Bulls drop road game againt Trailblazers |
PORTLAND - Going out West is never an easy task for any Eastern Conference team, but when you have a team like the Chicago Bulls (18-25) approaching their low point of the season, those wins become tougher. In what was game one of a brief three-game West Coast Swing, the Bulls opened things up at the Moda Center, where the Portland Trail Blazers (14-28) were waiting.
On paper, this was a game that the Bulls should've won as they have been and, from all accounts, are the more talented team between the two. However, as has been the topic of conversation most of the year, the only way for the Bulls to keep their first-round pick would be if they play bad enough to miss the Play-In round and secure a top-10 pick. For the most part, the Bulls have been who everyone thought they were as they were beating the teams they should beat, but can't find a way to consistently beat the teams that are better than them. It took more than half of the season, but for the first time it does appear that this team is entering tank mode without tanking at the level you would expect. That continued Sunday as the Bulls opened up their West Coast trip with a 113-102 loss to Portland. The loss gives the Bulls six losses in their last seven and five straight after a stretch that saw them win five of six and six of eight. The best way to start a challenging road trip would be to hit your opponent right in the month, which is exactly what the Bulls came out doing. Nikola Vucevic came out strong and was the team's hot hand early as the Bulls took an early 34-22 lead after one. Vucevic did cool down as the game went on, but with 17 points and 11 boards, he still had another solid game, which is to be expected from him at this point. In the second quarter, things began to go south for the Bulls as the Blazers not only punched back, but delivered the knockout blow in the second half. After battling back to tie things up at 53-53 at the half with an impressive 31-19 second quarter, Portland continued to impose their will to begin the second half as they outscored the Bulls 34-24 in the third to take a double-digit lead. Portland continued to build off that lead to pick up the 11-point win, but when 22 points outscore you in a two-quarter stretch, you're digging yourself a hole you can't climb out of. A big reason why the Bulls were unable to climb out of their hole was the play of two of their starters. Coby White had only nine points, but Josh Giddey was the biggest issue, finishing the game with zero points. That can't happen for the Bulls to have any chances against anyone, and it proved costly last night. That put even more pressure on Zach Lavine to come through, and despite a slow start to the game, he finished strong and did what he does best. Lavine led all scorers with 27 points and did that by overcoming a rather tough shooting night from the field. The biggest surprise was seeing Patrick Williams come through with one of his better games of the season, finishing with 15 points. Williams has been under the microscope all season, and there are reports surfacing that the Bulls are willing to move on from him as they appear done with him and are willing to admit their mistake. Chicago only had one other player in double figures, and that came from Ayo Dosunmu, who added 12 points off the bench, but it wasn't enough to top the Blazers in this one. The biggest reason wins have been tough to come by is the Bulls lack of a defense. That was again the case on Sunday as several Blazers landed in double figures, including a trio of 20-point scorers. Scoot Henderson continues to emerge as one of the best young guards in the game as he flirted with a triple-double to lead the Blazers with 25 points and added eight assists with seven boards. He was just one of four double-digit starters, with Deni Avdija tallying 20 points and pulling down 12 boards. Those weren't the only two starters having strong games, as Jerami Grant added 18 points to go with 15 points from Deandre Ayton. Ayton also added 13 rebounds as he is starting to look like the Phoenix Suns version of himself. Not only did having four starters notch at least 15 points help the Blazers, but so did a strong bench, which is something the Bulls haven't had a ton of. In particular, Shaedon Sharpe single-handedly almost outscored the entire Bulls bench with 23 points. Chicago won't have much time to consider this loss, as they will be back on the floor tonight against the Los Angeles Clippers.
