Daily Bulls

Andre Drummond helped the Chicago Bulls get their third straight win scoring 21 points and 15 rebounds in 21 minutes, shooting 9-for-9 from the field, in a 128-104 win against the San Antonio Spurs. Drummond got his 6th double-double of the season and played double-digit minutes for the third straight. This performance comes after being out of the rotation for most of January. The Bulls starting big man, Nikola Vucevic, got team-high 22 points and 12 rebounds. Both Bulls big men having good nights meant winning the rebounding and points in the paint battles. Before tonight’s game, San Antonio gave up the second most points in the paint per game at 56.3.

DeMar DeRozan had a solid night, with 19 points and five assists against his old team. Zach Lavine dropped 20 points and four rebounds, shooting 50% from the field. Lavine scored 11 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter to help Chicago get a good size lead.

The young Bulls trio, Patrick Williams, Ayo Dosunmu, and Coby White, continue their latest hot stretch. Williams, with 11 points and six rebounds. Ayo Dosunmu continues to stay in attack mode with 10 points and four assists. Coby White scored 11 points off the bench. White has scored in double-digits in his last three games. Chicago has won four of their previous five games and will become 26-27 and a game behind Atlanta for the 8th spot in the East. San Antonio is one game ahead of Houston for the worst record in the West.

Spurs hung around with Chicago for awhile

After Chicago took a 12-point lead during the first quarter, San Antonio slowly got back in the game. The Spurs used a 10-0 run to keep the Bulls ‘ point lead down to one, 48-47, led by Keldon Johnson. Johnson got 17 points during the first half but finished the game with 21 points. Jakob Poeltl got a near-double-double of 14 points and nine rebounds. Malaki Branham contributed with 15 points and five rebounds.

San Antonio was active on defense, limiting Chicago to shooting 41% during the second quarter, the lowest in any quarter for the Bulls all night. Poeltl was a factor in the Spurs leading in the points in the paint category during the second quarter, 20-16, allowing the Spurs to cut the lead down to three by halftime. The Spurs were able to stay around to make things interesting with the Bulls, but that lasted until late in the third quarter.

Fourth Quarter taken over by Drummond and DeRozan

DeMar DeRozan finished the third quarter going on a 5-0 by himself to make a 90-85 lead going into the fourth quarter. Chicago would add to the 5-0 run by going on an 18-3 run to begin the fourth quarter led by the bench + with DeRozan as the only starter in the game. Andre Drummond got involved with the fun, making four straight dunks during the 18-3 run to push the lead to double-digits. That includes two ally-op dunks thrown by Goran Dragic and DeMar DeRozan.

Once Drummond got going, everybody else followed. Derrick Jones Jr hit a three, and Coby White got a couple of made shots. Andre Drummond had such a great performance that Nikola Vucevic did not play during the fourth quarter. Drummond finished the game with the second-best plus/minus stat on the Bulls at +30, and DeRozan was +32. Drummond got 12 of his 21 points during the fourth quarter. Everybody on the Bulls got the chance to play with the game being out of reach, and that meant Bulls fans got to see Dalen Terry get some minutes. In his 3:31 minutes, Terry got two points and one block. Tony Bradley scored a bucket as well. Everybody on the Bulls scored at least once during the blowout win. Chicago shot 66.7% during the fourth quarter, with more than half of their points coming in the paint, 26 of the 38 points.

Final Thoughts

So will Andre Drummond be gone?

The only Bulls player who has gotten actively shopped around is Andre Drummond. But nobody wants to see him leave Chicago. Drummond is on a two-year deal and could get traded next season. If Drummond can stay playing consistent minutes off the bench, the Bulls should not move him. Billy Donovan still favors Derrick Jones Jr at the five instead of Andre Drummond, which is challenging to listen to after Drummond put up his best performance in a Bulls uniform. Drummond will be needed later tonight against the Grizzlies, who give the most points in the paint at 59 per game. If a trade happens, Drummond would likely be gone. But who knows, Tony Bradley or Marko Simonovic could be gone too. The NBA trade deadline is Thursday.

Trades ahead for the Spurs

As the Spurs continue their rebuild, multiple players have been in trade talks. That includes Josh Richardson and Jakob Poeltl. The Spurs will likely end up with a solid chance of getting the first overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft. But the Spurs are a young, hungry team that can surprise some teams. In October, the Spurs beat the Bulls in San Antonio.

Up Next

Chicago will travel to Memphis for a matchup tonight (Tuesday).

San Antonio will continue road against Toronto on Wednesday.

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