Have the Billy Donovan and Artūras Karnišovas-led Chicago Bulls ever been an easy team to pin down? The answer is no. Despite the team’s consistent mediocrity over the past few seasons, Chicago has remained almost impossible to properly gauge—and that uncertainty persists.

The Bulls began the season 5-0, with surprising victories over the Detroit Pistons, New York Knicks, and Orlando Magic. However, they are now 14-15, having suffered losses to the Brooklyn Nets, Indiana Pacers, and New Orleans Pelicans in December. Despite the volatility, it seems increasingly likely that the Bulls are once again a middling squad, not one to be feared, but not one to be written off either.

Bulls ranked all over the Power Rankings

In the latest power rankings, sports media outlets are all over the place with the Bulls. ESPN ranks them 19th, Bleacher Report has them at 23rd, and NBA.com places them 25th. A mid-December iteration of the power rankings shows just how volatile the Bulls are.

ESPN shows more faith in the Bulls than Bleacher Report and NBA.com. The worldwide leader in sports highlighted Matas Buzelis’ ascension during Chicago’s four-game winning streak, noting his increased involvement as key to the team’s success.

Bleacher Report also mentioned Buzelis, but was less praiseworthy and more wishful, calling “a Buzelis breakout” the platform’s biggest hope for the Bulls. Moreover, the outlet seems hesitant to give Chicago much credit following their seven-game losing streak from November to early December.

Lastly, NBA.com appears to factor December heavily into its rankings. The Charlotte Hornets (21), Utah Jazz (22), New Orleans Pelicans (23), and Brooklyn Nets (24) all rank ahead of the Bulls despite having worse season-long records. Rather than discussing Chicago’s placement, NBA.com highlights several impressive stats from the team’s past week. One stands out: only 4.8 percent of the Bulls’ shots have come from mid-range, which would be the lowest rate in 30 seasons of shot-location data.

All in all, it’s not surprising to see Chicago ranked inconsistently. The Bulls have recently won four straight games, but it’s still hard to gauge where the team stands. Chicago boasts a quality offense and an unrelenting style of play, but its defensive struggles are sometimes too significant to overcome.

As mentioned, the most likely scenario is that this team remains a middle-of-the-pack squad poised to make the Play-In Tournament again. Chicago has a solid foundation and some intriguing players, but it’s still too rough around the edges. A seven-game losing streak followed closely by a four-game (and counting) winning streak underscores the team’s inconsistency.