White on a roll bodes well for Bulls’ future

If you think the Bulls should be losing as many games as possible through the end of the season, you're not necessarily wrong.

But the team has taken a different path, which wasn't fully intentional. Sending Zach LaVine to Sacramento felt like a white-flag trade, but it set in motion several positive developments.

First and foremost, LaVine's departure unlocked Coby White — again. Bulls fans will recall White taking an immediate step forward last season when LaVine went out with an injury. There was enough improvement to wonder if White could take the next, next step and rise into all-star territory, joining the level occupied by guys like Jalen Brunson or De'Aaron Fox.

When this season began, the answer was no, there was not a second step forward — that is, until the LaVine trade. Now White has a career-best 12-game streak of scoring at least 20 points and just won consecutive Eastern Conference player of the week honors. Michael Jordan is the only other Bulls player to accomplish that.

Over these 12 games, White is averaging 28.7 points and shooting 49% from the field. Even better, the Bulls have gone 8-4 heading into Monday's game, which means White is doing something LaVine never really accomplished in Chicago — affecting winning.

Can he produce a full, healthy season as a top-10 scorer in the NBA? Well, that's a question for next year.

There's more good news. Josh Giddey has gotten longer opportunities as the guards thinned out. He's averaging 9.1 assists and 10.5 assists, while shooting 52% from 3-point range since the all-star break.

The three players acquired in the trade weren't doing much with their old teams, but have fit well with the Bulls' fast-paced style. Kevin Huerter looks like his old self. Tre Jones went from ho-hum to must re-sign, since he's good at pushing the pace and can take some pressure off White to fly down the court full-speed.

Saturday's result got lost in the March Madness shuffle, but the Bulls literally ran the Lakers off the court in a 31-point win. White scored 36 points, rookie Matas Buzelis had a career-high 31, while Giddey nearly hit a quadruple-double, finishing with 15 points, 17 assists, 10 rebounds and 8 steals.

The Lakers may have been out of sync after Luka Doncic and LeBron James missed a few games. It will be interesting to see what happens when those teams play a rematch Thursday at the United Center.

So yes, the Bulls might tumble all the way out of the draft lottery, and the April schedule is soft. But giving White, Giddey and Buzelis a chance at a first-round playoff series against Cleveland or Boston doesn't seem as terrible an idea as it did three weeks ago.

There's work to be done with the roster. The Bulls badly need a defensive presence in the paint and will ideally find a new home for Nikola Vucevic next season. No guarantees either one of those things happen.

But the Bulls could be onto something with their high-speed nucleus. The best scenario might be Giddey at point, White at two, Buzelis at small forward. If the Bulls can find a rim protector at center, maybe Zach Collins fits as a stretch power forward.

Tanking, being stuck in the middle — neither of those labels really matters. The best way for an NBA team to improve is to become a desirable destination.

Vacating their seat at the draft lottery to give White a lead role in a playoff series — even with slim chances of advancing — could be a long-term benefit.