Chicago Bulls: Top 10 moments from 2017-18 NBA season

1. Zach LaVine holds his own against Jimmy Butler and the TimberBulls

Once the Bulls made the decision to start from scratch, there weren’t many games on their schedule that fans could consider must-see television. However, this matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves offered plenty of interesting storylines.

First, this occasion marked the second time Tom Thibodeau returned to the United Center after being unceremoniously dismissed at the end of the 2014-15 campaign. Second, this was the first of two meetings between the teams since the offseason trade that sent Jimmy Butler to Minnesota, while LaVine and Dunn were shipped to the Windy City.

Along with that, this would also be the first time that Taj Gibson would be playing at the U.C. in a visitor uniform, after the Bulls parted ways with him prior to the trade deadline in February 2017.

"“It will bring back so many strong memories, so many good times you feel in your heart you can’t ever get back,” Gibson told the Chicago Tribune before the game. “I might tear up. It’s one of those times [I] thought would never end. I had such a great time here.”"

Taking all of the subplots into consideration, fans were hoping for a win, even if it came at the expense of a former head coach and two players they rooted for in years past.

At first, it didn’t seem as if the ending would play out the way the fans had hoped as the Timberwolves led by as many as 17 points in the third quarter. The narrative changed in the fourth quarter, though, as LaVine went head-to-head against one of the best two-way players in the league. He scored Chicago’s last 11 points, capped off by three free throws with 18 seconds left to play.

Thanks to misses by both Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns, the Bulls narrowly escaped with a 114-113 victory, snapping a seven-game losing skid. As expected, Butler had one of his better performances of the season, finishing the evening with 38 points, seven rebounds, five dimes and four steals.

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LaVine was no slouch either though, as he scored 35 points (including 15 in the fourth quarter) to go along with five boards and a pair of steals. After so much derision for the returns on the Jimmy Butler trade, you can bet Chicago fans felt good about what they saw from LaVine and the rest of the Bulls.