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Yes, it’s possible to be bullish on the Bulls

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Hang around the ballparks long enough in the summer, and eventually people will want to talk about NBA basketball.

Which led to this conclusion: Most of Chicago seems really down on the Bulls right now.

It’s easy to see why. There’s little faith in the management team of Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley, thanks to the mistakes they’ve already made. Team AKME may even be headed toward contract extensions, depending on what rumors you want to believe. Not that it should be a secret to begin with.

Go ahead and call this a bold take, hot take, contrarian view, whatever — but I’m actually bullish on the Bulls and see the potential for a bright future.

The logic is pretty simple. Optimism rests in the nucleus of Josh Giddey, Coby White and Matas Buzelis. Coach Billy Donovan getting an extension doesn’t move the needle. Everyone else on the roster is replaceable, with first-round pick Noa Essengue TBD.

Sure, Karnisovas and Eversley could mess it up. But they did build a pretty good team in the summer of 2021, which fell apart following Lonzo Ball’s knee injury, so maybe that can happen again.

There’s no reason to get carried away by the number of wins at the end of the regular season (15-5 before the play-in disaster against Miami). Everyone has to prove it again in October. This is more about belief in personnel, so let’s break it down:

Josh Giddey: Karnisovas took some heat for last year’s trade, especially with Alex Caruso winning a title in Oklahoma City. But it was a good move for the Bulls, flipping Caruso, 31, for Giddey, 22.

Two of the rising stars in the Eastern Conference are tall point guards — Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton and Detroit’s Cade Cunningham. There’s no reason Giddey can’t join that group.

Throw in Luka Doncic and Devin Booker and Giddey was right there with all of them after the all-star break, when he took over the lead role — 21.5 points, 9.3 assists, 10.7 rebounds, 45% from 3-point range. No guarantees he picks up where he left off, but Giddey is in a spot to become one of the league’s brightest young stars.

A frequent criticism is his defense. Don’t forget, though, Haliburton’s defense was about as low as it gets when he first arrived in Indiana. Eversley talked Wednesday about how there’s no one to “hunt” on the Pacers defensively. Well, the DeMar DeRozan-era Bulls used to hunt Haliburton in every key moment.

How did Indiana solve the issue? By surrounding him with better defensive players. Maybe the Bulls have the right idea by getting Isaac Okoro from the Cavs for Ball.

Too bad they didn’t snag a first-round pick from OKC in the Caruso deal and add Georgetown center Thomas Sorber at No. 15 on Wednesday. Ahh, that’s water under the bridge, don’t go there.

Matas Buzelis: Not sure where Buzelis’ ceiling sits, but his NBA role model should be Boston’s Jayson Tatum.

Think about it: Six-foot-9, plus athlete, good handles, smooth outside shot. Tatum started 80 games as a rookie in 2017-18, Buzelis just 31, but their first-year stats were pretty comparable in the games Buzelis did start.

One thing we’d like to see more of is Buzelis with the ball in his hands, initiating offense. Maybe when Giddey is off the court, Buzelis should move to the point. This future Bulls lineup can have several tough matchups.

Coby White: There’s been some chatter about White possibly being moved in a trade, since he’ll be an unrestricted free agent in 2026.

Well, here’s some free advice — don’t do it. We’ve watched two years in a row, the Bulls started winning and White put up all-star caliber numbers once Zach LaVine left the lineup. Sure, White might bring back the most in a trade, but give him a chance to go a full year as the team leader.

LaVine isn’t a bad teammate, but he was dealt difficult circumstances in the NBA, getting drafted by a bad Timberwolves squad, then being traded to a Bulls team trying to lose.

White, on the other hand, showed up with the right attitude. It’s subtle, but the results on the court have been noticeably different when it’s his team. Giddey seems to be a good match as a leader.

Just by getting more consistent with his 3-point shot, White could take another step forward. He made some progress last season with creativity when attacking the basket.

There’s another important step in this process. The Bulls need to re-sign Giddey this summer and possibly White next year. Get in the board room and negotiate. Don’t pass out another ridiculous, immediately regrettable contract like they did with LaVine, Nikola Vucevic and Patrick Williams.

Practice saying these lines: “We want to build a winner around Josh or Coby, (state agent’s name here). That’s why we’re offering this perfectly reasonable sum of money, so we can add more good players.”

Faith may be low among the fan base, but all this can actually happen.

Bulls guard Josh Giddey could be on his way to becoming one of the league’s bright young stars, writes columnist Mike McGraw.
AP