Rozner: Bulls in playoffs not the craziest idea
It was the spring of 2017 when last you saw the Bulls in the postseason.
It only seems longer.
Maybe because that was the forgettable duo of Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade, the great leaders who trashed their teammates, head coach and just about everyone but themselves as they powered through to a spectacular 41-41 record and a six-game loss to the Celtics in the first round.
That's when the five on the floor starting the fourth quarter - down 29 at home in Game 6 - were Bobby Portis, Michael Carter-Williams, Joffrey Lauvergne, Paul Zipser and Denzel Valentine.
It was the first time that season they lived up to the infamous Gar Forman promise of getting younger and more athletic, a proclamation made just before signing the ancient Wade and Rajon Rondo the summer before.
If you haven't paid any attention since then, you haven't missed much. They've posted 55- and 60-loss seasons, have turned over the roster again and fired another head coach.
But be warned, another Chicago Bulls season is about to begin.
In the last 20 years, the Bulls have won five playoff series and the only time they threatened in the East was after a Ping-Pong ball landed them Derrick Rose, who flamed out quickly thereafter due to injuries.
Where they've been since was first a refusal to tank and rebuild, followed by the inevitable tank and the inability to rebuild by landing a big fish.
The Bulls have been stuck in the NBA morass, a franchise unable to locate a superteam.
However, they have collected some nice pieces, not yet the superstars needed to be a superteam, but some nice pieces nonetheless.
Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen form the beginnings of something good, a guard who can do it all offensively and a stretch-big to match, a nice pick-and-roll combo while the Bulls look for shooters to put around them.
These are physically gifted players with work to do on their overall game if they expect to lead the Bulls to the playoffs. Both have the potential to be in their home arena for the All-Star Game, but neither is closing in on superstar status as we sit here today.
One through five the Bulls have size, giving them plenty of pick-and-pop opportunities, and maybe most interesting right now is how long it will take guard Coby White to find the starting lineup.
The kid is dynamic and fun to watch, but how he'll work and play with others, especially LaVine, is a question that may take time to answer.
With Otto Porter, Chandler Hutchison (hamstring injury) and a healthy Wendell Carter Jr., and the addition of 6-foot-7 Tomas Satoransky as the starting point guard for the moment, the Bulls have some thought-provoking parts.
Is it enough to start talking about the playoffs again?
"Our goals this year are really simple," said Bulls boss John Paxson. "We want to compete at a high level and when you compete at a high level you have the ability to be a playoff-caliber team.
"We set that as a goal."
That would be surprise - and a nice one at that.
It's worth noting that since the NBA wins totals came out a few months ago, the Bulls have been one of the teams getting the most play, their number opening at 30½ victories and moving all the way up to 34½, which probably says as much about the competition as their roster.
In the East, 41 wins should get you into the tournament. It's not a formula for winning an NBA title, but a playoff appearance would be a step forward and a late-season run at a postseason spot would at least make this Bulls' season interesting.
That would be a positive change.
They have to get stops and play in transition, the half-court looking like it could pose a problem on both ends.
But a jump from 22 wins to a .500 record isn't ridiculous in the Eastern Conference, understanding it will take time for all the new parts to figure it out and come together.
Still, if you want to view that as optimism, you're welcome to feel better about this Bulls team.
It's better than the alternative - and certainly better than what you've grown accustomed to.