Monday was an eventful night for me at the United Center. I got to shake Bill Wennington's hand before the game against the Portland Trail Blazers. Jimmy Butler hit a 3-pointer as time expired. Too bad it wasn't a one-possession contest then because otherwise, the Bulls might not have lost 112-110.
The teams took turns being scoring the most points in every other quarter and their respective play showed. The Blazers just happened to do it in the even quarters. While a lot of the game's direction had to do with the stars on both teams living up to expectations and sloppy defense on both ends, it came down to who had the better supporting cast. With Rajon Rondo serving a one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team, Portland had the slightly more Oscar-worthy performance and deserved the win.
Damian Lillard did the most damage for the Blazers by scoring 30 points, including 11 in the final 5:55. CJ McCollum, Lillard's backcourt mate, was close behind with 24. Allen Crabbe came off the bench to pour in 17. It was certainly unexpected from a player averaging 9.2 points per game, but also turned out to be necessary for the visitors.
In my first game seeing Dwyane Wade in person since his rookie year, he didn't disappoint, leading all scorers with 34 points. Butler, taking more a backseat to the future Hall of Famer in this game, had an impressive 26. Robin Lopez camped down low to grab 14 rebounds. While Nikola Mirotic scored 18 off the bench, he also had to play hero ball in several situations and most of the time, he was unsuccessful.
I've been high on Jerian Grant this season, especially after he lit up the Blazers on the circus trip, but he and Isaiah Canaan were major disappointments while filling in for Rondo. They combined to shoot 5 for 18 and record a plus/minus of -4. It's clear why Rondo usually runs the offense. Maybe the offense doesn't flow as well with him out there, but he can still put up stats, which in some cases, makes all the difference.
The Bulls don't have quick guards as talented as the Blazers and when you take out a veteran like Rondo, that only hurts. A defense that qualifies as average this season won't be seen as that for long if it doesn't limit easy field goals. The bleeding stopped for a little bit when Butler defended Lillard to start the second half, but that effectiveness ended when Evan Turner started converting on opportunities during a 10-point night. While scoring might be up for the Bulls this year, they'll lose to equal or superior offensive teams more often if they can't take away lanes or shut their stars down.
The schedule dictates the Bulls, now losers of three of four, have to rebound quickly as they travel to Auburn Hills, Michigan for a Tuesday game against the Detroit Pistons. Will Wade be as effective in the second game of a back-to-back? Can the defense do a better job guarding Kentavious Caldwell-Pope up top than Lillard on Monday? They have no choice, but the beauty of the NBA is that redemption can come quickly at times.
No comments:
Post a Comment