NEWSLETTER
The Chicago Bulls are undefeated! Well, at least against the Detroit Pistons.
The Bulls picked up their second-straight road victory with a 119-107 win over the Pistons tonight. Now, 3-0 against the boys up north, the Bulls have moved one game out of a playoff spot (I know, I can’t believe I’m writing that sentence either).
A lot of games rest ahead, and the Bulls schedule only gets tougher, but the fact that this 12-19 team is only one game behind at the moment proves just how weak the bottom of this Eastern Conference really is. A lot of bad basketball, folks.
The Bulls get their 12th win in game number 31 this season. They didn't pick up win 12 last season until game 52.
— Jeff Mangurten (@JeffGurt) December 22, 2019
Still, talking anything playoffs feels absurd, so instead, I’d just recommend enjoying some of these recent wins. All things considered, the Bulls have shown some improvement as of late (whether you want them to or not). Through the month of December, they’re now 6-5 and have taken care of two “should beat” teams in a row. Plus, the scoring effort has been pretty nicely balanced thanks to Lauri Markkanen’s more consistent play and Tomas Satoransky’s aggressive approach.
Top scorers tonight:
LaVine – 33pts
White – 19pts
Satoransky – 16pts (8reb, 5ast)
Markkanen – 15pts (7reb, 2ast)
Carter Jr. 12pts (12reb)Obviously, you’d like to see Markkanen in that second spot. But, overall, that’s a nice and balanced stat sheet.
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) December 22, 2019
I’m not going to go as far as to say this team is starting to click, but Kris Dunn sure will.
Dunn: "We're starting to get the chemistry down a little more. Sato, he played his a– off, Lauri played his a– off, Wendell played his a– off, Zach played his a– off, it was a really good team win. Even the guys on the bench, Coby finally got his groove back."
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) December 22, 2019
Dunn is at least right about one thing, Coby White looked like his early-season self! The rookie knocked down five 3-pointers and scored 19 points in just 18 minutes of action.
Check it out:
https://twitter.com/chicagobulls/status/1208590482453995521?s=20
When the Bulls can get some buckets from Satoransky along with sparkplug minutes from White off the bench, this truly feels like a different team. Full disclosure, I didn’t get to watch the entirety of tonight’s game from start to finish as usual but even seeing these two contribute the way they did on the stat sheet makes an obvious difference.
Anyway, with the Magic and Hawks up next, the Bulls do have a legitimate opportunity to gain some momentum before heading into a tough three-game stretch against the Bucks, Jazz, and Celtics. By no means am I hanging my hat on anything; after all, mometum is as foreign of a concept to the Bulls as celebrating Christmas is to the Grinch (before his heart grew 3 sizes, of course). But, hey, we can all hope for a little holiday miracle!
Let’s all raise a glass of eggnog to the Bulls tonight and drink to (hopefully) improved basketball!
