NEWSLETTER
I have like 10 tabs open with Jordans I’d like to buy … someone should stop me.
• Let’s check-in on how the lack of home-court advantage is impacting the bubble:
It's 9-2 over the last two days and actually 13-6 overall going into today for the "home teams" in the smallest (but funnest kind) of sample sizes
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) August 3, 2020
• Wow, whaddya know. We should probably wait for a larger sample size of games before we cast any real judgment, but I’d still say I’m semi-surprised. Is the atmosphere with virtual fans and crowd noise actually having some kind of impact on the game? As firm of a believer as I am in home-court advantage and momentum, I want to say no … but these numbers might soon say otherwise. I mean, I suppose all those screens hovering around the court with the opposing team’s logo could have some influence on the player’s psyche. It’s something silly to keep an eye on.
• Coming soon to a city near you … the playoffs!
Zach LaVine also said on Facebook Gaming that he cares more about winning than his individual stats.
LaVine: "To be honest with you I just want to win some games. Be in the playoffs. Play some meaningful games. That's all that matters man is winning. Got to prove that next."
— Daniel Greenberg (@ChiSportUpdates) August 3, 2020
• I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound like a guy who’s done with Chicago just yet. LaVine knows he has little to prove when it comes to his on-court capabilities. Sure, his defense and efficiency can take a step in the right direction, but fixing those two things will not provide him with the level of respect he desires. At the end of the day, it all comes down the win-loss column, and until he either (1) wins with the Bulls or (2) wins elsewhere, LaVine isn’t going to be viewed the same as many of his top-10 scoring peers.
• Also, asking an NBA player on a crappy team whether or not they can make the playoffs next season is the sports question equivalent to “do these pants make me look fat?” Just like how a good significant other would never answer yes, an NBA player would never flat-out answer no. In other words, LaVine (or any player on the Bulls, for that matter) isn’t going to ever say the Bulls are screwed next season. Now, one part of me thinks he believes that, and another part of me thinks he’s incredibly worried about another losing season filled with Jim Boylen. Me too, pal. Me too.
• Regardless, out of the Delete Eight teams, I still think the Bulls have arguably the second-best shot at making the playoffs next season (the Golden State Warriors being the first). When we eventually look ahead to the 2020-21 season, NBA analysts will probably look at the Bulls very similar to how they did this past offseason. With full health, another year of development, and a changed offensive system, Chicago should easily fight for the No. 8 seed in a weak Eastern Conference.
• The difference between before last season and before this season, however, is that the Jim Boylen situation has gotten 1,000,000x worse. If anything can hurt the Bulls 2020 playoff expectations, it would be the fact that Boylen sticks around (both directly in terms of his fundamental ethos as a head coach, and indirectly as a distraction). Even if all the talent takes a step in the right direction, nothing about this season has me currently believing the team can overcome the obstacles he puts in place. The sheer fact he can’t motivate this team – in my opinion – is reason enough to believe he can single-handedly keep them from a playoff appearance. A talented team is nothing if they aren’t motivated to win.
• To reflect on the horrors of this season, The Athletic’s Darnell Mayberry wrote this season recap. Check it out.
• Cameron Payne is hitting go-ahead shots!? He’s a changed man!
Cam Payne hitting 2 straight 3’s to send Phoenix in front of Dallas. Yes, Bulls’ fans, he’s back in the league!
— Mark Schanowski (@MarkSchanowski) August 3, 2020
• Nope. Nevermind.
Tired: Putting the defender on skates
Wired: Putting yourself on skates
pic.twitter.com/XFbJEMdDUc— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) August 3, 2020
• [Hello Darkness, my old friend …]
me, alone in my room at 2 am, thinking about how the Bulls could have gone to the NBA Finals in 2015 if David Blatt had gotten a technical for calling a timeout with no timeouts left, meaning Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler never leave Chicago and Boylen never becomes head coach pic.twitter.com/xjMzdplcGB
— Artūras Karnišovas Fan Club (@arturasfanclub) August 2, 2020
• Boylen didn’t receive any votes!?
ESPN Sources: Milwaukee’s Mike Budenholzer and Oklahoma City’s Billy Donovan voted the @NBA_Coaches 2020 co-coaches of the year. Story: https://t.co/gHhKgg3dM5
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 3, 2020
