Six Nuggets scored in double figures, led by third-year forward Jordan Hamilton's 17 points and 6-of-12 shooting from the field. Hamilton came into tonight averaging 8.5 points in this young season and he did a good portion of the damage? How? I can buy that J.J. Hickson had a double-double of 12 points, 11 rebounds. I believe J.J. Hickson came close with a line of 14 and 9. Heck, I can even let Nate Robinson's 11 points slide. But if you want to be considered one of the top team's in the East, you have to let Ty Lawson and his seven assists beat you, not allow Jordan Hamilton to have one of the best games of his young career.
Four of the five Bulls starters reached double-digits. Derrick Rose headed that group with 19 and started to look more like the player of old and the preseason with impressive drives to the basket. Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah each achieved respective double-doubles of 15-11 and 11-12. Mike Dunleavy looked all right with 15 points of its own. Despite Luol Deng leading all players with 13 boards, he shot just 3-of-18 from the floor. If he even gets close to his season scoring average of 16.9, we might be talking about a different outcome. It was a very rough game for the two-time All-Star.
Either the offense had an off night or they still haven't gotten into a consistent rhythm. Granted, that five-game winning streak was due to end at some point, but wouldn't you rather it happen because the team was outmuscled? Instead, the Bulls looked like a middleweight battling a light heavyweight. Despite some good movement and hustle, they couldn't thrive in the results-only environment that is a basketball game. It doesn't matter what level these players are playing at. This performance wouldn't fly with a high school freshman B squad.
It's true the Bulls' bench hasn't been that overwhelming to begin the year, but if there ever was a wakeup call that the third-generation Bench Mob needed to respond to, this was it. The Nuggets' reserves outscored the Bulls' 49-21. Yes, that unit is down a man in the short-term thanks to Butler's injury, but this better not be a sign that they can afford less to be inserted into the starting lineup than last year. Rose needs the proper support or there will be another playoff exit at the hands of Miami, if not sooner. You need the bench's leading scorer to have more than nine points (Taj Gibson, who was whistled for two technicals and subsequently ejected).
The altitude in the Mile High City might have something to do with it, but the fact that the Bulls are 1-13 there in the post-Jordan era is definitely frustrating. They seemed ready to play, but few shots fell when they needed to, resulting in tonight's conclusion. It just had to happen to begin the circus trip too. Hopefully, this won't set a tone for the rest of the month.
The Bulls somehow must bounce back from this mess tomorrow night against the Portland Trail Blazers, who have surprised everyone with a 10-2 start. That doesn't give them much time to correct everything that went wrong in Denver. They'll need to build momentum and preferably win because the Los Angeles Clippers will be up Sunday afternoon. If they can tame Indiana, they can handle Portland, or so we hope.
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