The Chicago Bulls opened their season like a team reborn, bursting out to a stunning 6–1 start — their best since the Michael Jordan era — and filling the United Center with a long-absent sense of hope. But that hope has evaporated with shocking speed. Since then, the Bulls have crashed to 3–13, dropped seven straight, and plunged out of the Eastern Conference play-in picture. What was supposed to be a resurgence has morphed into a full-scale collapse, and now US media is openly asking the question fans fear most: Did Chicago make a franchise-altering mistake with Josh Giddey?
The most painful part? Giddey has not been bad. In fact, the Australian sensation is putting up career-high numbers across the board — 20.3 points, 9.5 rebounds, 8.9 assists, and elite shooting from deep. He trails only Nikola Jokic in triple-doubles. But the Bulls around him? They’ve fallen apart on both ends. During Chicago’s 3–13 skid, the team ranks 27th in offense and 26th in defense, a disastrous combination that exposes an uncomfortable truth: Giddey cannot save this roster alone.
Even respected voices like Bill Simmons admit the letdown has been staggering. “I miss the two weeks Josh Giddey looked like a transformative superstar,” he lamented. “It was great times.” But as Simmons and others have noted, NBA stardom is tied to winning — and the Bulls simply aren’t winning.
Worse, Chicago’s losses haven’t come against juggernauts. The Bulls have fallen to the 3–22 Pelicans, the 7–17 Hornets, the 6–18 Pacers — twice, and an undermanned Warriors team missing Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. And the schedule is about to tighten into a vise: Cleveland twice, Atlanta twice, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Minnesota. ESPN’s Tim Bontemps bluntly warned, “Their season might be over, too.”
Internally, the frustration is boiling. Podcaster Pat The Designer blasted the Bulls as “rudderless” and “leaderless,” arguing that Billy Donovan has lost the locker room. Early in the season, Giddey was seen barking at teammates for missed defensive assignments. Now? That fire is fading — not because he’s lost passion, but because, according to the podcast, “guys aren’t taking the message.”
And as the team sinks, so does its trade leverage. Patrick Williams, Nikola Vucevic, even Coby White — none are drawing strong interest around the league. “Do we even have assets people want?” Pat asked. It’s a chilling question for a franchise that desperately needs a lifeline.
But the moment that may haunt Chicago for years came on draft night. The Bulls selected Noa Essengue one pick before the Pelicans took breakout rookie Derik Queen — but the real sting lies in what happened behind the scenes. New Orleans traded up for that pick by sending Atlanta an unprotected 2026 first-rounder, a move now universally slammed as a catastrophic gamble. If Chicago had acquired that pick instead — something many now believe was possible — the Bulls could have secured a future goldmine. Instead, Essengue is out for the season, and the franchise is left empty-handed. “If Chicago passed on that trade, fire everybody,” Simmons said flatly. “It’s a fireable offense.”
Not everything is bleak. The Bulls surged last season after the All-Star break, and an 82-game season leaves room for wild swings. Teams ahead of them may begin to tank; injuries may reshape the standings. But as it stands, Chicago is a team without traction, without defense, without identity — and with a franchise star playing brilliantly inside a crumbling structure.
If the Bulls don’t find answers soon, this season won’t just be lost.
It may be the turning point that defines the next five years of the franchise — for all the wrong reasons.
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