It has been just over two months since executive vice president John Paxson and coach Jim Boylen set playoffs as the Bulls’ realistic possibility for this season.

You remember media day. It came on the heels of a widely praised offseason and on the eve of Boylen’s first full training camp as head coach, an element he didn’t have when he replaced Fred Hoiberg in December 2018 and one he pointed to as essential for establishing his philosophies.

For the first time since the rebuild began with the June 2017 Jimmy Butler trade, genuine intrigue and optimism surrounded the Bulls.

And now, most, if not all, of that has been squandered, the byproduct of a disastrous 6-13 start that has featured large blown leads, large blowout losses and more of the dysfunction that was supposed to be in the past.

It has affected the Bulls in the standings and in their standing, with attendance at the United Center noticeably down. The Bulls rank sixth in home attendance and tied for 20th in capacity. Such numbers always get recognized by ownership.

What comes next will be fascinating, and perhaps franchise-altering, to monitor. But you know plenty about your team at the quarter pole, which the Bulls roughly reach Friday in Portland, Ore., with their 20th game.

As of Thursday morning, the Bulls rank 30th in offensive rating, 13th in defensive rating and 23rd in net rating. Their point differential of minus-4.3 ranks 22nd.

The Bulls lead the NBA in steals and forced turnovers. They rank 28th in rebound percentage and 14th in allowing second-chance points. In an amazing statistic, they lead the NBA in shots from 5 feet or fewer but rank last in percentage trying to convert those shots.

That’s hard to do.

The Bulls also rank ninth in attempted 3-pointers but 23rd in percentage. Too often, a wide-open 3-pointer is taken by a player — Kris Dunn, Shaq Harrison — who is a poor 3-point shooter.

When teams underachieve, the blame game begins. So who’s to blame for the Bulls’ mess?

Some people want cut-and-dried answers instead of the reality that failure usually is a shared entity. But in truth, there’s plenty of blame to go around regarding the Bulls.

Management has appeared to miscast players in roles they’re not equipped to handle and extended Boylen — with ownership’s strong support — without conducting an actual coaching search. Boylen and his staff are trying to establish systems at both ends that some of the principals on the roster don’t love and in which much of the personnel isn’t thriving. And several players are underachieving or not showing the proper mental fortitude to fight through adversity.

It’s a mess.

A nexus to analyze the three entities simultaneously is the play of Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen. And this is for reasons beyond the fact that if those two players don’t become All-Stars — or close to it — the rebuild will fail.

One of the many head-scratching aspects to this season is how management and Boylen talked all offseason about how all moves were made to clear the runway for those two players to take off towards stardom. And then once the season began, it’s almost like all moves were designed to do the opposite.

LaVine is averaging 3 minutes fewer than last season as Boylen consistently has used a 10-man rotation. Markkanen has sat out four fourth quarters, including one for Ryan Arcidiacono and most of Wednesday’s loss at the Warriors, and his usage rate is at a career low.

Both players have almost robotically used lines like “that’s the system” or “we’re just doing what the coach wants” when pressed about their offensive roles. The Bulls’ halfcourt offense too often is based on equal opportunity with no true pecking order. Rookie Coby White has attempted almost 2 more shots per game than Markkanen despite playing almost 4 minutes fewer.

Markkanen is missing too many open shots, hasn’t run the floor hard consistently and, since his monster 35-point, 17-rebound night in the opener, often has lumbered up and down the court looking like a shell of himself. He has posted seven single-digit scoring games and attempted 10 or fewer shots 11 times.

With two games of 36 points or more in his last three, LaVine is starting to come on offensively. But after declaring he’s tired of people talking bad about his defense, opponents are scoring a whopping 12.7 more points per 100 possessions when he’s on the court versus off.

Management believed both these players could be if not All-Star players, at least winning players so that the Bulls could become an attractive free-agent destination. It based the success of the rebuild on it.

Currently, the rebuild is regressing, not progressing.

There are many more issues beyond Markkanen and LaVine and their usage or lack of development. Otto Porter Jr. has played just nine games and has no timetable for a return from his left foot sprain. Chandler Hutchison continues to be unable to shake his injury-prone label, leaving Wednesday’s loss early in the first quarter with a sprained right shoulder. Luke Kornet played ineffectively and then underwent sinus surgery, returning Wednesday to reclaim his rotational role ahead of rookie Daniel Gafford.

The injuries have forced Boylen to try different rotations, including leaning heavily on a three-guard lineup with rookie Coby White, Ryan Arcidiacono and Kris Dunn. Often, those three guards have played with Thad Young and either Kornet or Gafford in a lineup that has struggled.

All of these issues pale in comparison what’s going on with LaVine and Markkanen. They need to be put in better positions to succeed and then take advantage of those opportunities.

“They just competed harder than us,” LaVine told reporters late Wednesday in San Francisco, meaning the league-worst Warriors.

This is not the first time he, or another player, has said that this season. Is there any bigger indictment?

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