Bulls beat writer on team's uneven play, trade deadline priorities
CHICAGO (CBS) – Before leaving for Paris, the Chicago Bulls are coming off an impressive 132-118 win over the defending champion Golden State Warriors.
It was another win over a talented team.
CBS 2 Sports Director Marshall Harris asked Darnell Mayberry, senior writer for The Athletic covering the Bulls, why this team seems to play to the level of their competition, good and bad.
Mayberry: "It's immaturity. You see this team get up for the really good teams, the teams we all said last year they cannot beat and they did not beat. This year, they came into the season trying to prove a point. They are proving that point against the better teams in the league and they are not proving anything against the worst teams in the league."
Harris: "DeMar DeRozan has now missed three games in a row. Is there any sense of a timetable for his return?"
Mayberry: "I'd be surprised if he played against the Pistons in Paris (on Thursday) just because you get another week to let him heal. He wants to play. You can see he's ready to go. He's been participating in some shooting drills before games, at shoot arounds, at practices, things like that, but I think the Bulls would be smart to just let him have the entire week off and come back next week ready to go."
Harris: "The trade deadline is around the corner: Feb. 9. What if any movement do you expect to see with the Bulls?"
Mayberry: "I've written at The Athletic that I think Nikola Vucevic is the main target that the Bulls have to look at in terms of an asset that they can be willing to move for the right price. He's an expiring contract, and if they don't move him they risk letting him walk for nothing in free agency this summer. So I don't think they can allow that to happen. So if I'm looking at the deadline, I'm looking at Nikola Vucevic as a potential carrot that they can dangle out there."
Harris: "Lonzo Ball – Is he going to play in the 2022-2023 season? Or has the ship sailed on that.?"
Mayberry: "I would be surprised. He posted some social media clips of himself working out. It looked like he was making really good progress. I mean you got to give him credit for that. He does look like he is recovering, but it's slow. And at this point in the season, you're running the risk of bringing him back at the tail end of the season when the competition is at its highest, gearing up for the playoffs. I just don't think that's a wise move for someone who hasn't played in more than a year now."
