It’s Friday, so let’s give everyone some hope.
Keep in mind the Eastern Conference is very top-heavy. Several teams are fighting for scraps at the bottom of the pack, and if the Bulls won last night, they could have actually moved into the No. 7 slot. Obviously, we’re still extremely early into the season, but finding a way back into the conversation isn’t all that hard for any of these teams right now.
The former-Bulls great is finally back in the NBA! The Portland Trailblazers announced last night why
Anthony has been out of the league for almost a year, and while it appeared his time in the NBA might be done, the Trailblazers’ 4-8 start to the season opened a new door. I’m sure with all the great memories we have with him in Chicago, it’ll be tough for many Bulls’ fans to see him on another team. Melo will return to Chicago on November 25th when the Bulls take on the Blazers. Tribute vid?
Coby White’s just doing Coby White things.
White has scored in double-digits his last five games, and three of those performances were 18-point outings or better. Over these last five games, White is averaging 18.2 points with 2.4 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game. I think we’ll all gladly take that. His three-point shooting has been significantly better over these last two games, shooting 54 percent from behind the arc. I fully expect another scoring drought from White sometime in the near future (he’s a rookie after all), but you have to be excited about what we’ve seen thus far. The Bulls got themselves a good one, folks.
Yeah, this is kind of absurd. The Bulls had no way to control the Bucks in the paint, especially with Wendell Carter Jr. in foul trouble. Lauri Markkanen has been absolutely no help defending the basket, even with his “added weight” this offseason. If Carter Jr. isn’t in the game, this team is going to be painfully exposed in the paint every time.
Those free throw attempts and points in the paint are super frustrating, but for what it’s worth, the Bulls had an “okay” game. The team covered the spread and didn’t look like a complete and utter embarrassment, which sadly, is a small victory. Also, we finally saw this offense knock down the three-pointer (finished 41.9 percent from downtown)!
If the Bulls could get some rebounding help and establish a more consistent rim-protecting presence (*AHEM* maybe some Daniel Gafford?), while simultaneously finding their shot, it feels like they might be able to pull themselves out of the gutter. Right? Maybe? Hopefully? I don’t know.
Jim Boylen went with a very bizarre four-guard lineup to finish out last night’s game. With Carter Jr. fouled out and Lauri Markkanen in foul trouble, the head opted for Ryan Arcidiacono on Giannis. No, that’s not a lie.
NBC Sports Chicago’s K.C. Johnson talks a little bit more about Boylen’s decision-making, along with Lauri Markkanen’s continued struggles in his postgame article. While, yes, it was fun to see Arcidiacono try and guard Giannis, it isn’t something we should see. The Bulls had players like Thaddeus Young and Chandler Hutchison available at the end of the game, and Boylen opted to go small. To this lineup’s credit, they still managed to hang around, but it’s fair to wonder whether at least one bigger presence helps pull down a key rebound or stop an easy Bucks bucket.
Eric Bledsoe went for a dunk at the final buzzer even though the Bucks had the game in the bag. Young specifically had some problems with it after the game, and I can’t blame him. It’s just one of those unspoken basketball rules. According to Johnson, the Bucks did have a brief discussion about it after the game in the locker room, and Bledsoe’s teammate, Kyle Korver, wasn’t the biggest fan of it either.
Use this gif in whichever way you see fits.
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