playoffs in its first season of existence, 1966-67, or that three years later they’d start on a run of four straight 50+ win seasons.  But that was a long time ago, and a different owner.