NEWSLETTER
Yes, I’m going to start this by bringing up the trade deadline.
The Chicago Bulls truly sat in a room and decided that adding 3-point shooting to this roster for a playoff run wasn’t necessary. After making that decision, the Bulls went on to go 17-93 from distance over the next 14 quarters. They started the first half against the Orlando Magic 0-11, helping fuel their 49-44 deficit heading into the locker room.
While I wouldn’t necessarily knock this team for coming out with a lack of urgency, the execution simply wasn’t there. Not only did they continue to shoot ice-cold from downtown, but they turned the ball over nine times in the first half after turning it over a season-high 23 times against the Cavaliers.
The second half ended up being nothing more than the same. The Bulls finished the night with an absurd 2-21 performance from downtown and added seven more turnovers to the board. As a team, they shot 40.7 percent from the field with Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan going a combined 17-40 from the field.
As the game went on the Bulls looked prime to lose their second game to the rebuilding Magic this season, any ounce of effort dwindled away. Dalen Terry and his fellow youngsters were the only ones to show really genuine competitive energy. Honestly, if the Bulls knew what was good for them, they would prioritize these players over the rest of the season. These are valuable developmental games, but chances are they will continue to let this broken trio work zero magic (pun intended).
The offseason can’t come fast enough.
Check out the full box score here.
