Bulls’ roster overhaul signals full rebuild amid shifting lottery landscape
SLUG: bulls-roster-overhaul-rebuild-lottery-landscape
The Chicago Bulls used this season’s trade deadline to initiate a sweeping roster reset, shipping out seven players, collecting several second-round draft picks and adding a handful of young prospects.
The moves ended years of incremental tweaks and left Chicago without a marquee return, a reality that front-office executives acknowledged was the cost of waiting until most of the league’s major deals were already complete.
Lottery position quietly climbs
Since the deadline, the Bulls have moved to ninth in the NBA’s lottery order, trailing only the Charlotte Hornets and Milwaukee Bucks among non-playoff teams. If the draft order were set today, Chicago would own a 20.3 percent chance of landing in the top four and a 4.5 percent shot at the No. 1 overall pick.
The team has dropped 10 of its last 11 games and sits just 2.5 games behind the Memphis Grizzlies entering Friday’s action, momentum that enhances its draft outlook as the regular season winds down.
League weighs anti-tanking reforms
ESPN reported that Commissioner Adam Silver has informed stakeholders that new anti-tanking measures could arrive as early as next season. Proposals under discussion include freezing lottery odds at midseason, prohibiting franchises from securing top-four selections in consecutive drafts, basing odds on multi-year records, or further flattening the lottery structure.
The initiative follows fines levied against the Utah Jazz and Indiana Pacers and Silver’s public comments that tanking has reached “uncomfortable” levels around the league.
With potential rule changes on the horizon, Chicago’s current window to capitalize on its revised strategy may be limited. If the Bulls intend to make the most of their newly acknowledged rebuild, this draft cycle could represent their cleanest opportunity before stricter regulations take effect.
Source: Hoops Wire
