NEWSLETTER
Hey, whaddya know, a good win!
I got to give it to the Bulls, that was one of their better all-around performance of 2023. The “Big 3,” in particular, showed up in the way this team expects them to. Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic combined for 86 points, all shooting over 50 percent from the field.
LaVine was the first one to find his rhythm. As Damian Lillard went on to torch a Caruso-less backcourt, LaVine did everything in his power to match each of his buckets. Lillard dropped 28 points in the first half while LaVine ended with 21. Portland went on to take the lead into the locker room, also using a 15-16 showing from the free throw line to take control of the first two quarters.
But the Bulls didn’t let the wheels fall off despite eventually falling down by as much as 17. They ended up stringing together an impressive 22-4 run to claim the 85-84 advantage, ultimately outscoring Portland 33-17 in the 3rd quarter.
The momentum was fully on their side from there. The Bulls ended up putting together another 12-0 run in the 4th quarter thanks to some truly unselfish basketball. They finished the game with 32 assists on 48-made field goals, and LaVine ended the night with 36 points, 5 assists, and 6 rebounds in a +27 performance.
Nobody in the supporting cast had an especially eye-popping night, but they all contributed to this win. Drummond provided a nice change of pace in his 13 minutes of action, Dragic threw out 7 dimes, Dosunmu knocked down three shots from downtown, and Coby White had another double-digit performance off the bench.
So, yeah, the All-Stars played like All-Stars and the supporting cast played like a supporting cast. This is what a good team is supposed to look like, and I wish I could say that I expect this version of the Bulls to show up moving forward.
Check out the full box score here.
