It's trouble for the Chicago Bulls as they sit seventh in the Eastern Conference and find themselves limping into the All-Star break. They come out with a poor effort against the Charlotte Hornets and they were pounded 108-91 in what was their fifth loss in their last six games.
With the news of Jimmy Butler now out 3-4 weeks with a sprained knee, the Bulls are in trouble sitting in the 7th spot. The All-Star break couldn't come fast enough. But it's one last game for the Bulls as they entertain the Atlanta Hawks at the United Center and then get a week off.
Trouble for Atlanta as well?
The opponents for the Bulls, the Atlanta Hawks, are not doing so well either. They are also on a losing streak as they have lost their past two games including a 117-100 loss to the Orlando Magic on Monday. After starting off the season on fire last year, the Hawks have failed to recapture the magic that led them to being one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference last year.
The Hawks are fifth in the Eastern Conference with a record of 30-24 but not everything is as good as it seems.
Reports have that the Hawks are supposedly open to trading some players that were the core of the team that finished first in the East last year. Jeff Teague, Al Horford, and Kyle Korver have been linked to being shopped and it seems possible that the Atlanta Hawks could be blowing up their team and head straight into rebuild mode.
Out of those three players, the most intriguing to potential buyers would be Teague considering that he is only making $8M a year and for a player of his caliber, he is being underpaid.
Bulls are in danger
With the news that Jimmy Butler is out for a couple of weeks with a knee injury, maybe it's time to hit the panic button in Chicago. Without Butler, who is the engine that runs this team, the Bulls will struggle. Although Derrick Rose has picked up his play since Christmas, he can't do it all alone as he has only shown flashes of potential and is not fully back to his MVP form. If Chicago continues to get the same production they have from the rest of their players not named Pau Gasol, Rose, or Butler, they will be in danger of missing the playoffs.
The Bulls are slipping and they are turning out to be worse than the team that got Tom Thibodeau fired last summer. Blame the players, blame Fred Hoiberg, or blame Gar Forman and John Paxson, it doesn't matter. Everyone is at fault and changes should be made before the trade deadline.