Chicago Bulls could make some lineup changes
by Alex Kennedy, USA TODAY Sports
The Chicago Bulls’ goal entering this season was to win as many games as possible and stay in the playoff hunt until Derrick Rose’s surgically repaired ACL was healthy enough for him to return to action. If the Bulls could remain competitive without Rose, they’d be a tough out in the playoffs once he was back in the starting lineup.
However, the team has struggled to stay afloat without their superstar point guard. Last season, the Bulls won 50 games with Rose in and out of the lineup, but they haven’t been able to duplicate that success so far this season.
The Bulls are 5-6 and in third place in the Central Division and 10th place in the Eastern Conference. Chicago has lost to lottery-bound teams like the New Orleans Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets, and they’ve yet to beat a team with a winning record.
The Bulls are in the midst of a three-game losing streak, which is their first under head coach Tom Thibodeau. With the team struggling, Thibodeau has considered making changes to the starting lineup.
“We’ll see,” Thibodeau told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times when asked if a new lineup was a possibility. “I’m looking at a lot of things.”
The players aren’t sure if a new lineup is necessary, but they admit that something has to change.
“Those aren’t things that I can control as a player, but to me, I don’t think changing the lineup is going to make a difference,” Joakim Noah said. “We got to execute better down the stretch, that’s what I think.”
Luol Deng said the players are in no position to question Thibodeau’s moves after three straight losses.
“When you’re losing, you see a lot of things,” Deng said. “Whatever decision the coaches make or the coaching staff, as players when you’re losing you can’t really question that. If we’re winning and they make changes, you’ve got the right to question that. But if we’re not getting the job done, whatever changes are made you just got to wait and see what the result is.”
“I don’t think it’s time to panic yet,” Deng … [For more on Chicago Bulls could make some lineup changes, click here.]
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