Why Bother?

Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic combined for 75 points against the Hawks last night in a game that saw Chicago ahead by thirteen at the half, but the Bulls still managed to lose, 120-108. Talk about putting the “offensive” in “foul.” Oh, our boys were offensively foul in their own way with thirteen turnovers to Atlanta’s nine. Really, why bother? Lauri Markkanen, a onetime franchise cornerstone now relegated to the second unit, managed five points to go with five rebounds. Markkanen is gone, whether or not he knows it. Coby White, a onetime franchise cornerstone now relegated to the second unit, totaled eleven points and four assists in 29 minutes. White is gone for the right price, which could be next to nothing. This is how bad John Paxson and Gar Forman were as talent evaluators, and I wouldn’t necessarily exclude LaVine here, either. LaVine ranks seventh in the league in turnovers with 3.7 a game, which ties him with LeBron James. Who would you rather have? And at 26, his defense shouldn’t still be “a work in progress,” as some folks like to say. Well, Jerry Reinsdorf is the master rebuilder. At least he does it enough with his Bulls and White Sox that you’d think he’d be good at it. We’ll see.