The Chicago Bulls had an incredibly hot start out of the gate in the 2021-22 NBA season, but injuries hampered them dramatically as the campaign continued, and they eventually lost in the first round of the playoffs.
Despite that disappointing finish, star DeMar DeRozan hasn’t lost confidence in his team. In fact, the veteran recently claimed that he believes the Bulls will be even better next season.
“I can assure we’re gonna come back even better next year. Without a doubt.” -DeMar@MichelobULTRA | #BullsNation pic.twitter.com/fYE1Cri2Ho
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) May 7, 2022
While this may seem like just some positive words, DeRozan certainly has reason to believe that the Bulls will be better next season.
First of all, the team will have another offseason to gel and build chemistry. On top of that, promising young big man Patrick Williams will have time to continue to develop.
Perhaps most importantly, the Bulls will get guard Lonzo Ball back from injury. Ball was having a really solid season and was a major force behind what the Bulls were doing so well until he suffered a knee injury in January.
He missed the rest of the season, and the Bulls never really recovered.
For DeRozan, the 2021-22 campaign gave him the chance to prove just how effective he can be in the right situation. In 76 regular season starts, he averaged 27.9 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game. He shot 50.4 percent from the field and 35.2 percent from beyond the arc.
If he can continue that kind of production and the Bulls can continue to build out their roster with smart moves, they could very well be better by the time the 2022-23 season rolls around.
