The 2016-17 Chicago Bulls, though consisting of the star power of Dwyane Wade and then-emerging Jimmy Butler, were lackluster to the legacy of the 1990s Bulls dynasty. For a long time since the dynasty broke up, the Bulls failed to achieve any relative success, despite having flashes of incredible players such as Derrick Rose. Appearing on JJ Redick’s podcast, former Bulls player Rajon Rondo discussed the real reason behind the team’s underperformance during that season.
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The 2016-17 Bulls roster consisted of an emerging talent Jimmy Butler, Rajon Rondo signed in free agency, and Dwyane Wade after a trade with the Miami Heat. However, despite such potential from the names in the roster, the squad made a season record of 41-41 and lost 2-4 in the First Round of playoffs to the Boston Celtics.
Rajon Rondo blames the 2016-17 Chicago Bulls’ lack of team chemistry as a reason for their underperformance
Rajon Rando recently revealed the real reason behind the 2016-17 Bulls’ lackluster performance during that season. Despite having veterans such as Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo, the team failed to live up to the expectations it had built at the start of the season. Though it is widely claimed that Dwyane Wade became an essential mentor for Jimmy Butler, Rondo says there was a lack of connect and team chemistry between the older and younger generations of the team.
“Chemistry, it wasn’t there. Like I mentioned earlier Jimmy, D.Wade, they kind of were on their own. As far as I guess even in practice, even off the court. Like again, every team is different, there’s nothing wrong with that. But there wasn’t really a connect between the old guys and the young. And that was why it was so much friction throughout the year.”
Rondo was also particularly disappointed with his stint at Chicago, given he was benched in favor of playing Wade and Butler. However, Rondo was crucial for the Bulls in leading the team 2-0 up in that season’s First Round playoffs. Without Rondo, the team never found a correct rhythm and lost the final four games to the Celtics. On June 30, 2017 Rondo was waived by the Bulls, following which he joined the New Orleans Pelicans.
Following the season, the star players of the 2016-17 Bulls all left for different pursuits
After an unsuccessful 2016-17 campaign, the three stars- Butler, Wade, and Rondo left the team and looked for newer ventures. Wade joined his former teammate LeBron James at the Cleveland Cavaliers, Butler was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves, and Rondo was waived by the team, despite having one more year left in his contract.
Since leaving the Bulls, Rajon Rondo briefly played for a season with the Pelicans, before joining alongside LeBron James at the Los Angeles Lakers. That’s where Rondo added a second NBA championship to his cabinet, after winning the 2020 NBA Finals against his former teammate, Jimmy Butler. On the other hand, Wade played one Finals with the Cavs, ultimately retiring at Miami Heat in 2019.
