18. Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls have been pretty much what everyone expected them to be about a month into the season. They're the definition of mediocre in the Eastern Conference and are right around where they've been in the standings over the past few years. Not good enough to emerge as a potential top 6 seed but also not bad enough where they're going to have a high pick in the lottery. At some point before the NBA Trade Deadline, the Bulls are going to make a move. All the signs have suggested them to do so.
The ultimate question for the Bulls is whether or not the market will develop enough for them to pull off such a move. In theory, the Bulls would love to trade Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic. At least thus far, the trade market for both those players has been pretty non-existent. As the Bulls continue to play .400 basketball over the next couple of months, it will be interesting to see if that shifts at all. If it does, this Bulls roster is going to look a lot different by the end of the season than it did when it started.
17. Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks have made the playoffs three times in the last four seasons. However, this is very much a team that continues to trend in the opposite direction. The Hawks have some big-picture questions to answer about their future and I find it hard to imagine there's going to be any level of resolution anytime soon. Are we supposed to just forget that the Hawks were open to trading Trae Young during the offseason? Did that not happen? The same could be said about Clint Capela too.
The Hawks may not be at such a depressing state as some of the other teams ranked near the bottom of this list because they have some clear talent on their roster. The problem for Atlanta is that not all the pieces fit and it's hard to determine whether they're building around Young or any of their other young players or not. Until that is clear, it's going to be difficult to gauge the Hawks on their direction as a franchise. At this point, there has to be a plan. But, for the most part, it does seem as if they're trying to find some clarity too. When that happens, it doesn't equate to much success in the NBA.