The Chicago Bulls 7-6 stretch isn’t helping them get unstuck

The Chicago Bulls 7-6 stretch isn’t helping them get unstuck.

The Chicago Bulls are catching a rhythm.

After their a 122-121 win over the Toronto Raptors, the Bulls are 4-2 in December with a +6.8 net rating according to Cleaning the Glass, ninth best in the NBA. That point differential, over the course of an 82-game regular season, extrapolates to 59 wins. The offense continues to hum (13th) and the defense has reached a new level (seventh) over that span.

They have benefitted from a soft schedule, over that time, beating the Brooklyn Nets, San Antonio Spurs, Charlotte Hornets (without Nikola Vucevic) and Raptors (without Zach LaVine), losing only to the full-strength Philadelphia 76ers and Indiana Pacers.

But their high-level play goes beyond the …Chicago Bulls: Josh Giddey Update After Brutal Inju

The Chicago Bulls continue to overdeliver on expectations. Their 122-121 win over the Toronto Raptors means that they are now 12-15, good enough to sit at 9th in the East. One player who was having a great night against the Raptors is Josh Giddey. In just 24 minutes, he was on the verge of a triple-double with 11 points, 8 assists and 9 rebounds. But then, disaster struck for Giddey. He seemed to roll up his ankle and immediately fell to the clutching his leg. Giddey had to be helped to the locker room by training staff after the ankle injury and did not return to the court on the night as expected.

Giddey, who was brought to Chicago in a trade that saw Alex Caruso join the Oklahoma City Thunder in return, has a history of ankle issues. This is the same ankle that Giddey had injured on the final play of his Paris Olympics. The extent of this new injury remains uncertain so far. According to Julia Poe on X: “Josh Giddey re-injured the ankle that suffered a ruptured ATFL during the Olympics. Billy Donovan said the medical team had not updated him on the grade or degree of the sprain.”

It remains to be seen how serious this ankle injury is and how long it will keep Giddey off the court. On the other hand, the Bulls would have been impressed with the play of Lonzo Ball. He put up 8 points, 7 assists and 6 assists in 23 minutes as he continues to rediscover his rhythm after spending more than two years out injured. It remains to be seen if Ball starts to enjoy a bigger role if Giddey has to spend time on the sidelines. Of course, there are areas where he needs to improve, especially his 34.6% field goal percentage. Hopefully, that will come with time and more on-court minute