The Chicago Bulls are fresh off one of the most exciting and improbable comebacks in NBA history. It was the team version (or the mostly Josh Giddey version) of Reggie Miller’s 8 points in 9 seconds game against the New York Knicks in the first round of the 1995 playoffs.

The Bulls are 9-2 in their last 11 games and 11-7 since the All-Star break. They’ve beaten LeBron James, Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers twice in five days, once in said dramatic, final seconds comeback and five days earlier in a 31-point rout that saw Giddey approach a quadruple double.

Chicago is 1.5 games behind the Orlando Magic for eighth in the Eastern Conference standings and 2.0 games behind the Atlanta Hawks for seventh. The Bulls are easily playing their best basketball of the season and are among the best teams in the NBA over that 11-game span and since the break. They’re fighting for a playoff berth for the first time since 2021-22.

Yet there are still pressing questions the franchise needs to answer over the final nine games of the regular season, before the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament rolls around and, potentially, a date with the Cleveland Cavaliers or Boston Celtics in the opening round of the playoffs.

Despite the unexpected positivity in The Windy City, not everything is sunshine and rainbows. There’s still work to be done before a playoff, let alone postseason, run.

1. How will Billy Donovan allocate minutes to a mostly healthy backcourt?

Giddey and White are sure-fire starters. Kevin Huerter has started the Bulls’ last eight games, playing 35.3 minutes per contest. He’s averaging 16.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists while shooting 36.1 percent from three. Donovan seems comfortable rolling with the six-year pro in Zach LaVine’s former guard/wing spot in the opening lineup.

Tre Jones was getting the starting nods in front of Huerter until he got hurt, but he’s expected back before the end of the regular season. Ditto for Lonzo Ball, who’s been trusted with key minutes off the bench this year. Dalen Terry has come on lately.

Some of those guards can play together, but who gets prioritized and in what combinations?

2. Which players get pushed out of a shortened rotation?

The answer to question No. 1 will help decide the answer to question No. 2. By the time the postseason/playoffs roll around, coaches usually shorten their rotations and give more minutes to their most trusted players.

Giddey and White could see even more time on the floor. Huerter appears to be part of Donovan’s core. Jones should be featured heavily as a steady table setter. Could Matas Buzelis see some of his minutes cut because of his inexperience? Does Patrick Williams see less time? Does it mean Bulls fans can expect to see more Nikola Vucevic? Will Terry and Julian Phillips be dropped altogether?

Or, given Chicago’s up-tempo style, will the Bulls need to play a 10-man rotation anyway?

3. Can Josh Giddey and Coby White keep producing at this high of a level?

Since the All-Star break, Giddey is averaging 22.8 points (28th in the NBA), 10.5 rebounds (ninth) and 9.2 assists (fifth) with 53/52/81 shooting splits. White is averaging 26.2 ppg, good for 13th in the league during that same span.

A cold streak from one or both of them could bring Chicago’s season to an abrupt end. Giddey has never been this efficient as a scorer—has he found something in his shot and approach on offense that’s here to stay, or is there an inevitable fall back to Earth?

Can White continue to get into the paint and to the free-throw line the way he has been? He’s 16th in the league in field goal attempts and 13th in three-point attempts since the break. Can he remain efficient on such a high volume of shots?

The answers to these questions will have a significant impact on where the Bulls go—or don’t go—in the postseason.