Lavine's 42 points not enough in Bulls loss to Pacers |
CHICAGO - You know things are rough for the Chicago Bulls when they get 42 points from one player and still can't win. That happened on Sunday as the Indiana Pacers (29-36) got the best of Chicago 125-122.
This has been an all too common problem this season, as the Bulls let multiple games get away when they scored 120-plus points. There is no excuse for that at all. Anytime you score 120 points in a game, you should have no issues winning a game, and it is something the Bulls need to address this offseason. The most frustrating part is that the Bulls outscored the Pacers in three quarters, including the first, third, and fourth. The problem was the second quarter as Indiana outscored the Bulls 37-25 in the second quarter and managed to make that halftime lead hold up in the end. One of the biggest questions the Bulls need to address this offseason is what to do with Zach Lavine. In the first year of his Supermax five-year deal, Lavine has had an up-and-down season, but the past two months have been great. On Sunday, he continued his strong run with a 42-point performance knocking down five triples. Given the Bulls salary cap issues and where they stand, you may see Lavine dangled in trade talks this offseason. That is not a likely scenario, but one scenario gaining more traction is the Bulls moving on from Demar Derozan next year. Although he is having a down season compared to last year, Derozan is still putting up numbers better than his career line and back Lavine with 23 points. When those two play the way they did today, the Bulls can beat anyone as long as their defense can step up when needed. Not only did those two put up great games, but the Bulls had three other players land in double figures, including Patrick Williams. Since moving to the bench, Williams has seemed more comfortable with the offense and put up a 14-point night on 5-6 shooting. Williams may have found his niche on the Bulls, and Billy Donovan needs to leave him on the bench. Along with those three, you had Alex Caruso have one of his best games in a while with 10 points, while Nikola Vucevic added 12 points and nine rebounds. It has been four games without a double-double for Vooch, as his offensive numbers have hit a wall in the past two weeks. While the Pacers are on the outside looking in right now regarding playoff positioning, they were one of the biggest surprises the first few months, mainly due to Tyrese Haliburton. The third-year man was acquired via a trade last season and has been a godsend for the Pacers ever since. He led the way for Indiana with 29 points and added 11 assists. Haliburton connected on six triples, which continues to be a massive part of his game. Like the Bulls, Indiana had plenty of production across the board as six total players landed in double figures. Bennedict Mathurin was second on the team in scoring and came off the bench with 17 points. Mathurin will be a crucial cog for the Pacers in the future and has cemented himself as a Rookie of the year candidate. Regarding the starters, Myles Turner had a great night, adding 16 points. Like Vucevic, Turner struggled to get rebounds and only finished with three. He did add three blocks, but went 0-4 from distance. Jordan Nwora was the final starter in double figures, picking up 10 points. The other two double-digit scorers for the Pacers came off the bench, with Oshae Brissett and Chris Duarte combining for 25 points. Duarte added 15 points, with Brissett connecting for 10 points in another tough loss for the Bulls and their playoff hopes. With the loss, the Bulls have not only fallen into fourth place in the Central division, but are now sitting at 12th in the Eastern Conference. The Bulls will look to keep their slim playoff hopes alive on Wednesday when they take on the Western Conference leading Denver Nuggets.
