The Bulls losing while Nikola Vučević balls out might be the best-case scenario

The Chicago Bulls entered the 2024-25 season with an awfully similar roster to the one they've run out in recent years. Veterans Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic were not dealt over the offseason. The only real difference was the trade that sent Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Josh Giddey.

Despite keeping the veterans, their start to this season has not been great. They're 3-6, and have lost games to rebuilding teams like the Utah Jazz and Brooklyn Nets. One of very few bright spots has been the strong play of Vucevic.

The 34-year-old has been playing some of the best basketball of his career, averaging 21.2 points on 58.1/47.5/88.0 shooting splits to go along with 10.2 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game. He has been incredibly efficient offensively, and has done what he's always done rebounding and passing the ball.

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Bulls season has gotten off to better start than they might think

Vucevic playing like this and the team still holding a 3-6 record should be eye-opening to Chicago's front office. This team might be able to compete for a Play-In spot in a weak Eastern Conference, but they're almost certainly not going to go anywhere beyond the first round of the playoffs, which is not where they want to be.

Vucevic having the kind of start that he has allows his trade value to grow exponentially. He didn't receive much interest in the open market over the offseason, but if his hot start continues, that will change. With how he's playing, the $20 million he's owed this season and $21.1 million he's owed in the 2025-26 campaign looks like a steal, and could be a deal several teams would want to take on.

The Bulls have been losing even with Vucevic playing well, so imagine how poorly the team will do without him. Losing is never fun, obviously, but doing so allows the team to get out of the middle and instead of picking in the middle of the lottery, have a chance of actually picking in the top two or three and earning a potential franchise game-changer. With this year's draft class looking special, there has never been a better time to tank.

Vucevic's hot start allows the Bulls to get a better return than they could've imagined for him while simultaneously making their team worse, making their future look brighter than fans could've hoped for just weeks ago. Again, losing is never fun, but this start to Chicago's season might be the best-case scenario for the Bulls' future.