Chicago Bulls: Playoff Berth Still Within Reach Despite Up-And-Down Season
Although the Chicago Bulls have been maddeningly inconsistent during the 2016-17 season, they still have a chance to snag a playoff berth.
The Chicago Bulls finished the 2015-16 campaign with a 42-40 record and missed the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons. This was not exactly what the front office had hoped for when they lured Fred Hoiberg away from the collegiate ranks.
This season, the Bulls are currently 35-39 and would need to win seven of their remaining eight games to equal that 42-40 mark from a year ago.
Despite what has been another season filled with inconsistency, though, the Bulls still have a chance to nab the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.
If you're like me, you're wondering how on earth is that possible, right?
Well, it certainly isn't because the Bulls are a playoff-caliber team, although they would have you believe otherwise.
"I think we know that we're a good ball club," Robin Lopez told the Chicago Sun-Times. "When we're playing the right way and doing what we do best, we've beaten some of the best teams in the league. I don't think there's any game we think we can't win."
Of course the fact that they play in the Eastern Conference goes a long way to say the least. For example, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been in first place in the East for the entire season and it appeared that no one would come close to challenging them for the best record in the conference.
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However, the Boston Celtics — a team that it is in the midst of a four-game winning streak and has posted victories in eight of its last 10 outings — currently owns the top spot.
A show of hands for any of us who saw that coming.
Another example of how unpredictable the East can be is the Charlotte Hornets. This ball club was once a top-four team, but they are now seven games below the .500 mark and trail the Bulls by one-and-a-half games.
Furthermore, although the Atlanta Hawks (37-36) and Milwaukee Bucks (37-36) are a combined 5-1 against the Bulls this season, the Bulls trail both of these teams by just two-and-half games coming into Tuesday.
And while the Miami Heat went through a torrid stretch of winning 22 games in 27 outings, they have dropped three of their last four contests and have a slim half-game lead over the Bulls for the final playoff berth.
The aforementioned reasons as to why the Bulls are still capable of claiming a playoff spot stand on their own merit, but the story doesn't end there.
Out of the remaining eight games on the schedule, only two of those teams have winning records — the Cavaliers and the Atlanta Hawks.
Being that the Bulls are 7-1 against the defending champions (dating back to last season), it is quite possible that the Bulls will continue to have success against their division rival.
And as far as the Hawks are concerned?
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Well, being that they will be without the services of Paul Millsap — who recently underwent a knee procedure and will be sidelined for Atlanta's next few games — the chances of avoiding a season sweep against a Hawks team that is 3-7 in its last 10 games looks very promising.
After the Cavs and Hawks, the schedule tilts in a favorable direction for the Bulls.
This includes a four-game road trip against the New Orleans Pelicans, New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers and the Brooklyn Nets, with the Pelicans being the only team of that bunch that has surpassed the 30-win plateau.
The Bulls will then finish off the season with a pair of home games against the Orlando Magic and the Nets.
Meanwhile, the Heat still have to face the likes of the Cavaliers, a Toronto Raptors squad that beat them 101-84 back on March 23 and the Washington Wizards (twice).
In other words, despite the team's mediocre play, the stage is set for the Bulls to claim the final playoff spot in the East — a feat that seemed highly unlikely just a few weeks ago.
