Bulls Game No. 43: Things just keep getting worse for the Bulls
156. Final. 94. 24. 108
It’s hard to believe that just 15 days ago, the Chicago Bulls had just won their 15th game in a 17-game span by beating the Houston Rockets, a current top-four seed in the dynamic Western Conference. Fast-forward to Monday night and the Bulls losing their sixth game in the last eight contests.
Live Feed
Betsided
In terms of trying to figure out what’s wrong with the Bulls during their recent two-week struggle, you cannot simply point on a simple issue.
“Pau’s pick-and-roll defense is awful!” “Stop shooting so many threes, Derrick!” “Kirk, make a shot for a change!”
Sure, those three subjects are frustrating at the moment.
Gasol’s defense against the high pick-and-rolls has been a sight for sore eyes all season. Although he’s been hot as of late, Rose’s three-point shooting has hovered around a 30 percent clip in his career. Hinrich’s overall shooting has been atrocious all season.
But, the simple fact still remains: The Chicago Bulls are not a good basketball team right now.
On Monday night in Cleveland, the Bulls were pounded once again on the glass against the Cavs — similar to their Halloween meeting — the effort was lacking and the offense was porous.
The Bulls missed 50 of their 80 attempts from the field and registered just 12 assists on their 30 made field goals.
Monday night in Cleveland can be summed up for the Bulls in six seconds:
GO HOME #BULLS. YOU'RE DRUNK. https://t.co/73e8XKmwji
— Nillz (@TheBullsShow) January 20, 2015
Yeah, it was that bad for the Bulls.
At least for Tony Snell, he passed to the open man in the corner. The problem about that was the open man was Cleveland head coach David Blatt.
After Monday’s showing, the Bulls showed their complete and utter frustration with their recent performances, starting with head coach Tom Thibodeau:
"“Right now, we’re not a multiple effort team. We have to decide when enough is enough.”-Tom Thibodeau on his team’s effort via Chicago Tribune’s K.C. Johnson"
Thibodeau continued to express his displeasure towards his team’s effort by saying, “Somehow the notion that it’s OK, it will be all right, it doesn’t work like that. No one’s coming here to save the day.”
The one person who was more displeased with his team’s effort?
None other than the team’s face: Derrick Rose.
“Everybody has to be on the same page, until then we’re going to continue to get our ass kicked,” Rose said in frustration after Monday’s game.
How frustrated was the youngest MVP in history? He was pissed off enough to drop a little vulgar wording into his post-game interviews.
Rose: "We've got to give a better effort. It seems like we're not even competing and it's f***ing irritating."
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) January 20, 2015
Those are some strong words from the face of the franchise.
More from Da Windy City
- Juan Soto appears headed to the Yankees which is not a big blow Chicago Cubs offseason
- 3 takeaways from Chicago Blackhawks shootout loss to Nashville
- Chicago Cubs in the middle of chaos that is Shohei Ohtani’s free agency
- The Chicago Cubs are on a roller coaster of emotions chasing Shohei Ohtani
- Chicago Bears quietly compiling list of head coaching candidates
Giving a constant effort is a major concern for the Bulls without question. Along with avoiding “playing down to the competition” on some nights, the main pieces for the Bulls are trending downward quickly.
After a blazing start to the season, Jimmy Butler seems gassed and less confident compared to the opening few months of the season.
Pau Gasol is really looking like a 34-year-old center, whose mileage count is increasing rapidly.
Add in ankle injuries to Mike Dunleavy, Jr. and Joakim Noah and the Bulls have numerous questions and hardly any answers.
Every team in the NBA goes through rough patches. You don’t play 82 games in seven months without having some kind of hiccups along the way.
Are the Bulls guaranteed to hit their stride quickly when Dunleavy and Noah return? No.
But, measuring the Bulls on what they’re doing now without a veteran who can stretch the floor with his shooting and last year’s defensive player of the year in the month of January seems like too much of a panic maneuver.
Next up for the Bulls (27-16): Home vs. San Antonio, 7:00 PM CT, TNT doubleheader.