The Chicago Bulls and Chicago Sky will welcome change in the new year as they approach 2025 with mutual goals of rebuilding their rosters — and returning to the playoffs.
Last year was a tumultuous one for professional basketball in Chicago, and 2025 could serve as a turning point for both teams and for star players such as Lonzo Ball, Zach LaVine, Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso.
Here’s a wish list for Chicago basketball in 2025.
1. Lonzo Ball to be fully cleared
This has been on the wish list for years — but in 2025, Ball might finally complete his comeback.
Ball’s journey has been unexpectedly arduous since he suffered a knee injury in January 2022 that required three surgeries and two full seasons away from basketball. But this season he’s getting back to himself on the court.
Ball can get a lot done during his 20-minute playing-time restriction; he’s averaging 5.4 points and 3.6 assists in 14 minutes per game. And all signs point toward that restriction being adjusted again after Ball played almost 26 minutes in Monday’s win over the Charlotte Hornets — his most since the initial injury nearly three years ago.
Optimism is high for Ball, who is pain-free in his everyday life and feels confident he will be playing without restriction by the end of this season. While he might not stay in Chicago — he will be a free agent at the end of the season with plenty of his career ahead of him — a full return to health would be a major victory after years of uncertainty, whether he finishes the year in a Bulls jersey or not.
2. The Sky to move into their new training facility
This should be a historic year for the Sky after breaking ground on their new training facility in Bedford Park in October.
The facility — which will provide players with 24-hour access to courts and weight rooms in addition to recovery equipment, a kitchen and content creation space — is scheduled to open in December 2025. But construction can be tricky, so that date is far from guaranteed.
The Sky’s best-case scenario is to have the facility fully operational well before 2026 free agency begins. It will be an especially competitive cycle after players negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement, which is expected to significantly raise expectations for player compensation and treatment.
The Sky won’t be able to compete in that new market without a top-level training facility — which is why the December date is so crucial (and, ultimately, exciting) for the future of the franchise.
3. The Bulls to keep their top-10-protected draft pick
This has to be the goal for the Bulls in 2025. But midway through the season, it’s unclear if the front office actually cares about hanging on to that pick.
The Bulls are on pace to have to convey their first-round pick to the San Antonio Spurs as they sit ninth in the Eastern Conference and 11th in the projected draft order. There’s plenty of time for the Bulls to fall out of play-in tournament position — and into drafting position — but that might require significant trades and tactical adjustment.
If the front office remains frozen at the trade deadline again, it might be time for Bulls ownership to seriously consider a changing of the guard for the 2025-26 season.
4. Kamilla Cardoso and Angel Reese to take the next step
The Sky struck gold in the 2024 draft with the frontcourt pairing of Cardoso and Reese. But how well the team performs in 2025 will hinge upon how quickly both players can rise to the challenge of anchoring the roster under new coach Tyler Marsh. Both players entered the offseason with goals of improving their accuracy at the rim and in the midrange while building out their defensive versatility.
They’re pursuing that progress in different ways. Cardoso is averaging a double-double in the Women’s Chinese Basketball Association, while Reese has been focused on individual workouts to prepare for the Unrivaled season, which starts in January. Sky fans will have to wait until the season starts in May to see the fruits of that labor.
5. Zach LaVine to receive a final decision from the Bulls front office
Staying or going — either way, the Bulls need to make a decision on LaVine this year.
LaVine is doing everything right. He’s scoring like an All-Star while facilitating selflessly on offense and outperforming his standard effort on defense. And he brings consistent leadership to a young Bulls roster, finding a new level of grace and confidence this season that has visibly bled into his play on the court.
So once again, this falls on the shoulders of the Bulls front office. There is a decision to be made — and after two years of dilly-dallying, it can’t be delayed any longer. Either commit to the remaining years on LaVine’s contract or trade him.
There are pros and cons to both decisions. But it’s both inefficient and unfair — to the fans, to the team, to LaVine — to continue living in limbo with LaVine floated as a potential trade asset while also expected to buoy the current roster.
This could be the entire resolution for the Bulls front office this year: Make a choice, stand on it, live with it.
6. Aneesah Morrow to be drafted in the first round
The Sky aren’t the only reason for Chicago basketball fans to watch this year’s WNBA draft closely. Simeon alumna, former DePaul star and current LSU standout Aneesah Morrow is expected to declare for the draft this spring.
Draft boards have shifted considerably since the start of the college season, but Morrow is projected to be a top-10 pick and could become a new centerpiece for a building team. The Chicago area has made a sizable impact on the WNBA with players such as Candace Parker, Jewell Loyd and Allie Quigley, and Morrow is expected to be the next player to carry on that tradition.
The Sky could bring Morrow home to Chicago, but their positional needs don’t match up with the forward’s skill set. The best situation for Morrow would be to land with a franchise that offers a good fit for her skills as both a scorer and a defender — even if that means playing against, rather than for, her hometown team.
7. More home wins
Last year was a bad one to buy a ticket to a basketball game in Chicago. The Bulls (14) and Sky (six) combined for only 20 home wins in the 2024 calendar year.
It’s not like catching a basketball game in Chicago is a cheap venture. The average price for a Bulls ticket at the United Center during the 2023-24 season was $276 (sixth-highest in the NBA). Season ticket prices for the Sky at Wintrust Arena have nearly doubled for the 2025 season.
Here’s hoping one or both teams can dish out a few more wins for the home crowd this year.
Column: 2024 sucked for Chicago sports. Here’s one last look back at another lost year for fans.
8. Not to boo any more old ladies
The worst moment in Chicago basketball in 2024 was cemented within the opening weeks of the year when Bulls fans booed Thelma Krause — the widow of former general manager Jerry Krause — during the team’s Ring of Honor celebration. The vitriol caused Thelma Krause to burst into tears in the middle of the United Center court.
This shouldn’t be a hard bar to clear, but just in case: Chicago, let’s not boo any more old ladies this year.
