What a difference two days can make.
They entered the weekend atop the Eastern Conference with a 6-1 record, but after losses to the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday and now the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday, the Chicago Bulls are 6-3 and have tumbled to fifth.
There were opportunities. After a rather pedestrian first quarter, the Bulls exploded for 43 points during the second, turning what was a three-point deficit after one into a 16-point halftime lead.
It was their formula perfectly coalescing. 13-of-14 at the free throw line. 6-of-8 on threes. Only one turnover.
The third quarter was the exact opposite. It was the Cavs who shot the lights out (6-of-11 on threes), got to the line nine times and turned it over just once. They cut the lead to just two heading into the fourth quarter.
Donovan Mitchell was too much in the second half, scoring 16 in the third and 10 more in the fourth to help bring the Cavs home. Chicago had opportunities to close out the game, but struggled to generate open looks down the stretch.
Josh Giddey badly twisted his ankle getting crossed over by Cavs’ wing DeAndre Hunter, but re-entered the game shortly after getting it checked out in the locker room. Impressive for him to return after what looked to be a painful sprain, but he didn’t look quite himself. Still, he had 15 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
Jalen Smith has quietly been productive for the Bulls. He had 18 points on 6-of-6 shooting with 11 rebounds and four assists.
Kevin Huerter was effective, not only as a shooter (2-of-3), but as a driver. He had 15 total points, but added three assists and
Up next: The Bulls host Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs on Monday.
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Life is never easy for Isaac Okoro.
On Friday night, he was tasked with guarding Giannis Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee. In his first return to Cleveland in the regular season, he was assigned to Donovan Mitchell on Saturday.
“I just think that’s just what he does. He’s versatile enough that he can guard a lot of people,” Billy Donovan told reporters in Milwaukee after Friday’s loss to the Bucks.
Okoro will oftentimes give up size to players like Antetokounmpo, who got the better of him and the rest of the team for 41 points. He is perhaps better guarding down on players like Mitchell, who shot just 1-of-10 for three points in the first half.
Mitchell, of course, got loose in the second half, as star players do, finishing with 29 points on 41.7 percent shooting.
“I love guarding the best players in this league, but at the end of the day, too, it’s not just on me; it’s team defense at the end of the day, we all got to buy into it,” Okoro said. “It’s not always going to be just a one-on-one matchup. Yes, I might start off on him, but it takes everyone on the team to slow down these players.”
On the offensive side, Okoro had a season-high 19 points.
— Will Gottlieb
Turns out shooting a zillion percent on threes is a much better strategy than shooting negative eight percent. That’s how the Bulls built themselves a 19-point edge late in the second quarter, which they dominated. They also shot and made a zillion free throws in that quarter.
…Those numbers are estimated, but I think they’re fairly close to accurate.
Smith deserves some flowers. After some uneven performances through the first four games this season, he’s been much more consistent in the last few. If he can knock down his open looks and keep working this hard in the paint and on the glass, it’ll be much smoother sailing for the team — and its second unit — while they await the return of Zach Collins.
Smith was the highlight, but the Bulls’ bench as a whole tonight was great. 9-10 good players!
Another rough night for Matas Buzelis. Foul trouble is starting to be a bigger worry. He also had some bad turnovers, and didn’t shoot well. It’s one game, but he’s struggled in three of his past four. Curious to see how Donovan approaches his minutes moving forward. I vote for enduring growing pains while playing, rather than sitting him.
The Bulls lost the field goal attempts battle again. That was a problem against the Bucks, too. And something Donovan has been preaching about since Media Day. It has to be a combination of protecting the defensive glass and limiting turnovers to fix that problem.
— Matt Peck
Another fun game. Just like Milwaukee, it was physical and tough, but this one had more haymakers thrown by both teams. It’s a good feeling that the Bulls are in these tough games with the best teams in the conference and holding their own.
Great first half by the Bulls. 72 points!! The second quarter was HUGE. The bench really came in and established its dominance. They couldn’t miss from 3, and when they are getting turnovers and out in transition, oh boy.
Hunter was on it from the get-go. It’s good to see him fitting in nicely. I always thought he was a good player.
Buzelis didn’t have a great game. He has to be better. The Bulls needed his scoring and rim protection and he wasn’t great at either tonight.
Glad Giddey got back out there after that injury. It looked tough. He was not the same, but he played tough and with no excuses. Good to see him give it a go.
— Big Dave
