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Fan Editorial by Thomas Tyler

CAN THE BULLS GET HISTORY TO REPEAT ITSELF?

With the Bulls most recent loss they ensured that this would be their sixth straight losing season. Only once before in the history of this great franchise have they suffered six straight losing seasons, 1982 through 1987. They followed the '87 season with 50 wins and were on their way to 11 straight winning seasons and six NBA championships. In the previous decade they had gone through seven different coaches, a long run of unproductive draft choices, and a constant reshuffling of the roster. Sound familiar?

During the current streak they are on their third head coach (interims not included), have dealt a number-one pick, waived a number-two pick, will see a number-four pick walk away with no return, traded away three All-Stars, and are on their second general manager. John Paxson, the newest GM, has a very difficult summer ahead.

First he must decide who to leave unprotected in the expansion draft. Then comes draft night, just a couple days later. The Bulls will have a high pick, but what will they do with it? This is considered a weak draft, with only a handful of players expected to be productive right away. Having a high pick means some other GM’s may be willing to make a deal. However, the Bulls don’t have much talent to deal. Paxson doesn’t want to repeat the same mistake Krause made by trading young players too soon just to watch them become all-stars elsewhere. Trading Crawford is necessary, but throwing him away for almost nothing is pointless. All other players (expect Hinrich, perhaps) are available for a deal, but most have salaries no one else wants to take on.

In July it'll be time to sign free agents. The current roster of returning players plus one of the top picks puts Paxson right at $40 million in salaries.

The saddest part of all this is that Paxson knows he already has most of what he needs. His toughest job this summer is getting the players to see that. They have the interior players they need to win, but those player don't seem to be improving. Tyson Chandler and Eddy Curry have the raw skills to eventually become all-stars, should they become workaholics and spend their summers improving their skills.

The future of Chicago, right now, is in doubt.