After a tough loss to San Antonio on Friday night followed by a win against Portland on Sunday afternoon, the Chicago Bulls hosted the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night. Seems like the games that the Bulls have won these past few weeks were games they barely made it out alive. What should’ve been an easy win against Orlando proved to be a little difficult; I would say that the Magic seem to play a lot harder against Chicago, whether it’s because we are the best team in the East or because Wendell Carter Jr. lets his teammates know he wants to work extra hard. It was an offensive showcase but practically no defense being played, until the fourth quarter. I mean the first half score was 70-63, that’s pretty crazy. DeMar had yet another efficient outing along with Zach, Ayo showcased his point guard skills & clutch gene, Vooch had another double-double & Javonte Green brought his patented energy & bounce. Cole Anthony, Wendell Carter Jr., & rookie Franz Wagner led the way for Orlando. It was a fun back & forth game but the Bulls should’ve been able to wrap this one up early. With this win, Chicago did surpass their win total of last year with a whole second half of the season remaining.
The Bulls started off by giving Orlando a 5-0 lead which immediately led to a Billy Donovan timeout. If you’ve been watching Bulls games, Donovan seems to always be the first coach to utilize a timeout. Not sure what Donovan said but it worked, Zach came out aggressive & the team looked better, leading a 13-4 run. The Bulls, as usual, struggled against the PnR & screens, which led to WCJ scoring some easy buckets ultimately ending the first quarter will 11 points. After the Bulls went on their run, WCJ helped lead Orlando on their 12-4 run towards the end of the first. The Bulls defense didn’t look horrendous & the Magic did shoot at an unrealistic clip of 61% that quarter. The Bulls did show energy with five offensive rebounds & 11 second chance points. The Bulls led the way 34-33. Orlando came out with great energy in the second quarter, something the Bulls found difficult to match. The Wagner Brothers turn into like the Gasol Brothers when playing against the Bulls—just on a tear. DeMar did get his buckets in the quarter with 13 points & a big time throwdown all over Chuma Okeke. Ayo did a fantastic job running the point & even had two beautiful no look passes; Ayo is flourishing as a point guard & is constantly doing what the team needs him to do—defend & pass. The Bulls did have poor defense with bad defensive rotations & the switching was just abysmal. It was nice to see Donovan play Tyler Cook, an athletic forward who can guard the 1-5, which was important because the Magic were running with a nice group that could switch 1-4. Through the first half, Orlando attempted 50 field goals while Chicago attempted 51—just absurd. The Bulls led 70-63 heading into the break.
We know the Chicago Bulls can get buckets almost anytime they want, that’s a given; the Bulls need to show more consistent tenacity on the defensive end in order to truly compete. Without Lonzo & Caruso, it’s seeming to be a difficult time. The third quarter started off slow once again from the Bulls, both offensively & defensively. They played a little loose with the basketball committing four turnovers in the period. The Bulls struggled to get around screens & allowed the Magic to get what they want; Cole Anthony was excelling with the screens & scored eight in the quarter. Although we saw Caruso on the bench talking to the players, it didn’t really translate onto the floor with Orlando getting easy buckets inside & knocking down six deep balls. Even though the Bulls didn’t look like they wanted to play defense, the same could’ve been said for Orlando. The Bulls continued to play slightly better with a nine-point lead heading into the final frame. The Bulls looked like they were ready to put the game away in the beginning of the quarter. They moved the ball well & were putting effort on the boards. Then, as usual, they got sloppy—which then carried over to the defensive side. They allowed a 10-0 run by the Magic to tie the game. Suddenly, the Bulls no longer looked in control. It was a back & forth couple minutes where baskets were being traded—once again, no defense. As the Bulls have instilled fear into their fans, I thought we might end up choking. That’s when the Bulls went on a 9-0 run to end the game thanks to DeMar & Ayo. DeMar had a couple midrange jumpers, his only points of the fourth quarter, followed by a midrange jumper & a clutch three by Ayo to ice the game. Ayo played with confidence at the end & helped put the game away. He truly is blossoming into a young star & the biggest steal of the draft. The Bulls win 126-115.
The Chicago Bulls take on the Toronto Raptors tonight in an East showdown. Nearly choking a lead to them just last week, the Bulls better come with energy. With Toronto beating Miami twice & Philly once this past week, they allowed the Bulls to take atop the East again. Trent Jr., is playing out of his mind though & will be test while VanVleet has returned & will provide them with offense we didn’t see last week. Lastly, Zach LaVine is on the injury report as questionable tonight with back spasms. I expect the Bulls to struggle against the lengthier Raptors team & the adjustments Coach Nick Nurse made in the prior game. Hopefully the Bulls can counter it & continue to lead the East.
