1. What are your thoughts on the story this week about Noah recruiting Carmelo Anthony?

Peter Owen: Noah’s non-denial of the conversation – via a great teenage girl impression – at least confirms the talks happened. Whether they were talking about it at length with Noah strongly selling the city and the team or if it was a simple passing comment forgotten about minutes later, we’ll never know.

Braedan Ritter: I am all for the Bulls doing everything they can to bring in another scorer for their offense. If that means turning All-Star weekend into a recruiting convention, that’s awesome. With that being said, I don’t really buy it. I’m sure they talked. They probably talked about playing for Thibodeau (with Thibs being connected to the Knicks) but I don’t think it went far beyond that. And despite what some people are saying ‘Melo would fit in with the Bulls.

Caleb Nordgren: I refer you exclusively to the comments Joakim himself made on the subject. Particularly his excellent teenage girl impression.

Trenton Jocz: I think it’s just another indicator of how much Noah is the leader on the team. It’s not often in the NBA that the best player isn’t the main leader, at least on really good teams, but we know that’s not really Derrick Rose’s personality and that there’s a big brother/little brother relationship there. Regardless of what they were actually talking about, it also shows that Noah feels OK talking to Melo. Rivalries are overblown in sports, but I find it much harder to imagine Noah having similar conversations with impending free agents like LeBron or Lance Stephenson.

Avi Saini: If this is true I’m glad to see Noah being proactive and trying to get guys to finally come to Chicago. It doesn’t matter if you’re an NBA player or some average person walking the streets, everyone wants to feel wanted and Noah’s actions could give Melo that feeling. That being said I doubt it helps Chicago’s chances of landing him. As Ken Berger pointed out, Chicago would have to make some big moves and Melo would have to be willing to take a $45 million discount on what should be his last major contract if the two want the marriage even get off the ground. Given both of these requirements it just doesn’t seem likely Noah’s conversation will make a difference.

2. Tony Snell has fallen out of the rotation somewhat lately. Why?

PO: Snell has played well in fits and bursts in a system notoriously unkind to rookies. Jimmy Butler didn’t play often in his rookie year and I suspect Thibodeau’s treatment of Snell continues the decision of trusting his veterans.

BR: Because Tom Thibodeau has set his sights on the next player he wants to run into the ground, so everyone else catches a break? Snell’s totals were all down in February, but his shooting numbers actually improved. My guess is it has to do with Thibs just trusting Dunleavy and Butler more.

CN: I wrote about this a little while ago, but it’s pretty clear at this point that Thibs just doesn’t trust him that much. Thibs is all about being at the right place at the right time all the time on defense and I don’t think Snell is there yet. That said, Snell’s already played almost three times as many minutes as Jimmy Butler did his first season, so that we’re even talking about his falling out of the rotation is something of an achievement.

TJ: Because as we saw with Jimmy Butler before him, Thibs only plays inexperienced players when forced to by injury. It’s his biggest flaw as a coach in my opinion. Snell’s ideal playing time would be about 10-16 minutes, which wouldn’t require more than a role with the second unit. It’s obviously an arbitrary endpoint, but Snell has fallen in that range just four times. For perspective, he has 11 games with at least 34 minutes and 16 games with seven minutes or less. Snell and Jimmer Fredette are useful players in bit roles and I think Thibs would be better served playing the long game and finding them consistent roles to get more comfortable. Of course Thibs doesn’t trust them because he hasn’t put them in position to earn it in the first place. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.

AS: Snell thus far has been pretty decent for Chicago, but he’s impacting Chicago’s game negatively by almost every measure. With Snell on the floor the team has a lower field goal percentage, scores 7 fewer points per game, turn the ball over more, get fewer rebounds, and get fewer assists. And that’s just the basic stats. This isn’t to vilify Snell. For a rookie he’s looked good and there are things about his game to like. But that’s just the thing… he’s a rookie. Thibodeau’s system is arguably one of the hardest to learn in the entire league (his former players are on record saying as such) so it’s no shock that Snell isn’t playing out of his mind. He’s just going through his growing pains and he’ll be in the rotation soon enough.

3. What team would the Bulls face in your ideal playoff scenario?

PO: If it were possible, the Knicks. They may well sneak in ahead of the flailing Pistons or slumping Hawks. I expect it to be a rematch of last year’s first round with Brooklyn with a similar result. The worst first round opponent would likely be Washington. The Wizards have played the Bulls very well thanks to two athletic guards whom the Bulls have had no answer for. Also, Nene has played very well against the Bulls frontcourt this season.

BR: Ideally, the Knicks or Sixers. But of the teams that could actually make it…I don’t think any team other than the Heat and Pacers should knock the Bulls out, so I don’t really have an ideal matchup. Brooklyn is probably the biggest threat of the other playoff teams because they have a lot of talent that may be able to figure it out for a seven-game series, but a spare-parts Bulls team knocked Brooklyn out last year and is 2-1 against a more talented (and older) Nets team this season.

CN: In the first round? Probably Atlanta, though that’s looking somewhat unlikely at the moment. I definitely do not want Washington in the first round if at all possible, however. After that, you basically have to face Miami and indiana in some order, so it’s pretty whatever. I think, based on their recent play, you probably want Indiana first, but I’m not sure it matters that much.

TJ: Honestly, I think I’d like them to slide down, face Toronto, and lose in the first round. As fun as last year’s run was, I’d rather not see them lose to Miami again or Indiana, and it would save Jo and Jimmy a lot of wear and tear. As far as I’m concerned, winning a title is the goal, and grinding Jimmy to a pulp with 48 minute nights against Joe Johnson, DeMar DeRozan or Bradley Beal, and then LeBron or Paul George has more costs than benefits. Another miracle run would be fun, but last year will tide me over for the time being.

AS: Any team that sets Chicago up to avoid Miami in the second round. I know Chicago won’t win a title this year but if they’re going to make the playoffs I want them to have as deep a run as possible. And the only way that happens is by avoiding Miami for as long as possible. This isn’t a knock on the Pacers who field a good team, but they don’t have Lebron James.

4. Name the two teams you think will reach the Finals

PO: Can’t pick against Miami when LeBron James is capable of scoring 61 points against good defense. The West truly is wild. Right now I’d go with Oklahoma City though I like how Houston have been playing lately. The Spurs are always a contender and you can pick from Dallas, Portland and of course Los Angeles to put together a run too. A lot could depend on the match-ups.

BR: I’m not betting against the Heat until they give me a reason to, but the Pacers will give them a fight for the East’s spot. On the other side, I think a healthy Thunder squad would have the best shot. Although I’d love to see Tim Duncan and the Spurs make it again for a rematch of last season’s Finals.

CN: Miami and OKC. You could replace OKC with three or four other West teams and I wouldn’t be surprised, but KD and Russ should be the favorites. And Indy’s fallen off recently, but they do always play Miami tough, so they wouldn’t shock me either. But if I have to put money on it, I gotta go with a Heat-Thunder rematch.

TJ: Before the season I picked Bulls/Rockets, which changed to Heat/Rockets once Derrick Rose got hurt, and I’m sticking with that. I like the Rockets because I figured they would need time to gel just like Miami did in Year 1, but that by playoff time they’d be rolling and that’s how it’s shaping up. I’d like to see San Antonio get one more shot, but they’re 0-3 against both Houston and OKC, and they’ve already lost all four home games against them. As for Miami, I thought three grueling series would be too tall a task for a team already worn out by three straight Finals trips. However, now that Indiana is their only obstacle in the East, I think they’ll muster enough to win the title again.

AS: If I’m picking off of performance right now, Miami and Oklahoma City. Durant is playing out of his mind and barring any injuries the team will only get better as Westbrook gets back into groove. With how Indiana’s offense, primarily Paul George, has fallen back to Earth I think Miami just has the edge over the Pacers. If Indiana can get back to playing the offense they did at the beginning of the season, then I think they have everything it takes to knock Miami out in 6 games to get into the finals.

5. Who should win the MVP trophy this season?

PO: I think Kevin Durant will win it thanks to a combination of his stellar play and voter fatigue. That said, I feel like LeBron’s physical dominance will ensure the race comes down to just a few votes. Of course, either player could run off four or five consecutive 40-point nights before the end of the season and streak off into the distance.

BR: LeBron James is the best player in the league, but Kevin Durant has had the best season. That could very well change over the remainder of the year, but Durant has the Thunder on top of the West in a season that Russell Westbrook has missed 30 of their 62 games.

CN: I have no idea. Obviously it’s either KD or LeBron, but I can’t decide. Flip a coin, I guess. It’s hard to go wrong.

TJ: It’s obviously razor-thin between LeBron and Durant, and right now it’s too close to call for me. I’d lean towards LeBron for a couple reasons. The first is that while Durant stepped his game up with Russell Westbrook sidelined, LeBron’s had to do that all season with how Miami is managing Dwyane Wade’s knees. The other reason is when looking at Miami’s roster, it’s clear that OKC is more talented. Considering Ray Allen and Shane Battier aren’t playing near as well, how many really good players do they have? Mario Chalmers or Chris Andersen might be their third best player on nights where Wade sits. If Miami passes Indy for home-court I imagine LeBron becomes a near lock to win yet again.

AS: I think Kevin Durant should win MVP. Lebron has been great but Durant has been every bit as good with a bit more consistency (Lebron has coasted a bit). It can honestly go either way but I also am choosing Durant because I like to be right and I think he’ll get the award mostly because he deserves it and partially because of voter fatigue.

The post 5-on-5: Melo to Chicago, Finals projections, MVP picks. appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

Trade season officially is upon us, with the deadline just a week away. And Yahoo!’s Adrian Wojnarowski is on the case, reporting that the Oklahoma City Thunder intend to be buyers.

Armed with trade exceptions, OKC has been active in search for a shooter to fortify them for title run, league sources tell Yahoo.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) February 13, 2014

The Thunder have a $6.5 million traded player exception left over after signing and trading Kevin Martin to the Minnesota Timberwolves over the summer, so they’ve got some options on that front. The question, then, is who fits the bill?

This brings us to Mike Dunleavy. Dunleavy makes just over $3 million this season, meaning he could slide into that TPE with plenty of room to spare. He would provide quality outside shooting, and the Chicago Bulls have some incentive to move him, especially if there’s no salary coming back. Between wanting to clear as much cap space as possible for this summer, and the problem of being able to afford filling out the roster, moving Dunleavy would solve some problems in Chicago.

In addition to their own first rounder, which would fall 30th if the season ended today, the Thunder own a first round pick that belonged originally to the Dallas Mavericks, which, according to RealGM, is top-20 protected this year and every year through 2017, then unprotected in 2018. If OKC is serious about winning now, it might be willing to part with said pick to get Dunleavy. As of this exact moment, the Mavs would pick 23rd in this year’s draft.

Will this actually happen? Probably not. But I certainly wouldn’t be surprised if it did. It probably comes down to whether OKC wants to give up a first rounder or not. If they do, I suspect the Bulls would be more than amenable to shipping Dunleavy out west.

The post TOTALLY UNFOUNDED SPECULATION ALERT: Mike Dunleavy to the Oklahoma City Thunder? appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

In the end, the Bulls, again, showed that they simply don’t have enough talent to win. They were without Luol Deng who sat with his sore Achilles tendon and Kirk Hinrich who sat with a sore back. Although given how bad Hinrich’s been so far this year, his absence may have actually been a benefit to the Bulls. DJ Augustin had a decent outting with 15 points on 10 shots in 36 minutes of time along with 5 assists. He committed 5 turnovers, which is not great, but it’s much better production than I’d have expected from Hinrich. Oh, and Jimmy Butler got hurt again, which totally stinks. Butler rolled his ankle in the first half and did not return.

The Bulls continued to shoot poorly, converting on just 37.7% of their attempts. This game could have been much worse, but the Bulls had a 39 to 14 advantage in free throws attempted, as they seemed to benefit from just about every close call for much of the game.

Outside of Augustin playing relatively well, the only other bright spot for the Bulls was, unsurprisingly, Joakim Noah. The big man dropped in 23 points on 17 shots, grabbed 12 rebounds, dished 3 assists, and snagged 2 steals and a block in just 29 minutes of action. He was kind of everywhere. It didn’t matter.

The rest of the Bulls were pretty terrible and they just don’t seem to know what they want to accomplish on offense. I’m not sure different offensive sets would work better, but it might be worth it to run even more of the offense through the bigs, as the guard play, aside from Augustin tonight, has just been so very bad.

Credit should go to the Thunder as well, obviously. Kevin Durant is just insanely great. He was 65% from the field tonight and 80% (4-5) from 3 . He scored 32 points, wrangled 9 boards, and added 6 assists, 3 steals, a block with just 1 turnover in 33 minutes of playing time. So yeah, KD did KD stuff. Similarly, the Bulls let Russell Westbrook be Russell Westbrook. The explosive point guard scored 20 points on just 12 shots and dished 10 assists in just 28 minutes. Reggie  Jackson continued his strong play on the season dropping in an efficient 18 points to go with 5 assists off the bench.

The Thunder are just blitzing the league right now and the Bulls are a sinking ship with parts falling off- due to injuries- so this result was pretty expected, even if it doesn’t really make it sting less.

The post Game 25 Recap: Thunder 107, Bulls 95 appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

How bad was it? Well, the Bulls converted only 29.1 percent of their field goal attempts, which is the worst shooting performance in the NBA this season.

At halftime, they were shooting 10-for-48 (20.8 percent). It was 17-for-68 (25 percent) by the end of the third quarter. Only a comparatively “hot” fourth quarter in which they shot 8-for-18 (44 percent) in garbage time kept the final numbers from being even worse.

The box score looks like a graveyard. Carlos Boozer was only 1-for-5 in 25 minutes. Rip Hamilton (2-for-7) and Joakim Noah (2-for-9) were similarly ineffective. Nate Robinson was a train wreck (2-for-14 over and 1-for-8 on threes). Luol Deng’s 6-for-14 shooting performance was the best Chicago’s starting lineup had to offer. Which underscores the kind of night these guys had. And the team’s best bench player, Taj Gibson, went 2-for-11. So…there you go.

Add in the fact that the Bulls gave up 25 points off 18 turnovers and you have a complete and utter offensive meltdown.

But wait. There’s more. Chicago’s D got lit up, as the Thunder scored at a rate of 110.4 points per 100 possessions. Worst of all was that the Bulls were outrebounded 52-44, with Oklahoma City even holding a 33.3% to 29.6% advantage in Offensive Rebounding Percentage. And with all those misses, the Bulls had many more offensive rebounding opportunities than the Thunder.

Said Noah: “The way we competed was just embarrassing. The way we competed was bad. It’s not time to feel sorry for ourselves.”

Isn’t it?

The Bulls are 33-24 and had to players in this season’s All-Star Game. But how good are they really? Derrick Rose is still out and may miss the rest of the season. Kirk Hinrich can’t stay healthy. Nate Robinson — playing on a minimum one-year deal — is the de facto starting point guard.

The result: bad offensive numbers across the board.

According the Basketball-Reference, the Bulls are 29th in Effective Field Goal Percentage (.465), 28th in points per game (92.5), 27th in Pace (89.3), 26th in three-point percentage (.340), 25th in field goal percentage (.426), 24th in Offensive Rating (102.9), and 21st in Turnover Percentage (14.1).

The Bulls are good defensively in that they force a lot of misses (second in Opponents eFG% at .466) and limit the opposition in scoring (fourth in Defensive Rating at 101.4). But while they’re an elite offensive rebounding team (third in Offensive Rebound Percentage at 30.4), they’re actually a poor defensive rebounding team (22nd in Defensive Rebounding Percentage at 72.7).

This is a slow, plodding, inefficient offensive team that must absolutely shut down the opposition every night in order to win. But lately the warts have been showing. And throbbing. And growing. Particularly in that humbling home loss to the Miami Heat and last night’s embarrassment in Oklahoma City.

Said Hamilton: “It’s totally different with Derrick and even Kirk, but we definitely got guys in here that know how to play. And we know how to play off each other. It’s just that we got to be smarter, we got to be smarter and understand where we want to get the ball at, how we’re going to score and who we need to feed off of.

“We got to be better. It’s easier to score against bad teams that really don’t have a whole lot of principles. But when you play against good teams like Miami, Oklahoma City, it’s kind of like playoff-style games; you got to be better at not just your first option but your second and your third, because good defensive teams know how to take away first options, try to have you take shots from different places where you don’t want to — so you just got to really study your offense and understand that you might not score on the first option.”

Technically speaking, Rip is absolutely correct. But do the Bulls really have the talent to make it happen against elite teams?

For instance, the Bulls rank eighth in the league in field goal attempts at the rim (26.6), according to Hoopdata. And that’s good. It means they work hard to get high-percentage shots.

What’s bad is that they Bulls also rank 18th in field goal percentage at the rim (63.7 percent). This may explain why the Bulls rank 27th in the league in points in the paint, according to TeamRankings.

Now let’s look at where the rest of their offensive is coming from. The Bulls rank 29th in three-point attempts (14.1) and fourth in shots attempted from 16-23 feet (23.1). That’s right. They don’t take that many high-reward three-pointers, but they take plenty of low-reward, contested, long-range two-pointers, also known as “the worst shot in basketball.” And naturally they rank 20th in the league in converting those shots (36.3 percent).

Said Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau: “We have to do our jobs. Do our jobs. We’ve shown when we do that we’re capable of beating anyone. We have to be mentally tougher. We have to be stronger. When you face a little bit of adversity if you’re short-handed, you have to dig down and get the job done. … We got to play a lot tougher. Our level of intensity has to be much higher. We got to get that part right. We got to get it right quickly.”

Added Noah: “It’s very humbling to lose like that. We just got to look at ourselves in the mirror and do better. This isn’t getting it done and it’s tough. … Our intensity was bad tonight. We took steps backwards. That’s what’s frustrating. We’ve played a lot better this year so there’s really no excuse. We just got to bounce back ASAP.”

These are wonderful sentiments and they are why the Bulls have been so competitive the past three seasons, both with and without Rose. And why they’ll continue to be competitive. Tomorrow’s opponent — the Cleveland Cavaliers — will probably step directly into a face punch, much like the Bobcats did after the Bulls were embarrassed by the Heat.

But players “doing their jobs” isn’t going to change the fact that, as presently constituted, the Bulls are a flawed team. Yes, even if Derrick Rose returned fully healthy and back in MVP form. The Bulls can’t hit threes, take a lot of long twos and don’t convert a high percentage of their shots around the basket. All these things are related, and while they would certainly improve with Rose’s return, it’ll take more than that. Another star player would be nice. So would additional high-percentage shooters.

But as far as we know, Rose isn’t going to play any time soon, and the trade deadline has passed. The roster is what it is. Thibs and the players will continue to say what they always say: that the Bulls have more than enough to win.

Which is true. Except against the NBA’s elite teams.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Advanced Box Score, Play-by-Play, Shot Chart.

The post Game Recap: Thunder 102, Bulls 72 appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

It’s a reasonable conclusion to come to, especially after watching Kevin Durant (24 points, 11-for-19, 4 rebounds) rip off 8 critical points in the final 3:16, a scoring spree that included two exceptionally high-degree-of-difficulty jump shots in the final minute .

Meanwhile, minus their superstar scorer/playmaker, the Bulls’ crunch time possessions (final five minutes) went as follows. Successful plays are in bold.

4:54: Taj Gibson turnover
4:37: Kirk Hinrich missed 21-footer
4:16: Richard Hamilton 2-for-2 from the line
3:46: Luol Deng missed three-pointer
3:31: Kirk Hinrich missed 23-footer
3:30: Joakim Noah offensive rebound and missed tip shot
2:55: Noah missed hook shot (blocked by Serge Ibaka)
2:51: Hamilton made 22-footer
2:18: Noah missed 18-footer
1:47: Deng turnover
1:08: Hamilton missed 19-footer
0:35: Gibson made 20-footer
0:15: Noah made layup
0:03: Vladimir Radmanovic missed three-pointer
0:01: Richard Hamilton missed 17-footer

In case you didn’t notice, Chicago’s clutch plays included an awful lot of long jumpers. Oklahoma City’s defense forced them outside. Two attempts to get a closer look ended in a blocked shot (when Noah attempted a hook with 2:55 to go) and a turnover (when Deng drove awkwardly into traffic and got the ball stripped by Thabo Sefolosha with 1:47 on the clock).

And, yeah, Noah made a layup with 15 seconds left, but that was one of those end-of-game concession baskets.

To me, Chicago’s end-of-game scoring issues were epitomized by this play: With 2:18 left and the score tied 87-87, Noah launched a baseline jumper from 18 feet.

Was Noah open? Yes.

Was that really the shot the Bulls wanted from that possession? Probably not.

Don’t get me wrong. Noah can hit that shot. But it’s not his shot.

Look, I know that Durant hit some really tough clutch shots, but it’s also true that the Bulls 1) weren’t drawing fouls and 2) couldn’t get anything going toward the basket in the final five minutes. And the former was largely due to the latter.

OKC’s defense and the absence of Rose both played a part in that. But it’s not wholly (and simply) an issue of “the Bulls didn’t have a finisher.”

In fact, there were two factors in this loss much bigger than Durant and Rose.

The first factor was turnovers. The Bulls lost the ball 21 times for a total of 20 points going the other way.

Of course, the Thunder had 22 turnovers that were converted into 19 points for the Bulls, so some people might say that category was a wash. But I say that, when playing a superior team, the lesser team absolutely must take care of the basketball because there is almost no margin for error.

Said Noah: “We turned the ball over too much. It was a frustrating loss. We really had a chance to win this game. They’re obviously very talented, but a couple of our shots down the stretch just went in and out. Overall, I felt we played hard, but those turnovers definitely haunted us.”

Did they ever.

The other factor was, frankly, poor bench play. Let’s look at Chicago’s plus-minus numbers:

Bulls starters:
Richard Hamilton: +9
Joakim Noah: +5
Carlos Boozer: +4
Kirk Hinrich: +3
Luol Deng: -2

Bulls bench:
Marco Belinelli: -18
Taj Gibson: -12
Nate Robinson: -9
Nazr Mohammed: -5
Vladimir Radmanovic: -4
Jimmy Butler: -1

Now let’s look at Oklahoma City’s plus-minus stats:

Thunder starters:
Kendrick Perkins: -14
Russell Westbrook: -4
Kevin Durant: -3
Serge Ibaka: -2
Thabo Sefolosha: +13

Thunder bench:
Nick Collison: +15
Eric Maynor: +10
Kevin Martin: +10
Hasheem Thabeet: +5

Despite his clutch performance, the Thunder were outscored when Durant was on the floor. Ditto for Westbrook (16 points, 12 assists, 2 reboundss) and Serge Ibaka (21 points, 9 rebounds, 4 blocks). And of course Kendrick Perkins (5 rebounds, 2 turnovers, 0 points) was dreadful.

Meanwhile, the Bulls starting unit — minus Deng — were all on the plus side of the ledger. Even Boozer, who shot poorly (3-for-9), committed 5 turnovers, and had several defensive slips.

The fact remains that, in terms of plus-minus, Chicago’s starters outperformed their Oklahoma City counterparts (the exceptions being Deng and Sefolosha), while OKC’s bench vastly outperformed the Bulls’ reserves in terms of points (29-14), rebounds (11-5) and plus-minus (+40 to -49).

So, Durant’s greatness aside, the Bulls could have won this game had they taken better car of the ball and/or gotten a little better production out of their bench.

Or, heck, done a better job putting some D on OKC’s reserves. Martin (15 points, 3-for-5 from the field, 1-for-1 on threes, 8-for-9 from the line) and Maynor (10 points, 2-for-4, 1-for-1 on threes, 5-for-5 from the line) had incredibly efficient scoring nights, with True Shooting Percentages of 83.7 and 80.6, respectively.

That said, I suppose you could list defense as a factor two, considering the Thunder finished with an Offensive Rating of 101.5 and an Effective Field Goal Percentage of 52.7, both higher than the Bulls’ opponent season averages of 96.4 and 46.9.

Or maybe it’s a combination of all these things: The clutchness of Durant, the absence of Rose, turnovers, lack of bench production and defense.

But on the bright side, despite the several things that didn’t go their way, the Bulls stood up to one of the league’s elite teams and nearly beat them without Rose.

Said Deng: “No one has to change the way they play. We just got to keep playing. … We’re right there in the game. We got to have a better fourth. That’s what we normally do, and that’s what we got to get back to.”

Bulls Player of the Game:
It was very clearly Deng, who had game-highs in minutes (42) and points (27), in addition to good shooting (11-for-21 overall, 3-for-6 on threes, 2-for-2 from the line).

Bulls goat of the game:
Marco Belinelli played six minutes. The Bulls were outscored by 18 points during those six minutes. And although that’s obviously not all on Belinelli, I’m already coming to associate his presence on the floor with bad things happening for the Bulls. He’s like the anti-Kyle Korver.

Good sign:
Hinrich had a reasonably strong game (12 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds) and helped harass Westbrook into a 7-for-22 shooting night. What’s more, Captain Kirk drew fouls on two aggressive drives in which the refs should have called continuation but didn’t.

Bad sign:
Deng sprained his left thumb during the fourth quarter.

More key stats:
Yes, there are plenty of key stats above. Here are two more: The Bulls were outscored 31-19 in the fourth quarter and 46-34 in the paint.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Advanced Box Score, Play-by-Play, Shot Chart.

The post Game Recap: Thunder 97, Bulls 91 appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

Orlando was previously undefeated, and had scored 115 and 102 points in its first two games. So the Bulls strong defense is another thing that hasn’t changed. The Magic were the first team to score more than 90 against Chicago in this young season, but the Bulls offense did just enough to finish the job. Defense has always been the focus since Tom Thibodeau took over as coach, but it’s going to be more important this season than it has; at least until Derrick Rose returns (if he does come back this year).

But tonight will be a real test for the Bulls, as the defending Western Conference champs visit the United Center.

This will be the first look that Chicago gets at the Thunder with Kevin Martin. The two teams played in late October in the preseason, but that was before the James Harden deal went down (imagine having too many prolific scorers). And actually the Bulls were all over Harden in that game, limiting him to 13 points on 2-17 shooting. Serge Ibaka picked up the scoring though, dropping 24 (10-17 from the field). Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook did not play, so it may not the best representation of tonight’s game.

Kevin Martin, who replaced James Harden, is averaging 19.3 points per game.

Oklahoma City is coming off a win over Toronto, in which it got relatively quiet games from its two stars. Westbrook scored 19 points on 5-12 shooting and Durant added 15 points on 4-11 from the field. New-guy Kevin Martin scored 15 off the bench.

When you think of the Thunder, you usually think high scoring, with Durant, Westbrook and now Martin. But they are only 13^th so far in offensive rating (104.3). They finished second last season in that category. They’ve picked it up on defense though. Right now they are 5^th in defensive rating (98.2), after finishing eleventh a season ago. The Bulls are first in defensive rating (95.3) thus far, but haven’t really been tested with a high-scoring offensive opponent yet.

The Thunder are, by far, the toughest test the Bulls have had in the early going. And that is specifically true for Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng. Westbrook and Durant are both averaging 20.8 points per game.

Hinrich has done well on the defensive side of the ball. Isaiah Thomas (3-8 from the field), Kyrie Irving (6-15) and Greivis Vasquez (6-18) all struggled against him (E’Twaun Moore did go 7-13 against Kirk on Tuesday). Kyrie will be the only guy close to Westbrook’s talent that he has faced, but Russ creates so many unique challenges. Hinrich is shooting just 33.3 percent from the field, so continued solid defense is important.

The same can be said of Deng. Although Deng is shooting 44.2 percent from the field, that would still be the third worst field goal percentage of his career. It is an improvement over last season’s 41.2 percent, though, which was the lowest of his eight full seasons. He is putting in a career best defensive rating of 98.

In their careers, Durant has averaged 25.7 points on 47.5 percent shooting and 7.0 rebounds against Lu. Deng scored just eight points (30.8 percent shooting) the last time the Bulls and Thunder met in April, while KD recorded a double-double with 26 points (68.8 percent) and ten boards.

That game was an unpleasant loss for the Bulls. Without Derrick Rose, they shot just 33.3 percent from the field in a 14 point loss. Kevin Durant’s offensive rating in that game was an absurd 142. A much better defensive effort will be expected, and needed for this one to stay competitive.

Early season stat that could be concerning: Something that really worries me is the Bulls three point shooting. It was obviously going to take a hit with Kyle Korver leaving. But the Bulls really don’t have anybody that can hit a big three now. Deng is 1-11 from deep this year, Marco Belinelli, the guy who was supposed to help “replace” Korver, is 3-8. Rip Hamilton is 0-3 and Nate Robinson is 4-11. Even Joakim Noah is 0-1 (and hopefully he never takes another three again, even if it is for Big Macs).

Obviously four games is very early, but 1-11 from Lu is dreadful. He shot 36.7 percent from three last season. It’s impossible to know if something is wrong, but it is fair to ask if the wrist is bothering him more this season, after a shortened year and then playing in the Olympics. I can guarantee it isn’t helping.

And now the ESPN comments section “Comment of the Night” from erivera723:“Mr Snuggles believes Bulls will win.” Well if Mr. Snuggles says it, it must be true. Congrats Bulls.

The post Thunder-Bulls Preview appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

On a night when Derrick Rose (3-for-13) and Joakim Noah (3-for-8) apparently lost motor control in their shooting hands, Boozer picked up the slack and then some, scoring 29 points on 13-for-21 from the field to go along with 12 rebounds, an assist and a steal.

Look out, NBA. Chicago has a legitimate second scoring threat.

There was a time — like a few games ago — when a 3-for-13 shooting night for Rose against a good team like the Thunder (14-8) probably would have been a disaster. Like drinking a jar of peanut butter in the desert. Or something.

Last night, Rose didn’t have it…but he was able to lean on somebody else’s offense for a change. He was able to say, “Here’s the ball, big fella. Go to work.”

Man, it must have been a relief.

I guess Derrick had more help during his rookie season when Ben Gordon was still playing Bomber Man for the Bulls. But this is different. Back in the Gordon era, Little Ben liked to have the ball in his hands. By contrast, Rose and Boozer can play off of each other. Rose wasn’t running pick and rolls with Gordon, wasn’t finding him around the basket for easy layups.

Said Rose: “[Boozer] makes the game easy, where I just got to pass it to him. He’s going to find a way to score or get fouled. And that’s what we need right now on this team — where somebody in the post or someone down low that can really score, and that’s him.”

Right now? That’s what the Bulls have needed for years.

By the way, I’m not saying that Noah and Luol Deng haven’t been pitching in points. They have. But let’s face it, Noah isn’t a true scorer and Deng — although my appreciation of his contributions is no secret around here — really is more of a third banana sort of player.

Admittedly, Deng sometimes struggled when forced to masquerade as The Second Guy. But he thrives in the “third scorer” role. Look how efficient he played last night: 19 points, 9-for-16 shooting, 8 rebounds (4 offensive), 4 assists. And with both Rose and Boozer pulling defenders away from him, he was able to do damage around the basket, hitting six of his eight layup attempts.

As for Noah, he obviously didn’t shoot the ball well, and he was limited to 21 minutes due to foul trouble, but he still ripped down 12 rebounds (6 offensive) and dished out six assists. And Rose finished with a game-high 9 assists. By comparison, the Thunder had 13 assists as a team.

Chicago dominated the paint, owning a 52-39 advantage on the boards and outscoring Oklahoma City 58-32 in the paint. In all, the Bulls converted on 20 of their 30 layup attempts and went 3-for-3 on dunks.

Like I said, this is why the Bulls brought in Boozer.

Look, the offense is still a work in progress. They aren’t “there” just yet. But you can see little differences. With all due respect to Taj Gibson — and I love the kid — he simply isn’t the offensive threat Boozer is. Basketball is a game of inches and split-seconds. The extra attention defenders have to pay Boozer means an extra half-inch or an extra millisecond here and there for his teammates. His very presence creates opportunities for the other Bulls.

Said Boozer: “The more easy buckets you get, it opens it up for everybody. Our whole mind set is to get as many easy buckets in transition, get layups, because once you get layups they start crowding the paint and it opens it up for our jump-shooters.”

You know, it’s funny. Sports fans in general, and NBA fan in particular, get a sort of perverse pleasure when things go wrong. (I should know. I founded Basketbawful.) When Boozer broke his hand, some people were quick to say, “I knew this was going to happen. Boozer is made of stained glass.” And when Carlos (and the rest of the team) struggled against the Magic and Celtics in Boozer’s first two games back, others jumped on the dog pile saying, “This is what you get with Carlos Boozer.”

You know what else you get? 20+ point games, 10+ rebound games, high-percentage shooting, inside-outside play, a proven player who demands respect from opposing defenses. You also get somebody who can reduce the burden on D-Rose, who’s probably spent the last couple seasons thinking, “If I don’t score 20+ points tonight, we won’t win.”

I should also give a gold star to Chicago’s defense, which held the Thunder to 35 percent shooting. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook both went 7-for-18. James Harden was 3-for-12. Jeff Green shot 1-for-9. If it wasn’t for Nenad Krstic (18 points on 8-for-12 shooting), the Bulls might have won in a blowout.

Of course, the Thunder were playing the second night of back-to-back games. And I should also note that Durant — who led his team in scoring with 29 points — played only three minutes in the third quarter…during which the Bulls outscored the Thunder 29-18 to take command of the game. That was the only quarter Oklahoma City failed to score 20+ points. Coincidence? Probably not.

Said Thunder coach Scott Brooks: “We weren’t playing well and I tried to make adjustments, trying to create some more energy. [Sitting Durant] was my decision. I don’t know if it worked or not, but it was important that we figure out how to play better.”

Uhm, yeah, it didn’t work, Scott. But I’m okay with it.

As for the Bulls, things are starting to click. They are. And there’s every reason to suspect they’ll continue to click.

Said Boozer: “We’re getting better and better every day. It’s going to be exciting where we are 20 to 30 games from now.”

It sure is.

Quote of the Night:
Noah: “Boozington is doing his thing. And I feel like the scary thing is, we’re not even near where we need to be. His skill is undeniable. He’s a beast in the post and he’s been playing that pick and roll for a long time. He’s strong as an ox. He’s making us a lot better. He can pass. He always makes the right play. It’s never anything really forced out there. When we get our defense straightened out all together as a team, we have a chance to do something good.”

Almost Quote of the Night:
Boozer: “I’m not really satisfied. I have a long way to go. I’m still trying to get my legs back and my timing back. And I feel like I’m getting there every day with our offense, with our defensive sets and being in a good rythym. But I’m not satisfied, I’m hungry. I want more out of this. I’m not where I’m going to be at.”

TrueHoop Network:
Royce Young of the Daily Thunder: “I’m not an NBA coach and I don’t think I could win 50 games in that role. So I don’t question Scott Brooks much. But it’s hard not to wonder why Kevin Durant and Jeff Green only played two minutes and 46 seconds in the third quarter. When the two checked out, Oklahoma City was down 60-54. The Thunder weren’t playing well, but they were in the game. What was hurting OKC was the lack of any offensive rhythm. So when Durant and Green went to the bench with over nine minutes left in the third, it was curious. But you were thinking, ‘OK, quick blow here and they’re coming back.’ Instead, they sat the remainder of the quarter.”

ESPNChicago:
Nick Friedell: “Did you ever think you would see a game where Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah would combine to go 6-for-21 from the field with 17 points, and the Bulls would win convincingly? Welcome to life with Carlos Boozer, Chicago.”

Bonus video:
You know the kid is great when, in the midst of a 3-for-13 shooting night, he knocks down a 40-foot buzzer beater.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

The post Game 19 Recap: Bulls 99, Thunder 90 appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

“The Bulls must contain Kevin Durant as best they can (good luck, Luol), while keeping KD and his teammates off the free throw line. It’s also imperative that they take care of the ball and crash the defensive glass. Outside of Durant, the Thunder rely on points off turnovers and second-chance points to generate offense.”

How did that turn out for the Bullies?

Well, Durant (30 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals) was not contained. And the Thunder definitely weren’t kept off the line, as they went a nearly unthinkable 38-for-47 from the charity stripe (including 11-for-13 for Durant). The Bulls gave up only 9 offensive boards, but they surrendered 18 points off 15 turnovers.

Defense was a problem.

That may seem hard to believe considering the fact that Chicago held Oklahoma City to 41 percent shooting, including 22 percent (4-for-18) from downtown. But the Thunder — thanks in no small part to their astronomical free throw total — finished the game with an Offensive Rating of 107.2 points per 100 possessions.

Compare that to Chicago’s O-Rating of 96.1 and you can see that offense was a problem as well. It wasn’t that much of a problem through the first three quarters. The game was tied at 82-82 after three and it sure seemed as if the Bulls were in position to steal a game on the road.

Then things fell apart.

Derrick Rose and crew were outscored 24-13 in the final 12 minutes as the offense devolved so badly I half-wondered if Vinny Del Negro was patrolling the sidelines in a Tom Thibodeau costume. When the Bulls weren’t turning the ball over or bailing out with long jump shots, they were missing chippies or having the ball swatted away by an aggressive Oklahoma City defense that finished with 10 blocked shots and 11 steals.

The Bulls looked intimidated. They also looked out of gas.

The latter was certainly true of Rose. He finished with a team-high 28 points to go along with 6 assists and 4 rebounds, but he went 4-for-16 in the second half and scored only 4 points in the final 21 minutes. Derrick tried to take over in the fourth, but he was running on empty. It didn’t help that Rose was hampered by foul trouble, which got him out of rhythm. But still.

Joakim Noah (18 points, 19 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks) and Taj Gibson (16 points, 11 boards, 2 assists, 2 steals) both had strong games, but they don’t really generate offense in a pinch. Deng (13 points, 5-for-13, 2 rebounds, 4 turnovers) was eaten alive by Durant and looked every bit like the third or fourth option everybody says he is. Meanwhile, the reserves went 7-for-20, including 0-for-4 from downtown.

And did I mention that the Bulls missed nine foul shots?

It wasn’t all doom and gloom. Chicago won the rebounding batte 50-44 (including 15-9 on the offensive glass) and outscored Oklahoma City 50-40 in the paint. The latter number is telling when you consider the fact that the Thunder led the league in blocked shots last season.

But the Bulls collapsed in the fourth and the offense ran like something out of the infamous VDN playbook.

Said Thibodeau: “You can’t have blown sets in the fourth quarter. I think that’s where you have to be at your best. You have to be able to execute under pressure, and we’ll do better. We have to do better.”

This game was a prime example of why the Bulls need Carlos Boozer back as soon as possible. Simply put, without a second legitimate scoring option, there’s too much pressure on Rose to do everything. That’s a lot to ask against a really good defensive team like the Thunder, even for somebody as good as Rose.

Durant didn’t do it alone. Russell Westbrook (28 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists) lit things up, going 8-for-15 from the field and 12-for-13 at the line. Oklahoma City had a one-two punch on offense. The Bulls — in the fourth quarter anyway — had one swing and a miss. Lots of misses actually.

Look, the Thunder are a good team that was playing at home in a season opener and Chicago was a team missing its second-best scorer. The loss makes sense.

It also makes me think that this opening stretch without Boozer could get messy.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

The post Game one: Thunder 106, Bulls 95 appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

So let’s consider last season.

During the 2009-10 campaign, the Thunder (27-14 at home) played the Bulls (17-24 on the road) twice, winning 98-85 at the United Center on January 4 and losing 96-86 in Oklahoma City on January 27.

In 2008-09, the Thunder won 23 games. In 2009-10, they won 50 games. For those of you who enjoy simple math, that’s a 27-game improvement, tops in the NBA last year. For the sake of comparison, the Memphis Grizzlies came in second with a 16-game improvement.

The Thunder did it with a stingy defense (1st in total blocked shots, 4th in Opponents Effective Field Goal Percentage, 7th in Opponents Turnover Percentage, 9th in Defensive Rating) and Kevin Durant’s offense (a league-best 30.1 PPG).

At 21 years and197 days old, Durant became the youngest scoring champion in NBA history. Not surprisingly, he finished second (to LeBron James) in MVP voting. A distant second, but still. The kid is amazing. Although he didn’t do it alone.

When KD missed, his teammates were there to clean up the mess, as the Thunder ranked 3rd in Offensive Rebound Percentage. The Thunder also drew fouls, ranking 2nd in Free Throws Per Field Goal Attempt and 3rd in Total Free Throw Attempts.

Durant was a major component of those foul shooting numbers. Last season, KD made 751 free throws. History lesson: That’s the sixth-highest total in NBA history and the most since Michael Jordan hit 833 in 1986-87. The only other players to convert more freebies than Durant were Oscar Robertson (800 in 1963-64), Adrian Dantley (813 in 1983-84), Wilt Chamberlain (835 in 1961-62) and Jerry West (840 in 1965-66).

That’s some pretty rare company.

Assuming things remain relatively constant, the Bulls must contain Kevin Durant as best they can (good luck, Luol), while keeping KD and his teammates off the free throw line. It’s also imperative that they take care of the ball and crash the defensive glass. Outside of Durant, the Thunder rely on points off turnovers andsecond-chance points to generate offense.

The Bulls can’t afford to give up garbage points. They need to make the Thunder earn everything. After all, the Thunder ranked only 20th in Effective Field Goal Percentage last season.

Note: All stats came from ESPN Stats and Information and Basketball-Reference.com.

The post Bulls-Thunder game preview appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

Unstoppable.

Said Derrick Rose: “I don’t think anybody in the league or anywhere else would have thought that we would be sitting here 4-0 after that.”

No kidding.

I sure didn’t. In fact, especially after their defeat in L.A., I was almost certain the Bulls were going to go 0-7 on this trip. I’ll admit. I left them for dead. But here they are, one of the hottest teams in the league. Suddenly. Out of nowhere. Or so it seems.

What happened?

Said Joakim Noah: “It all starts with Derrick Rose. He’s just playing huge for us, making the right decisions, staying aggressive offensively. When your point guard is playing like that, it usually leads to good things.”

With all due respect to Rose, and to Noah’s assessment, that statement is only half-right. The Bulls’ success actually starts with their defense…which currently ranks 7th in the league in terms of Defensive Efficiency. With the exception of the Phoenix Suns, most good teams are built around a foundation of solid (if not spectacular) defense. Chicago’s offense was destined to struggle at the start of this season, what with the loss of leading scorer Ben Gordon and injuries to Rose, Kirk Hinrich and Tyrus Thomas. But by building a solid defensive unit, Vinny Del Negro set the Bulls up for success once the offense came around.

That’s where Noah’s comments about Rose come in. The coaches might not have voted him onto the All-Star team — we’ll find out tonight — but Rose has blossomed into a superstar right before our eyes. He has gotten better every single month this season, and Rose has averaged 26.3 points while shooting just under 60 percent from the field in these four road wins. He was unstoppable once again last night, finishing with a team-high 26 points on 13-for-23 shooting to go along with a co-game-high 7 assists.

Rose delivered the knockout punch by scoring 10 of his points in the fourth quarter as the Bulls — whose defense held a pretty good Thunder team to 37 percent shooting on its home turf — pulled away for a double-digit win that wasn’t even as close as the final score indicates. And check out these sick fouth-quarter moves (Hat Tip to Docksquad Sports):

And did I mention Oklahoma City ranks 5th in Defensive Efficiency? Tell me Rose isn’t an All-Star. No, really. Just try it. But be warned: you’re going to look as silly as Thabo Sefolosha did when Derrick crossed him over.

Remember: The Bulls started the season 10-17. Since then, they’ve won 12 of the last 17 games, including six of the last eight. And this four-game road winning streak seems to be the counterpoint to Chicago’s epic failures against the Nets and Kings, the latter of which was the infamous game in which the Bulls choked up a 35-point lead at home.

Said Noah: “I remember last month, it was almost like a disaster. In just a matter of a month, I think that it’s all about confidence. Winning basketball games on the road builds confidence.”

It sure does.

Again, some credit really must be given to Del Negro for establishing solid defensive principles and making minor adjustments thoughout the season while enduring questions about his future (or lack thereof) in the Windy City. He settled on a starting lineup. The players now know and understand their roles. After using Hinrich against the likes of Steve Nash and Tony Parker during this current streak, Del Negro unleashed Captain Kirk on Russell Westbrook, which allowed Rose to concentrate on dishing to his teammates and setting the nets on fire. I don’t understand why Vinny hasn’t gotten a few more pats on the back lately. I guess it’s hard to fight perception.

While I’m handing out credit, I should give some to Luol Deng (17 points, 4 rebounds), who played excellent defense on Kevin Durant. Sure, Durant still finished with a game-high 28 points, but he was only 7-for-19, and 12 of his points came in the fourth quarter after his team had fallen behind by double-digits. At one point, Durant — the league’s third-leading scorer at 29.3 PPG — went ice code during a stretch in whcih his team missed 16 straight shots.

Credit should also go to Brad Miller and Tyrus Thomas, who combined for 27 points and 9 boards off the bench. By contast, Oklahoma City’s reserves contributed only 14 points on 6-for-24 shooting. Then there was Taj Gibson with a game-high 15 rebounds, Noah with a double-double (13 points, 11 boards), and Hinrich with 8 boards, 6 assists and his defense on Westbrook (who finished with only 10 points and committed 4 turnovers). The Bulls are playing together. Everybody is contributing.

Isn’t this kind of how we expected the team to play all season?

Said Noah: “When you can’t win games because you’re not talented enough to win games, that’s one thing. But that’s what was frustrating about the whole thing was we were better than that, and we’re proving that.”

They certainly are.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Advanced Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

The post .500 again: Bulls 96, Thunder 86 appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.