The Chicago Bulls and Philadelphia 76ers came into the night ranking 10th and 11th in the Eastern Conference, respectively. And you could tell.
These two teams provided fans at the United Center with an uninspiring 48 minutes of basketball. The night started with a scoreless first two minutes, which Paul George finally broke with a 15-foot jumper. Fortunately for Chicago, they were able to find a slight rhythm after Nikola Vucevic scored a few seconds later. They would go on to assist on 10 of their first 14 made field goals, sharing the wealth in a back-and-forth opening frame.
Chicago’s bench made a key difference early on. Jalen Smith started the night 3-3 from downtown for 9 points, while Matas Buzelis scored a pair of buckets during his first rotational run. Without the spark from their second unit, Chicago would have struggled to keep things within striking distance. Nikola Vucevic also lent a helping hand by starting to take advantage of a Joel Embiid-less rotation. He began the evening 5-7 from the field with 10 points and 5 rebounds.
Still, the Bulls struggled to build any sort of substantial lead as Tyrese Maxey carved up the defense. He scored 20 of his 31 points in the first half, going 4-8 from long range. At the end of the day, his speed and shotmaking prowess were the difference in the first half, and it led to a 60-53 advantage for Philly heading into halftime.
Zach LaVine did what he does best coming out of the locker room. He scored 11 points in the third quarter and made sure the 76ers didn’t find a way to add to their lead. The Bulls’ defense also had a much more efficient frame, holding the 76ers to only 35 percent shooting. To be sure, Philly helped them out by prioritizing the three-point line, which hasn’t been their friend all season long. They went just 2-14 from long range in the quarter.
Paul George also reminded on the sideline to begin the second half after hurting his finger in the second quarter. The 76ers eventually ruled him out, which undoubtedly made things easier on the Bulls as they tried to regain the lead. They eventually strung together a 14-0 run to make it 81-74 – their largest lead of the night – with a little under three minutes to go in the third.
While the Bulls would only take an 83-80 lead into the final quarter, it sure felt like the momentum was on their side. But perhaps that’s why they took their foot off the gas. The next 12 minutes were brutal. The Bulls only managed to score 5 points over the first 6+ minutes of action. Philly would go on to win the quarter 29-14, marking their lowest-scoring fourth quarter of the season. When we consider Philly was on the backend of a back-to-back, Joel Embiid was stuck in street clothes, and Paul George couldn’t finish the game … I think we can add this loss to the long list of reasons the Bulls MUST blow it up.
Yuck.
Player Grades:
Nikola Vucevic – B+
Stats: 22 PTS, 12 REB, 4 AST, 3 BLK
Why did Nikola Vucevic only shoot 12 times tonight?
Zach LaVine – B
Stats: 25 PTS, 8 REB, 4 AST
The veteran went 10-20 from the field and helped keep the Bulls alive in the third quarter. Nonetheless, he went just 2-9 from downtown and uncharacteristic 3-8 from the charity stripe. Very strange.
Josh Giddey – C-
Stats: 10 PTS, 10 REB, 7 AST
Josh Giddey remained an active presence, but he still struggled to score efficiently going downhill and committed five turnovers.
Patrick Williams – D-
Stats: 2 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST
Did Patrick Williams try to play aggressively at times tonight? Sure. But he finished 1-9 from the field and scored in single digits for the eighth time in the last 10 games. Billy Donovan always talked about earning minutes, but he continues to hand this guy a starting spot night after night. Make it make sense!
Box Score:
Check out the full box score here.
