Chicago Bulls: 5 Midseason Takeaways From 2016-17

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Dec 31, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls guard/forward Jimmy Butler (21) celebrates with teammates during the first half against the Milwaukee Bucks at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports /

The Chicago Bulls are a .500 team through 42 games. Here’s a quick look at the main takeaways from the first half of the 2016-17 season.

The Chicago Bulls defeated the Memphis Grizzlies 108-104 on Sunday night, moving them back to the .500 mark. Their victory over Memphis was impressive for two reasons.

First, second-leading scorer Dwyane Wade was out of the lineup due to a scheduled day off. Secondly, Jimmy Butler had a sub-par game with 16 points on just 6-for-14 shooting from the field and a very uncharacteristic 1-for-5 effort from the charity stripe.

With the Bulls having a difficult time putting the ball in the basket in the early going, they turned to none other than Doug McDermott, who torched the Grizzlies’ defense for a career-best 31 points, including 20 in the second quarter.

This was the shot in the arm the Bulls needed considering the fact that McDermott scored a combined total of 21 points in his previous four outings. Despite getting off to a surprising 3-0 start, the Bulls have been hovering right around the .500 mark ever since.

Through their first 42 games of the season, a number of narratives have emerged during that time. Today, we will take a closer look at a few of them.

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