The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: Week 3

THE GOOD:

Patrick Williams. A lot of Bulls fans have high expectations for PWill but they may be too high. You must remember that although it’s his third season, it’s essentially his second season in the league due to missing the majority of last year with a broken wrist. His season started off slow & everyone is always quick to notate the bad however, both he & his game have looked a little different recently. He is playing far more aggressively on both sides of the floor & looks a little more comfortable. Yes, he made some major mistakes against Boston & also missed that three that could have tied the game but he’s still a young player & hasn’t really been put in those types of situations. I personally really like the way he’s come out, especially with the injuries & his role sort of increasing. Let’s see if he can keep building on some of this momentum.

Bench. Honestly, this is basically another Dragic piece. Dragic is playing almost flawless basketball out there with smart decisions, smart shots & poise. The bench did play amazing against the Hornets on Wednesday, which was needed due to the game being on the second leg of a back-to-back. Javonte & Dragic are always coming in ready to play & propel that second unit. In just 18 minutes a game, Dragic is averaging almost ten points on 44/52/71 percent splits—just outstanding. It’s nice to see the Bulls having some talented depth, especially compared to last year.

Dalen Terry. The rookie. He finally got some real playing time yesterday against the Raptors & he really made it count. I was excited when we drafted the kid, especially with the way the league is being played; he’s got length, can guard multiple positions & has tons of energy—basically a taller Javonte Green. In ten minutes, Terry finished with four points, a block, steal, assist & rebound. He played with a lot of energy & looked comfortable out there. Hopefully we get to see more development & more playing time out of him.

THE BAD:

Injuries. This will probably be something I talk about almost weekly. Drummond’s presence is being missed far more than anyone had probably imagined. The Bulls struggle rebounding & it was particularly shown against the lengthy Raptors team. We miss the offensive spark, although inconsistent, of Coby White as well. Zach playing some back-to-back games & missing others will mess with the team, but it is probably something they’ll just have to figure out & work around.

Adjustments. Okay, I’ve always had mixed opinions about Billy Donovan, especially because I’ve always found his rotations horrendous. He got outcoached by Nick Nurse big time last night by not making adjustments to combat both the length that was on the floor & the double team/trap that was coming at DeMar. The lineups tend to struggle & he’ll keep them on the floor letting the game slip away. I would like to see him make more adjustments in the game—not the game after.

THE UGLY:

Three-point fouls. Not much to say about this. The Bulls always seem to foul three-point shooters multiple times in a game; it’s just a terrible & unnecessary mistake. Just contest the shot & move on with the game. Sigh.

WEEK 4 PREDICTIONS:

Raptors vs. Bulls- W

Pelicans vs. Bulls- L

Nuggets vs. Bulls- W