NEWSLETTER
Thanks to the Philadelphia 76ers, the Chicago Bulls have their first losing streak of the new era. Ugh.
The team’s 103-98 loss on Wednesday night in Philly and their 114-105 loss at home on Saturday both exposed many of the same problems: They have no one who can stop Joel Embiid (few teams do), Nikola Vucevic can not throw a rock into the ocean, Coby White has a huge role on this team, and the Bulls still have plenty of room to grow.
Now, what the two losses didn’t expose is the need to sell all Bulls stock.
Last night’s loss is the first time we were reminded how damaging the GarPax era was to the Bulls fan’s psyche. While I think there are a number of concerns that need to be addressed, I also think that is the case for practically every team around the league. After all, we are only NINE games into the season, and the Chicago Bulls are still off to a 6-3 start that has them sitting 3rd in the Eastern Conference. Considering all the crap we have dealt with for the past handful of seasons, I’m still comfortable taking the half-glass-full approach with this team.
• Let’s start things off with two positives from last night’s game: Turnovers and offensive rebounds. The Bulls were able to dominate the turnover battle against a 76ers team that has averaged the 7th-fewest cough-ups per game. Philly committed 14 turnovers and handed Chicago 23 points off those turnovers. Meanwhile, the Bulls just turned the ball over nine times, only allowing the 76ers to add 3 points. The second area that stood out was the team’s activity on the offensive glass. Sitting 29th in OREBs per game, the Bulls grabbed 18 boards while giving the 76ers just 6. It was the second-straight game (and only third time this season) the Bulls held the advantage in that category, and a big reason why is the increase in minutes for Tony Bradley. The backup big grabbed 5 OREBs last night, only further stressing the need for him in the rotation.
• Ok, so I guess now would be the time to address Nikola Vucevic. The All-Star failed to break out of his slump last night with a 5-16 effort from the floor and only 11 points. The Bulls were clearly adamant about getting him the ball early, as he chucked up seven shots in the opening frame, hitting just two. While it was encouraging to see him get more opportunities than his seven-shot, 4-point outing on Thursday, it was far from encouraging to see him clank shots from all over the floor (particularly behind the arc where he went 1-7). He is now shooting a dismal 38.0 percent from the field and 25.6 percent from downtown.
• No one is denying that the longer this cold stretch continues the more concerning the full-season outlook for the Bulls becomes. However, at the same time, I’m still not ready to smash the panic button. The guy is adjusting to a role he has never seen before. Moving from being the primary scorer to the third option can be quite difficult, especially for a big man who no longer has the offense catered to play through the post. Look, there is no way for me to make the numbers look better right now. The dude has stunk it up offensively (well, if we don’t consider his passing and screen-setting), and there will have to be more drastic adjustments made if he doesn’t figure it out soon. With that said, I’m going to take the path of his teammates and trust that a player as talented as Vucevic can figure it out.
“I think Vooch is fine,” LaVine told reporters after the game. “We’re going to continue to get him the ball and show trust with that. He is an incredible player, and obviously everyone goes through ups and downs throughout the year. He’s obviously in a little bit of a slump right now and wants to play better. I think he will be the first to tell you that. But we trust him, we’re going to find him, and we’re going to fight through this.”
• One more immediate adjustment we could see the Bulls make is swapping Javonte Green for Derrick Jones Jr. in the starting lineup. Jones finished last night with 12 points, 3 offensive rebounds, and 1 block. Don’t get me wrong, I like the buy-in we have seen from Green in his dirty work role with the starters, but I also wonder if Jones can do the same thing while also offering some much-needed size in the frontcourt. With a seven-foot wingspan and ridiculous leaping ability, his rim-protecting capabilities have been on full display (second on the team in blocks despite appearing in only five games thus far). He also showed how dangerous he can be as a slasher/cutter last night, forcing his way to the line for a 6-6 performance from the FT line. In general, I just can’t help but wonder if he can be a critical part of helping this Bulls team get off to a more energetic start. Worth a shot, right?
“Just like coach said, once we get down we decide to get more physical. We decide to run faster and harder down the floor to get easier buckets, I just feel like we got to start from the beginning,” Jones said after the game. “As soon as the clock start, we got to get going and have to have the gameplay of what we want to do. Go out there and run the floor as hard as we can, get easy buckets, knock down open 3s when we get them.
• Furkan Korkmaz turns into the third Curry brother whenever he plays the Bulls. He helped the 76ers bench outscore the Bulls’ bench 40-27. Ew.
Furkan Korkmaz has made 6+ 3-pointers in a game five times in his NBA career. Three of those are against the Bulls
— Rob Schaefer (@rob_schaef) November 7, 2021
• Another positive: Zach LaVine is still a bucket.
Another 30 piece for Zach LaVine
32 points | 12-of-26 shooting | 9 rebs pic.twitter.com/ghLXU6WcPh
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) November 7, 2021
• Love the sportsmanship, but I’m going to need Embiid to keep better control of his limbs.
Embiid telling DeRozan & LaVine he didn't mean to throw a punch at Lonzo. Then Embiid & Zo share a hug.pic.twitter.com/gWrrfGWtFQ
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) November 7, 2021
• Despite the losses… remember this is still accurate!
No lie, the bulls are fun to watch!!
— Allen Robinson II (@AllenRobinson) November 7, 2021
• Guess whose back!?
The arrow is pointing up for David Montgomery, who can return to action as soon as Monday’s game vs. the Steelers. https://t.co/praX2ZTqvZ
— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) November 7, 2021
• It was only a matter of time.
The Jeremy Colliton Era Ends, and Other Blackhawks Bullets https://t.co/3um7n10Bho
— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) November 7, 2021
