Bulls struggle offensively in loss to Cavaliers |
CLEVELAND - We can safely assume that the Chicago Bulls (26-30) made a huge mistake by not doing anything at the trade deadline. Unless they can add Russell Westbrook on the buyout market, Arturas Karnisovas based his deadline decision on hope more than reality, which is a slippery slope to play.
However, the Bulls were not alone in not making a deadline deal, as the Cleveland Cavaliers (37-22) were the only other team not to make a trade at the deadline. Considering they traded for Donovan Mitchell this offseason and are a top-four team in the East, you can understand why they didn't make a move, as they are in a much better position than the Bulls. Looking to continue battling for a playoff spot, the Bulls continued their road trip with a stop at Cleveland on Saturday. Things haven't been too kind for this team lately as they dropped their last three games, including an ugly 97-89 showing on Saturday, as their offense was non-existent against the Cavaliers. That is hard to fathom when you look at some of the offensive talent on this Bulls team, as it has often been the defense, not the offense, that has let them down. One of the big scorers for the Bulls is Zach Lavine, who led the way once again for his team. He didn't give them a great game, but he did shoot 50% from the field while dropping a team-high 23 points in the loss. When you have only one player cracking 20 points, that is a significant problem that the Bulls couldn't recover from. DeMar DeRozan was very efficient from the field, but you have to wonder if his injured hip is even 100%. He took just 10 shots in the game, connecting on six of them to finish with 16 points. The Bulls also had their third part of their big three play solid, but also was held to limited shots with Nikola Vucevic dropping 14 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. That is a solid game, but the Bulls needed more from DeRozan and Vucevic to win this game. Apart from those three, the Bulls managed to have just one more player score more than 10 points, with that coming from Patrick Williams. Although still not living up to his No. 4 pick billing, Williams has had his best season thus far and finished with 13 points and six rebounds. Andre Drummond led the Bulls bench with eight points and five rebounds, but a lack of offense did them in. Despite their offense struggling to get much of anything going, the Bulls defense kept them in the game. That is not something you can say they have done a lot of this season, and against an outstanding Cleveland team, it was a pleasant surprise to see them play so well. Even at that, Mitchell continued to have his way with the Bulls and their defense as he finished with a game-high 29 points. Mitchell also added 10 rebounds for a double and came away with six assists to help jumpstart the Cavaliers and their offense. Like most good teams, Mitchell isn't the only great player on this roster, and he was backed with another strong showing on the floor. Jarrett Allen has been inconsistent at best this season, but when he scores 23 points and brings in 10 rebounds, you can see his potential. If he can continue to play like that, the Cavaliers will be a tough out in the Eastern Conference this season. You also had Darius Garland provide the Cavaliers with 19 points and a team-high seven assists, as these three got the offense rolling in a big way. Apart from them, Cleveland had other guys that knew their roles on this team and filled those roles perfectly. Evan Mobley went about his business to finish with 14 points and six rebounds to give the Cavaliers four starters in double figures. Considering that their bench only gave them four points, the starters needed to play as well as they did, as it proved to be enough in the win. The Bulls return to the court on Monday when they host the Orlando Magic. That is a must-win game for a team struggling to remain in the playoff hunt. Santa Cruz earns the weekend Split at the Windy City Saturday was not a great day to be a Bulls fan as both the parent club and the G-League affiliate Windy City Bulls came away with losses. For Windy City, it was the second game of a weekend set with the Santa Cruz Warriors, as a lack of offense by them proved too much in the 112-98 loss. The offense has never been an issue for them throughout the season, so to see them struggle as badly as they did was shocking. Carlik Jones continued to do Jones things as he led the Bulls with 27 points while adding six rebounds and eight assists. Given his season, I would love to see him earn an opportunity on the NBA roster this season to see what he can do. While Jones is going to get his more often than not, he does need help and got the support from Henry Drell, who had a solid 22-point showing. Throw in 19 points and nine rebounds from Marko Simonovic, and the Bulls had a trio of players to count on, but only got a little production from anyone else. Malcolm Hill added 11 points to give the Bulls four starters in double figures, but he was the only player with more than seven points in the loss. Patrick Baldwin Jr had his second great showing in as many contests against the Bulls, leading the way with 23 points and nine rebounds, with Aaron Lamb adding 23 points off the bench.
