After pulling out a win over the Nets Saturday, some might have finally been convinced the Bulls can stick with above-average teams in the NBA. While that certainly may be the case, it wasn't shown Monday when they took on the Memphis Grizzlies in Tennessee. To the tune of 80-71, the Bulls have now lost seven of eight when visiting the town Derrick Rose called home for a year.
It appeared things would run smoothly on this night as the club got hot in the first quarter and the Grizzlies shot poorly. Then, Lionel Hollins sent in his bench and everything changed. Led by the hot shooting of Wayne Ellington, who finished the night with 11 points, Memphis made all five three-point attempts in the first half. Ellington knocked down three of those tonight. Mike Conley Jr. shot 50 percent from the field and led all scorers with 17 points. Rudy Gay and Zach Randolph, the best known members of the Grizzlies' roster, had respective point totals of 12 and 10. Randolph achieved a double-double with 15 rebounds and Marc Gasol grabbed 11 boards. It was an all-around effort that showed why this team is challenging San Antonio for first in the Southwest.
Don't let Carlos Boozer's 16-point, 13-rebound performance fool you. Both of those numbers should have been much higher. Tonight was the latest reason why some people can't see him amnestied soon enough. While the Grizzlies' defense may have simply overwhelmed him, it was still very discouraging to see close shots not falling and rebounds he should have pounced on taken away. He may be averaging close to a double-double per game, but those stats are often bloated. You have to actually watch him play to know he's not worth his contract. Of course, there's likely the thought in the back of his mind that he should improve immensely if he ever wants to make this kind of money again. When you have the roster the Bulls do, you can't afford this liability. Hoping Boozer plays up to his contract may be wishful thinking by now, but perhaps that time is coming. Probably not, but we can still hope.
Marco Belinelli had 13 points, but shot just 4-of-12. Luol Deng was worse, tallying just 11 on 4-of-17 shooting. His point total matched that of Joakim Noah's. The toughest shooting came from Kirk Hinrich, who scored just four points and missed all four attempts from beyond the arc. I know he doesn't have the best range, but how much does he actually have left? That's something to watch out for.
Surprisingly, the Bulls shot just 0.2 percent worse than the Grizzlies at 37.3. Still, other than that being a season low, there were at least three reasons the problem was more glaring than that for the home team. Memphis grabbed 18 offensive rebounds, seven of which came from Randolph. Take those away and the Grizzlies have just one more than the Bulls as opposed to eight.
Strangely, the Bulls won the turnover battle 16-19. You couldn't tell by watching though. The Grizzlies smothered the Bulls with their defense, which was its own problem. More glaring was that a lot of bad passes were made and trouble holding onto the ball was imminent. Hollins has really emphasized defense with his team, so if you don't play smart, they'll make you pay. The Bulls will have to remember that when the clubs meet again on January 19. It's something to remember when you play teams with this style.
Finally, the bench was badly outplayed. The Grizzlies have five substitutes come in while Tom Thibodeau called upon only three. Consequently, the final score for the second unit was 31-16. A lack of depth and injuries hurt in games like this. When you're without Rip Hamilton, your offense can suffer. It will be a relief to have him back in the lineup whenever that time comes. In the meantime, the Bulls will have to make do with who they have.
It'll be a quick turnaround as the Bulls return home to play the Boston Celtics tomorrow night. The game is at the United Center and the Celtics have their own problems right now. A perfect opportunity to return to the win column. Whether the offense shows up will be a question. Just reach 80 points and you'll have a shot at winning. It's practically Winning in the NBA 101.
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