The2004–05 Chicago Bulls season was the Bulls' 39th season in theNational Basketball Association.^[1] After the retirement ofScottie Pippen, the Bulls stumbled out of the gate as they lost their first nine games on their way to an awful 3–14 start. However, they would win 13 of their 16 games in January including a 7-game winning streak, then win nine straight games between March and April. The Bulls finished second in the Central Division with a record of 47–35, and qualified for the playoffs for the first time since1998, when they last made theNBA Finals, as well as when they won their last NBA championship. Second-year starKirk Hinrich averaged 15.7 points, 6.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Top draft pickBen Gordon became the first rookie to win the Sixth Man of The Year Award, as he andLuol Deng were both selected to the All-Rookie First Team.

However, injuries were an issue as Deng was out for April and the postseason with a wrist injury, andEddy Curry was sidelined due to a heart ailment. In the first round of theplayoffs, the Bulls took a 2–0 lead over theWashington Wizards, but would lose the final four games of the series. Following the season, Curry andAntonio Davis were both traded to theNew York Knicks.

This was the Bulls' first winning season and first playoff run since1998, during theMichael Jordan era, when they won their sixth and most recentNBA championship.

For the season, they slightly changed their uniforms added the Bulls secondary logo on the back of the jersey. They remained in use until 2014.

The Bulls draftedBen Gordon,Chris Duhon, and gettingLuol Deng from a trade with the Phoenix Suns, with Gordon coming from Connecticut and Deng and Duhon coming from Duke. They also signed Argentinian forwardAndrés Nocioni, who had played on several successful international teams. These acquisitions reflectedJohn Paxson's strategy of building around players who had already been on successful teams, a departure from whatJerry Krause had done as General Manager, draftingEddy Curry andTyson Chandler in the same season, players who both showed tremendous potential, but were both coming to the NBA directly from high school.

Jamal Crawford andJerome Williams were traded to theNew York Knicks forDikembe Mutombo andCezary Trybanski. However, Mutombo was traded again to theHouston Rockets forEric Piatkowski andAdrian Griffin without ever playing in a game for the Bulls and Trybanksi was waived by the team in October.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College / Club Team
1	3	Ben Gordon	SG	United States  United Kingdom	Connecticut
2	32	Jackson Vroman	C	United States	Iowa State
2	38	Chris Duhon	PG	United States	Duke

The Bulls' record of 47-35 was good enough for the #4 seed in the Eastern conference. In the first round of the playoffs the Bulls met another young team on the upswing, theWashington Wizards. The Bulls would lose the series 4–2, staying competitive throughout most of the series, but ultimately unable to find an answer for Wizards starGilbert Arenas. The Bulls also entered the series nursing injuries. Most notably, Eddy Curry was injured in late March, and the Bulls signed veteranLawrence Funderburke just days before the beginning of the postseason in an attempt to add more depth to their front-court.

• Ben Gordon,NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award
• Ben Gordon,NBA All-Rookie Team 1st Team
• Luol Deng,NBA All-Rookie Team 1st Team

Ben Gordon lost out toEmeka Okafor for Rookie of the Year honors, but did win Sixth Man of the Year honors, averaging 15.1 points per game despite making only three starts.

• June 24, 2004: Drafted GBen Gordon in the 1st round (3rd overall) of the 2004 NBA Draft
• June 24, 2004: Drafted CJackson Vroman in the 2nd round (31st overall) of the 2004 NBA Draft
• June 24, 2004: Drafted GChris Duhon in the 2nd round (38th overall) of the 2004 NBA Draft
• June 24, 2004: Traded CJackson Vroman, a future first-round pick and cash to thePhoenix Suns for FLuol Deng
• August 5, 2004: Traded GJamal Crawford and FJerome Williams to theNew York Knicks for CDikembe Mutombo, FOthella Harrington, GFrank Williams and CCezary Trybański
• August 11, 2004: Signed free agent FAndrés Nocioni
• August 20, 2004: Waived FPaul Shirley
• September 8, 2004: Traded CDikembe Mutombo to theHouston Rockets for GAdrian Griffin, FEric Piatkowski and GMike Wilks
• September 30, 2004: Signed free agent CJared Reiner
• October 4, 2004: Waived FChris Jefferies
• October 5, 2004: Announced the retirement of FScottie Pippen
• October 20, 2004: Waived GMike Wilks
• October 28, 2004: Waived CCezary Trybański
• November 1, 2004: Waived FEddie Robinson
• January 5, 2005: Waived FTommy Smith
• April 18, 2005: Signed FLawrence Funderburke

• Malooley, Jake (January 2, 2020)."The Oral History of the Baby Bulls".The Ringer. RetrievedOctober 4, 2023.

• Chicago Bulls seasons
• 2004 in sports in Illinois
• 2005 in sports in Illinois
• 2004–05 NBA season by team
• 2004 in Chicago
• 2005 in Chicago

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from August 2023
• Pages using Template:College with unsupported name
• Articles with hCards