It hasn't been the easiest 2022-23 season for the Chicago Bulls, and their frustrations seem to be spilling throughout the locker room. Earlier reports indicated that the Bulls locker room got into a dustup in the middle of their 150-126 blowout loss vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves two nights ago. Nonetheless, Nikola Vucevic asserted that these kinds of conflicts are commonplace especially in a results-driven business like the NBA.
After the Bulls' much-needed 113-103 victory over the shorthanded Miami Heat, Vucevic said that what happened at halftime against the Timberwolves was “no big deal”, per K.C. Johnson. The Montenegrin center also said that heated conversations happen all the time in professional sports and that these frustrations stem from a “place of care”.
As is the case with everything in sports, winning cures everything. Perhaps Nikola Vucevic and the Bulls are simply in better spirits after grinding out a tough win on Tuesday night. And is it really that surprising that a bunch of competitive men would go berserk once losses pile up amid expectations of a playoff berth?
Despite the win, the Bulls will still have to make a slew of big decisions in the coming weeks. Amid rumors of disconnect between Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, Chicago could decide to blow it up. Other teams are circling LaVine and DeRozan like vultures in a potential trade.
In addition, Nikola Vucevic will be a free agent at the end of the season; a Vucevic trade could, at the very least, help the Bulls recoup some of the young assets they traded away for the 32-year old center.
Still, at least for one night, the Bulls will be able to shrug off the feelings of frustration that have been mounting. Vucevic, Zach LaVine, and DeMar DeRozan all scored 20-plus points in their most recent victory. But if the Bulls go back to losing ways, there may be more of those “heated conversations” from where they came from.
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