And Now For Some Discouraging Words

With a record of 12-18, the Bulls basically suck, and star guard Zach LaVine says it has nothing to do with his signing a $215 million contract in the offseason. Yes, it does. Reports are that LaVine’s lack of defensive effort this season led to a locker room incident Sunday at halftime of the Bulls’150-126 loss to the Timberwolves; nothing like giving up seventy-one points in the first half to get tempers flaring. Basically, the problem has taken on Gertrude Stein proportions—there is no there to LaVine’s defense. This is who he is and always was. The blame lies with the front office for thinking a big contract would somehow transform LaVine into a latter-day Norm Van Lier. Alas, Stormin’ Norman has left this mortal plane, but anyone who saw him play could tell you Zach Lavine is no Norm Van Lier. Shame on Arturas Karnisovas and his staff for deluding themselves otherwise. Have Karnisovas and Kenny Williams ever been spotted in the same room together? I wonder, because the current Bulls’ front office sure operates like the old White Sox front office under Williams did—here a trade, there a free-agent signing (though never of a true star), a general disdain for young players. You pray for lightning in a bottle—2005—while enduring all the other years. Karnisovas getting DeMar DeRozan is Williams signing Jermaine Dye, the stopped clock getting it right for once. Getting Nikola Vucevic is more along the lines of Adam Dunn. Lonzo Ball? Jeff Peavey with a different body part injured. To make things worse, Karnisovas and team gm Marc Eversley have borrowed a page out of Ryan Pace’s playbook. They don’t do media. Great, another team in Chicago that treats its fans as 21st century peasants. I could be wrong, but the unwashed seem to be getting plenty tired of it.