The Chicago Bulls certainly have had a disappointing season that will end with a missed playoff appearance. It also now appears as though they may be at least somewhat divided in the locker room. ESPN’s Chris Broussard said some players feel that Jimmy Butler gets preferential treatment, especially as it related to him not being on a team flight.
“Some players, and I’m not saying it wasn’t a family commitment, but there were some – I know at least one player in particular, a starter – who felt like he was a bit bothered by the fact that Jimmy wasn’t on the plane. And it was a misperception. He felt it was emblematic of a little bit of the preferential treatment that a lot of people say Butler’s been getting now that he’s emerged as the best players on the Bulls from the front office and things like that.
There’s a division. There’s all types of dysfunction in Chicago. There’s kind of a division in that locker room.”
At this point, it’s hard to determine what’s causing what here. The Bulls have clearly had a down season and it’s certainly possible that a division within the locker room has helped contribute to a poor team.
On the other hand, it’s hard to imagine that somebody being approved to miss a team flight would be a big problem if the team was winning. It’s certainly not likely that this would be an issue on a team like the Golden State Warriors with Steph Curry.
While we won’t be seeing the Bulls in the playoffs, this definitely point to the idea that we might be hearing more about them in the offseason.
It was already hard enough to imagine the team not undergoing a serious face lift after this down year. If there’s a genuine division between the team and Jimmy Butler, their best player, it only increases the chances of a crazy offseason with a lot of change.