Lather, rinse, repeat.
Games where the Bulls held a double-digit lead and lost:
Oct. 23 – 10-point lead
Oct. 28 – 18-point lead.
Oct. 30 – 10-point lead.
Nov. 5 – 19-point lead.
Led at some point in fourth-quarter in all games.
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) November 6, 2019
Tonight’s first half provided the most promising play of the Bulls’ young season, as a revised defensive strategy (revolved more around switching) helped create a 19-point advantage over the Lakers. The Bulls accompanied that effort by competently knocking down threes, grabbing defensive boards, and playing with a newfound, team-wide energy. It felt like a dream.
The Bulls were up 65-48 on the title-contending Los Angeles Lakers. THIS was the team on which we were sold all offseason. This was going to be the win that turned it all around. This was … and then, we woke up.
In the second-half of the game, Jim Boylen ran with his bench players way too long (and for dumb reasons we’ll get into tomorrow), while watching his lead slip slowly, but surely away. Even still, the Bulls headed into the 4th quarter with a fairly significant lead … but we all knew what was about to happen:
Well. Here the #Bulls are with another fourth quarter lead to protect.
I’m about as confident as watching the #Bears line up for a game-winning field goal or Craig Kimbrel come out to save a game for the #Cubs
— Michael Cerami (@Michael_Cerami) November 6, 2019
And then it did:
Lakers have outscored the Bulls 24-4 in the 4th quarter. The bench has all 24 Laker points.
— Jeff Mangurten (@JeffGurt) November 6, 2019
The problem here isn’t the 118-112 loss to the Lakers – heck, we chalked tonight up as an L before the game even started. Instead, it’s how the Bulls continue to show exactly no progress where and when it matters most. And if they don’t start playing up to their abilities – especially late in the game – it’s going to become a thing. And as soon as that happens, the narrative will take hold, the Bulls will fear it, and other teams will count on it. Once it gets that far, it’s all over.
Sure, we could talk about how the Bulls shot 50.6 percent from the field and 43.8 percent from downtown. And we can point out the improved, aggressive effort rebounding the basketball. We can even talk about the many more positive signs from the first-half, but if the Bulls don’t win games, it’s all for nothing. They don’t deserve it yet. Not with the way they’ve been losing.
the most important thing is to not feel feelings
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) November 6, 2019
We’ll have more tomorrow.
Michael Cerami contributed to this post.