(670 The Score) It wasn't supposed to be like this, except it was supposed to be like this.
We have to say we'd take it, even if the Bulls' trip up Interstate 94 seems like its own kind of Green Mile, a merciful end to a season at the hands of champions coming as an aptly deserved last chapter of this long and disconnected step forward for the organization.
For the Bulls, the sixth seed in this Eastern Conference will have to be its own trophy, it appears, and it has all been an unpredictable way to reach the exact place so many predicted specifically -- a return to the bottom half of the playoffs despite their defensive shortcomings and imperfectly fitting offensive pieces. The Bulls are back, just not for much longer.
Before I give you reasonable cause for hope overall, let's lay out the downside to this saga of a season that's about to be exposed fully as a mere step toward genuine contention.
This roster can't win a title, no matter the re-signing of Zach LaVine, rapid improvement of Patrick Williams or the respective returns of Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso to complete health. Nikola Vucevic is a good player but not a great one, and his below-the-rim game on both ends and slow feet are obvious limiting factors. He and either Coby White or Ayo Dosunmu have to be examined as trade bait in the pursuit of real size and rim protection, while overall 3-point production still must also be addressed.
The conundrum of DeMar DeRozan also has to be better solved. The Bulls need to figure out how to incorporate a disproportionate number of contested 2-point shot attempts into their offensive profile, distribute scoring opportunities among a number of proud scorers and backstop a defense that's routinely cut to ribbons by ball screens that too easily freed up quick guards and basket-attacking lob artists.
And they need someone who can function better as a ball-handler and primary distributor in the half court, where Ball is most effective as a shooter from the wings and corners.
So much of that potential growth and evolution was undone by injuries and illness, with coach Billy Donovan never really able to get in front of any cultivation plans while constantly scrambling to fill holes. The Bulls never really got back to even on that score this season, but we saw enough of what it was supposed to resemble to know the limitations inherent in this group.
But here's the better news.
DeRozan's immediate success matters, as he hit near the highest ranges of his expectations to become an All-Star and fringe all-NBA performer right away. The sign-and-trade deal that brought him to Chicago included a three-year commitment to the Bulls that has to resonate across the league and continue to establish the franchise as a desirable free-agent destination. His record-setting run of 35-point games brought Wilt Chamberlain's name into the conversation and kept an overachieving Bulls team front and center nationally for a significant time, providing immeasurable internal marketing value among those potentially important. And that discussion has to include the value of the previous deal for Vucevic, as his presence and the commitment to winning had to influence DeRozan's desire to come to Chicago.
Dosunmu too is a certain net positive, the first example of the kind of development that lead executives Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley prioritized in their previous respective positions in Denver and Philadelphia. If they want to keep turning higher draft picks into immediate help, they'll have to turn lower ones into found value as a matter of course -- and not just occasional good luck.
And that trust is the best reason to feel fine enough about this Bulls team coming up far short of bigger and more important achievements.
There's again a culture of winning in Chicago, with smart people in charge who are watching the same games that we are, even if they almost never tell us what they think about them. Karnisovas wanted to hurry up and get good even if not on a directly linear path to a title, and that's exactly what was achieved. The next step is avoiding the NBA hell of any glass ceiling that starts to form from a combination of age and salary cap constraints and then converting competence into higher level competitiveness.
That difference is about to be on stark and painful display, and everyone should be taking notes.
We're invested observers again, so we might as well. There are worse places to be.
Dan Bernstein is the co-host of the Bernstein & Rahimi Show on middays from 9 a.m. until noon on 670 The Score. You can follow him on Twitter @Dan_Bernstein.