Another Game, Another Bad Second Half: Bulls Lose to Pistons

This is becoming a disturbing trend.  The Bulls have a fine first half, but implode in the second.  Such was the case last week against Denver, Saturday against the Los Angeles Clippers and  in Monday's 109-95 loss to the Detroit Pistons during their final game at The Palace of Auburn Hills.  It tied the teams at 31-32, though they still hold onto the final two playoff spots in the East.

Even without Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo due to injuries, the Bulls initially appeared not to need them, outpacing Detroit on the break, 10-0, in the first quarter and leading by as much as 14 during that frame.  But the Pistons cut that lead to four by halftime and the contest was knotted after three quarters.  The final frame was all Detroit, which opened it with a 12-3 run and ultimately outscored the Bulls, 30-16.  That happens when your offense lasts longer and you take away easy chances on defense, though it helps when your opponent lets you score at will and can't respond.

Reggie Jackson was the Pistons' big player, scoring 24 of his 26 points in the second half and shooting a perfect 10 for 10 from the field during that time.  Jon Leuer scored 16 and 13 points apiece came from Marcus Morris and Tobias Harris.  Andre Drummond, whom the Bulls hacked for a bit in the third quarter (a strategy Will Perdue said changed the course of the game), had 12 points and eight rebounds.  Aron Baynes, whom Australian Olympic coach Luc Longley was in the building to check out, put on a decent showing of 12 and seven.

Jimmy Butler regrouped from his bad game against the Clippers to lead all scorers with 27 points and grab nine boards.  Robin Lopez was his usual reliable self in the pain, scoring 18.  Cameron Payne showed a glimpse of why Gar Forman acquired him, hitting a game-high four 3-pointers during a 14-point game.  Bobby Portis scored 10 and Jerian Grant dished a season-high eight assists.

It came down to who had more energy down the stretch and in this case, Detroit's 54-20 advantage on points in the paint over the final three quarters played a huge part.  Little resistance from the Bulls on one end and employing shooters who aren't consistent enough on the other can only mean disaster.  And too many turnovers, five of their 10 coming from Butler, gave Detroit more chances they were mostly happy to take advantage of.  Worst of all, they looked defeated in the face of adversity during the second half and you cannot do that in the NBA.

Every game is becoming more pivotal as the season approaches its final month.  The next one will be on the road Wednesday against the Orlando Magic.  The Bulls' win there on Jan. 24 was the last time I blogged right after a victory.  I'll be working this time however, so my next chance to feel good while writing after a game will have to wait a little longer, which just goes to show how elusive wins are becoming for a team that's still hovering around .500.

Nuggets' Hot Shooting Dooms Bulls

Like it's not enough the Bulls can't shoot 3-pointers?  They have to die on certain nights by that method posed by their opponent too?  That was the case in Tuesday's 125-107 loss to the Denver Nuggets.

The contest was even throughout the first half and the Bulls even led by three at the break.  It remained close until the final three minutes of the third quarter when the Nuggets closed the frame on a 13-4 run.  Things got exponentially worse in the fourth, which saw the Nuggets hit six 3-pointers and the Bulls apply very little defensive pressure.  By the end, the United Center faithful was showering the home team with some boos.

All five Denver starters scored in double figures, but none did more damage than Nikola Jokic, who achieved both his third triple-double of the year and the third triple-double against the Bulls this season:  19 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists.  Danilo Gallinari was the game's leading scorer with 22 points, followed closely by DePaul product Wilson Chandler's 20.  Gary Harris, one of the two picks the Bulls traded for the now-departed Doug McDermott during the 2014 draft, tied with Will Barton for 15.  Jamal Murray scored 14 and Jameer Nelson added 12.

Dwyane Wade was the Bulls' most productive player with team highs of 19 points and six assists.  Rajon Rondo also scored 19 and generally provided one of the few bright spots on the team, a rare feat for him.  New regular starter Bobby Portis had 12 and Robin Lopez finished just behind him with 10.  Meanwhile, Jimmy Butler was nowhere to be found, scoring just eight on 3 of 13 shooting.

Granted, there's not much the Bulls can do when the team they're facing is shooting 56.3 percent, but it exposes them as a team that doesn't match up well when an offensive explosion takes place on the other end.  It shows how poorly Gar Forman constructed this team before the season and so far, didn't do much better by acquiring Cameron Payne (2 for 10 from the field Tuesday).  Games like this expose holes in the team which could have been avoided with better planning.  If you're consistently coming up short on offense and can't prevent anything on defense, you deserve every boo that comes down upon you from your fans.

It doesn't get any easier with Thursday's nationally-televised tilt with the Golden State Warriors.  Maybe it gets a bit easier with Kevin Durant's injury on Tuesday, but the Splash Brothers are alive and well.  That TNT streak faces its biggest threat yet.  And my sister is going to the game, so a lot of nerve-wracking and unusual activity will be taking place on the West Side.

Deadline Trade Indictment of Bulls' Talent Development

I have to admit I didn't feel as upset about Thursday's trade as others.  That's not to say I was happy about it at all, though I tried to look at it from a basketball business perspective.  Taj Gibson's expiring contract meant avoiding the situation from last year in which Pau Gasol walked in free agency after the Bulls didn't deal him at the deadline.  As much as it pained John Paxson to tell arguably the most beloved Bull he was headed elsewhere, it was completely understandable as to why he and Gar Forman made the decision.

The biggest issue for me was not that the Bulls acquired three players in the middle of poor shooting seasons.  It's not that Doug McDermott ultimately cost five draft picks that turned into the haul they got yesterday.  It's not even that the trade made them no better for now or the future.  It comes down to the Bulls being unable to do anything with the talent they acquire.

Think about it.  Since the Bulls drafted Jimmy Butler in 2011, absolutely zero of first-round draft picks have made an impact and the first three members of that group are now elsewhere.  Marquis Teague is now playing in Russia at just 23, Tony Snell was dealt at the start of the year for Michael Carter-Williams and we now know where McDermott is.  Dealing Gibson means more minutes for the most recent draft picks:  Bobby Portis, Denzel Valentine and Paul Zipser.  We'll cut Valentine a little slack because of injuries in his rookie season, but just like the players before him, the former two have done little to inspire confidence they can turn into playmakers.

And that's what makes this whole situation disappointing.  For whatever reason, the Bulls cannot develop any young player who puts on their uniform these days.  I put a lot of faith in McDermott from the moment the Bulls acquired him and in less than three years, they've admitted yet again that a draft-day acquisition has not worked out under their watch.  Maybe I sound like less of a fan here, but I hope the Thunder turn McDermott into the player I thought he would as proof that the Bulls are the wrong destination for youngsters with raw skills.

The more I think about it, the more I believe the Bulls might have ruined Nikola Mirotic.  He's taken a significant step back this year and playing for an organization with such a poor track record of late surely hasn't helped.  It's difficult to believe he'll be serviceable anywhere when he becomes a restricted free agent this summer.  Had he broken into the NBA with a team like San Antonio, maybe we're talking about a different player.

Given all this, how are we to believe any young players who would come to the Bulls as part of a potential Jimmy Butler deal would thrive?  Paxson said in Thursday's press conference that the team would build with Butler and not around him.  Does that mean talks with Boston, a team connected to the Bulls during deadline rumors that holds Brooklyn's first-round draft pick, would part with that in order to get Butler this summer?  Even if that's the case, it's difficult to believe that player won't resemble Anthony Bennett more than Anthony Davis when all is said and done.

More presently, they say Cameron Payne has the biggest potential to grow, but will he really?  Like with any new Bulls acquisition, I'll hold my breath to a certain degree and say he just might do something significant in the years to come.  But how does a player whose shooting has taken a step back this year live up to his billing as a lottery pick with this team?  There's no clear answer right now and that's scary.

The biggest question to consider is how does Michael Reinsdorf feel about all this?  Reports earlier this week indicate he's more businessman than basketball mind.  The difference between him and late Blackhawks owner Bill Wirtz is he actually cares about the United Center seats filling up.  As long as people are buying tickets, and there are plenty of people willing to do that, he won't see a need to make significant changes.  And no real urgency to win a championship is what makes the Wirtz comparison legit as painful as it might be.

As much as we diehard Bulls fans don't like to see people drop off until the team becomes competitive again, we'll understand if you choose to just keep track of the Cubs and Hawks for the time being.  They've figured out the correct mold on how to build winning cultures.  The Bulls have either forgotten the blueprint for that or just don't care much.  Whatever the case, it's going to be a long wait before that all changes, even at the expense of what could have been promising careers.

Gibson, McDermott Traded to Thunder

I have to go to work soon, so I'll keep this brief.  The Bulls made a deal at the trade deadline that sent Taj Gibson, Doug McDermott and a 2018 second-round draft pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder.  In return, they received Cameron Payne, Joffrey Lauvergne and Anthony Morrow.

Trading Gibson and his expiring contract is no surprise.  McDermott probably needed a change of scenery after underachieving from the time he was drafted in 2014.  I'll miss the longest tenured Bull and a player I thought could have done so much more in Chicago.

As for the haul the Bulls got, none will really change the fortunes of the team, at least not in the short term.  Payne becomes the latest in a bunch of point guards auditioning for the long-term starting job.  If Nikola Mirotic or Bobby Portis don't get the regular start at power forward, figure Lauvergne will have a chance to earn some minutes.  Morrow, 31, gives Rajon Rondo a fellow veteran presence off the bench.

Payne has the most promise of the three given his age and the Bulls' need for a point guard, but the other two deserve a chance to shine as well.  At this point, every player who puts on a Bulls uniform is auditioning to be part of the next core to make a run at a championship, especially if they're young.  While that can be true of any new player at any time, the Bulls are at a crossroads right now.  They need to see who's worth their money both now and in the long run.

The question going forward for this season is will this knock the Bulls out of the playoff picture?  It might have been easier to say yes if the Eastern Conference wasn't as putrid as it's been this century.  But it's tough to succeed without a post player with the caliber of Gibson.  Then again, a time when you're trying to develop the future of your franchise should be more about just that and not necessarily the playoffs, extra revenue be damned (though that's something the Reinsdorfs probably don't want to hear).

Year of Frustration Keeps Going for Bulls: Midseason Report

People have become fed up with the Bulls.  A season filled with turmoil, inconsistency and no willingness to change is causing fans to tune out.  A Crain's Chicago Business report says TV ratings for games on Comcast SportsNet are down 28 percent compared to the final season average and the team is on pace for its lowest average viewership on the network in nearly a decade.  But everything is fine in Jerry Reinsdorf's world as long as he has Gar Forman and John Paxson back next year, which he will, even when players are calling each other out.

What was hyped to be the season of the 3 Alphas has turned into what many feared would when Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade were signed as sidekicks to Jimmy Butler.  Mediocrity is the name of the game and in January, the younger players felt the wrath of Butler and Wade, who were bashed by Rondo on Instagram in return.  For the second straight season, Fred Hoiberg has a roster that simply isn't built for his system.  And with Sacramento trading DeMarcus Cousins right after Sunday's All-Star Game, the Bulls will likely have to settle for the Kings' second-round pick in the next draft instead of their first-rounder.

Despite so many things going wrong, the Bulls find themselves in the seventh playoff spot in the East at 28-29, one game behind Indiana and one ahead of Detroit.  Amazing is that the East's ninth-place team, Milwaukee, is a half-game better than Denver, the eighth seed in the West.  So unless the Bulls decide to trade Jimmy Butler before Thursday's trade deadline, it would take a monumental amount of losing for them to miss the playoffs.

That's not what many people want to hear.  They see this as a team with no direction stuck in basketball hell and the only option is to tear it down and start over.  If GarPax goes that route, it's hard to imagine they'll consider it until the end of the season at the earliest.  As long as the team is connected to Jahlil Okafor trade rumors, it's wise to assume they won't be burning anything to the ground soon.

That's good news if you want to keep watching Butler in Chicago.  Once again, he's improved from a year ago, posting career highs in almost every relevant category.  The new All-Star voting system allowed him to make his first start in three selections.  He's proven he belongs among the NBA's elite and he won't slow down until he's stretched his ceiling as high as it can go, which is scary for opponents since it appears the sky's the limit for him.

While his string of 12 consecutive All-Star selections ended this year, the 35-year-old Wade has shown he has plenty left to contribute.  When he's not sitting out games to conserve whatever gas is left in his tank, he's creating his own plays and acting clutch in situations where Butler is unavailable.  Fortunately, he's been out there enough to wow fans and create memories befitting of a future Hall of Famer near the end of the years in which he can make a real difference.  As long as the team doesn't have to go through him all the time, his value will be maximized and the Bulls will gain from that.

The same can't be said for Rondo, who hasn't started since my girlfriend and I saw him begin a 5 1/2-game benching on Dec. 30 in Indiana.  His scoring average is at its lowest since his rookie year and he's well on his way to a career-low field goal percentage.  Although he still gets his assists each game, that average hasn't been so low since his second season.  The one good thing he's done is give the bench a veteran presence it didn't have before, which is beneficial to any team.

For the first time in his career, Taj Gibson has started every game he's played, missing only two all year.  His scoring and free-throw percentage are up significantly from last year and he still plays with the same intensity he has since coming in the league.  Hard work and not a lot of flash won't get you the accolades of your more talented colleagues, but it gives you respect and admiration from everybody.  Gibson has earned all of it and with his contract about to expire, it's sad to know this player who embodies what a Chicago Bull is might soon be out the door.

Robin Lopez, who took over Joakim Noah's starting spot at center, is the only Bull to play and start every game this season.  While he's had a bit of a down year, it's been easier to take thanks to lower expectations in the paint without Noah or Pau Gasol.  He's another example of doing all the right things with the game he has and there isn't as much pressure on him to create.  He won't ever achieve the results of his twin brother Brook, but he's a respectable NBA player the Bulls were lucky to acquire as the centerpiece of their haul in the Derrick Rose trade.

Since Rondo's benching, starting point guard duties have been split between Michael Carter-Williams and Jerian Grant.  Carter-Williams might be productive enough to be considered a viable NBA player in the long run, though the Bulls are his third team in four seasons.  Plus, he's averaging just 2.7 assists a game this year, by far the fewest in his career.  A restricted free agent after the season, he could stand to improve if he wants his next paycheck to be a good one.

Grant, in his second NBA season, has shown flashes of a player belonging in the rotation, particularly by shooting 34.8 percent from 3-point range, but he isn't proving himself enough in other areas.  If he wants to stick around the league, he needs to create more plays for himself and others.  He has room to grow at 24 though, so look for more out of him.

If you wanna talk disappointments, look no further than Doug McDermott and Nikola Mirotic.  While McDermott has gotten more playing time, increased his scoring and is the best 3-point shooter on the team, he hasn't lived up to the expectations of the lottery pick the Bulls drafted two first-round picks to get.  He's not the go-to player they expected, but he has one year left on his contract to figure it out, which can't be said for Mirotic, who's becoming a restricted free agent after a season in which he's regressed across the board.  He should be fortunate to collect an NBA paycheck right now because at this rate, he's going to find trouble landing elsewhere next season.


As for the rest of the team, Cristiano Felicio does enough with his minutes that he can get it done on both ends during that allotted time.  Bobby Portis is still finding his footing, though slowly making strides.  Paul Zipser has improved his post play by doing the little things, allowing him to get more minutes than fellow rookie Denzel Valentine, who needs to prove his production matches his basketball smarts at the NBA level and not just with the Windy City Bulls.  Isaiah Canaan barely sees action these days, which should tell you all Hoiberg thinks about his potential to thrive here.

Hoiberg could thrive with a roster suited to his demands, but he hasn't gotten one yet.  If he did, we might be talking about a more successful Bulls.  He's not blameless however.  Though he deserves a longer leash than GarPax, nothing about these Bulls indicates he can get the most out of his players like Tom Thibodeau did.

There's talent on this roster, but it's not enough to be considered a consistent winner.  The question GarPax has to consider so close to the deadline and beyond is whether the core players can be built around without triggering a total teardown, which Reinsdorf undoubtedly wants to avoid completely.  The chairman is 80 and might not have be happy if he knows he must wait for another championship for too long.  Then again, he wants to do it his way with GarPax, so he needs to pick a lane and choose it for the greater good of the franchise.

The second half begins Friday with a home meeting against the Phoenix Suns.  After the Bulls laid an egg against them on the Disney on Ice trip, one would think the universe would balance itself out.  Then again, that's another young and athletic team, the type the Bulls said they would be, but didn't and have ironically struggled against.  Funny how saying one thing and doing another works against you.

Timberwolves Take Full Advantage of Shorthanded Bulls

It's never a good sign when you go to a Bulls game knowing your team's chances are pretty much shot.  Even before my first trip to the Target Center, my spirits were dampened by the news that Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade would miss Sunday's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves with a bruised right heel and swollen right wrist respectively.  Nikola Mirotic had back spasms and Paul Zipser was dealing with both food poisoning and a sore ankle.  It should come as no surprise that the Bulls lost, 117-89.

Except for the first few possessions, the Bulls had no chance against a young, athletic team without their two playmakers.  The defense constantly broke down, especially in the paint, and the offense gave itself no chance with poor decision-making and inability to take care of the ball.  Tom Thibodeau had no sympathy for his former team.  His team played well from start to finish per his trademark style to sweep the season series.

Andrew Wiggins led all scorers with 27 points, driving on every opportunity he had and finishing more often than not.  Karl-Anthony Towns scored 22 and Gorgui Dieng had a double-double of 10 points and 13 rebounds, as did Ricky Rubio with 17 points and 11 assists.  Just for good measure, Nemanja Bjelica chipped in 16 points and Shabazz Muhammad added 12.

Bobby Portis and Doug McDermott tied for the Bulls lead with 16 points, and everything about that statement should depress you.  Michael Carter-Williams wasn't far behind with 12.  Robin Lopez and Rajon Rondo chipped in 10 apiece.  Obviously, there was nothing too exciting to come of that.

All you need to know about this game is the Bulls had a 4-on-1 break and completely screwed it up with a bad pass.  Only these Bulls could find a way to mess up such an easy opportunity.  Never mind that they were missing key personnel.  The fact that two points could be thrown away just like that is absolutely mind-boggling.

This game really exposed the Bulls as to how thin they are.  Take Butler and Wade out and you're left with a bunch of role players that have no clear direction.  Granted, they don't do well against young, athletic teams anyway, but when nobody's playing well enough to hide your collective flaws, everyone can see you for what you truly are.  It's further evidence on why a new direction not only needs to be considered, but is overdue.

Having finished the Disney on Ice trip at 2-4, the Bulls will return to the United Center on Tuesday against the Toronto Raptors.  They've won 10 straight in the series, though the Raptors dropping to the fourth seed in the East makes it a little less surprising.  Still, any series with a streak that long suggests the team on the losing end has a mental block that grows larger for each passing game.  Anything to get this team back on track would be much appreciated, even if it has to come at the expense of an opponent you've beat up on recently.

Bulls Stretched Out, Unable to Finish Wizards

No Jimmy Butler or Dwyane Wade for Tuesday's game against the Washington Wizards should have spelled disaster for the Bulls.  A team they have struggled with a lot these past few years would surely have their way with them.  Surprisingly, that trend was reversed for awhile.  But the Bulls couldn't keep it that way and lost, 101-99.

An even first quarter turned into a 10-point Bulls lead late and that ballooned to as much as 18 in the second.  But the sloppy Wizards were replaced by the cold and sloppy Bulls in the second half and it turned into a nail-biter down the stretch.  The Bulls held a two-point lead in the final minute, only to see John Wall tie it up and then, make the winning basket with five seconds left.  Doug McDermott went for the winning 3-pointer on the final possession and you can guess what happened on a night he shot 0 for 5 from beyond the arc.

Wall led all scorers with 26 points and all passers with 14 assists, which isn't a surprise given he was the only pure star playing in this game.  Bradley Beal and Markieff Morris each poured in 19, though Morris fouled out before he could play a key role in the waning minutes.  Rounding out the starting lineup were Otto Porter's 11 points and Marcin Gortat's 10.  You're probably sick of reading these names as a Bulls fan, but they'll continue to come up until the Bulls can figure them out.

Denzel Valentine came off the bench and had the game of his short NBA career, leading the Bulls with 19 points, including five 3-pointers.  Michael Carter-Willliams and Robin Lopez each hustled to score 14, Bobby Portis hit a trio of treys in a 13-point effort and Taj Gibson completed a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds.  Rajon Rondo, earning some of the minutes normally allotted to Wade and Butler, scored 12 and gave out six assists, which might be enough to come back into the rotation after missing the last five-and-a-half games.

While it was a better game than expected under the circumstances, the Bulls still couldn't close the deal.  It happens way too often:  they build a nice lead in the first half only to completely squander it in the second.  They earned a little bit of slack here with their two best players out, but as we've learned many times over the years, no NBA team is ever really out of a game.  That lesson showed itself yet again here.

The other cruel reminder this game served is that the Bulls have very streaky shooters.  They can get hot at just about any time, but when they really need to put an opponent away, the shots simply stop falling.  This is especially true from downtown, where they were 10 for 27.  The number of treys is impressive, but to paraphrase a certain White Sox announcer, tell me when you make those shots, not how many.

The Bulls will meet the newly found Derrick Rose and the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden for a nationally-televised tilt on Thursday.  Wade should return to the lineup and hopefully, Butler will too.  They'll hope to avenge the loss at the United Center when these teams first met.  They almost always play well on TNT though, so don't rule out a game in which they run the Knicks right out of the World's Most Famous Arena.

How Low The Bulls Go

I was working during the Bulls' back-to-back clunkers with the Milwaukee Bucks, but that doesn't mean I don't know how bad they were.  One of the things about my new job is I have to break during my first five hours.  On Thursday and Friday, I chose the start of the Bulls games to take them.  Despite only being able to watch the first quarter closely both times, they were all I needed to see.

I'll get to why in a second, but to add to all the drama, Nikola Mirotic missed Friday's mandatory walkthrough and could be fined.  This came one night after he received the first "DNP - Coach's Decision" of his career.  While he apologized, he was still confused as to why Bobby Portis had taken his spot in the rotation.  It's not like Portis has performed much better than Mirotic has of late, but with a qualifying offer on the table for next year, don't be shocked if Mirotic is done in Chicago after this year.

But the Mirotic chapter looks rather small compared to the bigger issues facing the Bulls.  After a nice start to the season, they are now 13-13, having lost six of their past eight games.  They are becoming the team many like me were in denial about during the summer:  mediocre and right in the middle of the NBA.  It shows how wrong and indecisive Gar Forman and John Paxson have been in their decision-making.

Yeah, about that.  Remember when Forman said the Bulls were going to get "younger" and "more athletic", only to stop just short of that when it came to the core?  Doing more talk than walk on the matter came back to haunt him this week when bot the Bucks AND Tom Thibodeau's Minnesota Timberwolves beat his team with the very makeup he said he would pursue.  Meanwhile, Forman's young guys, all on the bench, have made little to no progress nearly two months into the season.

I'll give a Christmas cookie to anyone who can tell me with a straight face one young player who not only has improved under Fred Hoiberg this year, but is a viable franchise building block for years to come.  Otherwise, you'll have to accept that Hoiberg is the anti-Thibodeau in that he doesn't maximize anybody's game.  Forman felt he could and decided to give him a five-year contract that's currently in year two. 

Christmas Eve has historically been an exit day for Bulls coaches just not living up to expectations.  Just ask Tim Floyd and Scott Skiles.  We are exactly one week from that day and there's speculation that in the event Hoiberg goes then or on any day, Forman becomes a scapegoat and goes with him.  It would be nice for this organization to hold people accountable and if the Bulls follow their history, it can happen sooner than later.

The worst thing about these past few games is that the Bulls have looked completely disinterested on both ends.  The offense is out of sync and not making smart decisions.  The defense has let anybody and everybody carve it up like Swiss cheese, showing little resistance in the half-court and letting itself get beat convincingly on the break.  The players can talk all they want about improving, communicating and all that, but until they actually show that they care by their actions, they'll get booed off the United Center court as they were Friday.

Many are calling this the low point of Hoiberg's tenure and it's hard to argue against it.  To get back above .500, they'll have to beat the Detroit Pistons on Monday.  Even if they win, the issues with the team's makeup will remain.  And they won't change until the organization decides to actually build a foundation we can all be proud to call our own.