The Chicago Bulls (12-8) currently stand as the fifth-seed in the much improved and log-jammed eastern conference. Chicago most recently beat a formidable opponent in the L.A. Clippers on Thursday night, but the Bulls have not been wholly impressive 20 games into the season. It is early yet, but the difference between the first and eighth seeds in the east is only 2.5 games, and this slim margin for error will persist throughout the season.
So far, these Bulls have been rather difficult and sometimes even painful to watch. Fred Hoiberg was supposed to maximally utilize his offensive arsenal in players like Jimmy Butler, Pau Gasol, Derrick Rose, Nikola Mirotic, and Doug McDermott, but the team has struggled mightily to score points. It even looks like the offense has regressed since the offensively challenged Bulls were under the direction of Tom Thibodeau, and that is saying quite a bit.
Here are some of the Bulls’ problems at the moment: Derrick Rose is a shadow of what he was during his MVP year and is simply not aggressive late in games, the struggling Nikola Mirotic was recently benched in favor of Taj Gibson, Tony Snell has been unproductive at the starting small forward position, and Mike Dunleavy Jr. is out for another 4-6 weeks after a setback in his recovery from back surgery.
I will give the Bulls the benefit of the doubt because it takes time for players to fully understand and successfully execute a new head coach’s schemes, and Hoiberg’s schemes are not easy to do either. Although I did not think the Bulls would rank 21st in the league in points per game at 98.1, I also did not think they would rank 7th best defensively in points per game against at 97.7 through 20 games.
At least the Bulls are playing defense. If they cannot outscore their opponents, they must prevent their opponents from scoring. These Bulls are doing exactly this. They are the number one defense in the league in opponent’s field goal percentage at 40.8%. Hoiberg is not known for emphasizing defense, but his players are accustomed to the defensive intensity that Thibodeau established during his tenure in Chicago.
A more recent trend has been the Bulls’ inability to close games in the fourth quarter after collapses against the Charlotte Hornets, Phoenix Suns, and Boston Celtics. Not to mention the Bulls nearly did it again against the Clippers, but thankfully Blake Griffin was ejected in the first half for smacking Gibson in the face under the rim. The Bulls’ closers, who I consider to be Butler, Gasol, and Rose, in that order, must play their best basketball in the fourth quarter. Rose especially should be blamed for the Bulls’ fourth quarter struggles because he is too passive with the basketball. The Bulls need Rose to attack the rim instead of passing the ball around the perimeter. If Thursday night against the Clips was any indication, Rose should play without his protective face mask considering he scored all 11 of his points after he took it off in the second half, with nine of them coming in the final period.
As much as the Bulls have seemed to struggle, they are still playing solid basketball relative to the rest of the league, excluding the perfect Golden State Warriors. If the Bulls were to struggle offensively, now is the ideal time, but there has to be a point coming soon in which the Bulls realize that they must fix their offensive woes and be able to score the basketball more easily. It is easier to teach offense than defense, and it is the Bulls’ defense that has kept them competitive. I am confident that this group will soon figure out how to score with more ease.