From a halfhearted rebuild to recycling a slew of veterans, the Chicago Bulls have avoided a full-fledged rebuild at all costs. Despite three consecutive 20-win seasons from 2017 to 2020, Chicago sought to speed up the eventual rebuild by acquiring then-30-year-old Nikola Vuu010deviu0107 and dumping several young players and ever-important draft capital.
Ditching Wendell Carter Jr., Daniel Gafford, Lauri Markkanen, and Bobby Portis over a three-year stretch didn't pan out well as the front office had hoped. Although the core made up of Lonzo Ball, DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Vuu010deviu0107 led to a decent finish in 2021-22, it was quickly realized this defense-deficient trio, excluding Ball, was not built to contend.