Wizards top Bulls |
WASHINGTON DC - For the Chicago Bulls (15-19) to get back into the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race and out of the play-in range, they need to find ways to win games consistently. Part of that starts with beating the teams you should beat, and with the Bulls entering a stretch of very winnable games, now is the time to make a move.
After taking down the Hornets earlier in the week, the Bulls were back on the court Wednesday as they headed to the Capitol One Center to take on the Washington Wizards (6-25). This was one of those games the Bulls had to have because, simply put, the Bulls are far superior to the Wizards. There is a reason why games are not played on paper; instead, they are decided on the court. The Wizards not only came out strong, but they outscored the Bulls in every quarter, with the second half being the half to put things away. In the second half, the Wizards outscored the Bulls 70-56 and took a 55-51 halftime lead to turn it into a 125-107 upset win over Chicago. No one said the Bulls were a good defensive team, as they are, in fact, one of the worst defensive clubs in the game, but to give up 70 points in half to the Wizards is a problem. A big reason for that was the Wizards' ability to knock down the triple as they connected on 17-36 from deep. Chicago managed to knock down 14 triples of their own, but with 10 more attempts, they didn't have the best percentage. While there were a lot of struggles for the Bulls in this one, some nice things were happening, including watching Lonzo Ball put down his first dunk in three years. Say whatever you want about his tenure in Chicago, it's just great to see him healthy and back on the court as he has proven he does have something left in his tank. The only player on the Bulls who seemed like he wanted to win was Zach Lavine, which is nice to see. Coming off a drama-filled season and offseason surrounding Lavine and whether or not he would be traded, the veteran guard has treated this season like the pro he is. Not only has he put that noise behind him and come out every day ready to work, but he has put together one of his best seasons to date thus far as he led all scorers with 32 points. That was the lone bright spot for the Bulls, as they only had three players land in double figures, with Lavine being the only one in the top 20 points. It's extremely tough to win games when you have that kind of production, as Coby White added 17 points, with Nikola Vucevic coming away with 12. Vooch picked up 14 rebounds to play a role on the defensive, but the lack of offense across the board was an issue for Chicago. The same can't be said about the Wizards, who not only had very little issues scoring the ball but also had seven players in double figures, making the overall balance tough to stop. Jordan Poole led the way for the Wizards with 30 points. Poole has taken plenty of heat during his time with the Wizards, but this was one of those games where he had the hot hand, as most of his points came from his six-made triples. Poole may have been the only Wizard with more than 20, but when you have six other players picking up at least 10, it does help pick up the slack. Justin Champagnie backed Poole with 15 points, while Carlton Carrington and Alexandre Sarr had 11. Sarr provided more of a lift on the defensive end, coming away with 10 rebounds and adding five assists. Like the Bulls, the Wizards' starting five struggled to have a go-to scorer apart from one guy, but their bench made a massive difference. Three players combined to score 39 points. Their play provided an enormous lift for this team, which could be why they managed to pull away the way they did. Jonas Valanciunas was one of those guys coming up huge as he led the bench with 14 points and six boards. Corey Kispert followed suit with 13 points, and Malcolm Brogdon rounded things out with 12 points in the win.
