Daily Bulls

Game Preview: Bulls look to get first home win of the season against Celtics

October 24, 2022

(Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

The Chicago Bulls (1-2) will look to win their first home of the 2022-23 season against the Boston Celtics (3-0). On Saturday, Chicago suffered their first home loss of the season to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 128-96. Boston will look to complete their three-game road trip with a perfect 3-0 record against the Bulls. But the Celtics almost lost on Saturday against the Orlando Magic, 106-100. Last season, Boston won the series season over Chicago, 2-1.

Matchup to Watch

Zach Lavine vs Jaylen Brown

The matchup to look out for during the Bulls-Celtics game is the battle of shooting guards Zach Lavine vs. Jaylen Brown. Last season, Brown averaged 24.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 3 games against the Bulls. But more importantly, he had a massive role in the Boston Celtics’ playoff push to advance to the 2022 NBA Finals.

Zach Lavine will get his chance to prove why he deserves at least a $200M contract against one of the top teams in the NBA. The only bright side of the Bulls’ home-opener loss to the Cavaliers was seeing Lavine back on the court and being aggressive to the hoop instead of taking unneeded jump shots. He would finish the game with 23 points on 52.9% shooting.

These games against Eastern Conference contenders are when the Bulls need Zach Lavine to perform well offensively and defensively against 2021 All-Star Jaylen Brown. On November 1st of 2021, Lavine scored 26 points and shot 45% from the field, and Chicago won 128-114 against Boston. But in the other matchup he played against Boston, Lavine struggled, scoring seven points on 22% shooting.

Keys to the Game

Be Aggressive for 48 minutes

During the first three games of the season, at times, Chicago did not seem to have any fight or want to win. That much change tonight against a proven team like the Boston Celtics. After a rough start to the 2021-22 season, Boston became more aggressive on the defensive end, and everybody on the court was able to guard positions 1 through 5.

On Saturday, there were critical moments when the Bulls needed to win the 50/50 battles to get back in the game, but they lost every 50/50 battle against the Cavaliers. Those are the times the Bulls need to become aggressive and force turnovers. When Chicago forces, they want to run on the fastbreak and score easy points. Being aggressive also means attacking the basket instead of settling for threes. The one player that must be more aggressive is Patrick Williams. If Williams is not attacking early tonight, he could play for less than 20 minutes.

More Ball Movement

The one key battle to know about is the assist battle. When Chicago has won the assist battle, they are 1-0, but when they lose, the Bulls are 0-2. Moving the ball is significant to get the offense moving, leading to more miscommunication for other teams and winning for the Bulls. On Saturday, Chicago assisted 19 times, which is a season-low. Finding wide-open teammates and moving without the ball has been the recent struggles.

No one cutting to the basket is why Javonte Green might start tonight or receive more minutes. If Patrick Williams can cut to the basket and get easy buckets, his confidence will grow, leading to more opportunities for others. DeMar DeRozan and Zach Lavine will get isolations throughout tonight’s game, but if the Bulls depend on the iso game too much, that could be a significant reason for the Bulls could fall to 1-3.

Shoot lights Out!!

The Bulls were ice cold from deep on Saturday, going 7-for-29. In both last games, they shot at least 50% from the field and 40%; they either won or lost by two points against Boston. Chicago has not reached at least 120 points yet this season and has not shot better than 45% from the field in their first three games. They will have to keep up with the Celtics, who are top 10 in Field Goal Percentage (52%), Three Percentage (39.1%), and Points per game (121). Boston is led by Jayson Tatum, who leads the NBA in points per game at 34.7.

If DeMar DeRozan and Zach Lavine get double-teamed, the Bulls will need their shooters to start hitting shots. The Bulls players to look out for shoot well are Ayo Dosunmu and Coby White. Dosunmu had a rough night with not only guarding Donavon Mitchell but shooting 2-for-7 from the field and scoring five points. The good news is that Dosunmu got his first double-double of his career against the Boston Celtics in January when he scored 21 points and got ten rebounds. White scored in double-digits in the first two games but went 0-for-5 from three on Saturday. If White wants a chance of not getting traded, he must prove himself as a reliable shooter.

Injury Report

Bulls

Player Injury Status
Lonzo Ball Knee Out

Celtics

Player Injury Status
Danilo Gallinari Knee Out
Robert Williams III Knee

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Who did the Windy City Bulls select in the G League Draft?

October 23, 2022

Photo by David Becker/NBAE via Getty Images)

The NBA G League draft got held Saturday afternoon, and the Windy City Bulls had two picks. Yes, the G League does a draft just like the NBA draft. For those to become eligible to get drafted, you must sign a general contract with the G League. Most of these players have played overseas and did not play well enough to make it to the NBA out of college. The Cleveland Charge had the first overall pick and got Sam Merrill. Windy City had two draft selections of Nick King and Wayne Stewart. The Bulls did not have a second-round pick.

First Round Pick: Nick King

After going undrafted in the 2018 draft, King, a small forward, got signed to the Los Angeles Lakers Summer League team and averaged 8.6 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. In September of 2018, he signed a training camp contract with the Boston Celtics. After getting waived, he got signed with the Boston Celtics G League team, the Maine Red Claws, for the 2018-2019 season. In 33 games with the Claws, he averaged 8.6 points and 4.9 rebounds.

One note on Nick King, he is unrelated to Chicago Bulls’ commenter Stacy King. He left the United States in 2019 to play with three different in the last three basketball seasons. King spent the 2020-21 season with ZZ Leiden in the Netherlands and averaged 12.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in 13 games. He traveled to Sicily, Italy, to play for Capo’dOrlando for the 2021-22 season and scored 19.0 points and got 6.6 rebounds per game. King traveled to Mexico to play for the Soles de Mexicali for the 2022 season and averaged 19.0 points per game as well.

Third Round Pick: Wayne Stewart

Wayne Stewart, a small forward, started his college career at a JUCO college, Lamar CC. During his time at Lamar CC, he averaged 15.2 points and 5.8 rebounds in two seasons. He got his chance when transferring to New Mexico State, but he played in one game and decided to transfer again and finish his college basketball career at Texas A&M Commerce. But Texas A&M Commerce is a division III college. He averaged 14.5 points and 6.3 rebounds in 42 games in two seasons.

After college, he took one year off from basketball and decided to play overseas. Stewart signed with Froya Basket, located in Norway. During the 2021-22 season, he averaged 23.4 points and 8.7 rebounds, shot 59.5% from the field and 50% from three in 27 games. In those 27 games, Froya Basket went 21-6. He will now try to make a comeback and get to the NBA.

Windy City Bulls Training Camp Roster

https://twitter.com/windycitybulls/status/1584254671111081986

The Windy City Bulls finalize their training camp roster one day after the G League. Bulls players that you may know include Kostas Antetokounmpo, Javon Freeman-Liberty, Carlik Jones, Malcolm Hill, and Okaro White. Ethan Thompson played with the Windy City Bulls last season.

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Bulls lose home opener to Cavs, 128-96

October 23, 2022

(Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Chicago Bulls lose their first home game of the 2022-2023 season to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 128-96. After a slow start by Cleveland, they responded by taking demand of the game led by Donovan Mitchell. Mitchell finished the game with 32 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds. In Zach Lavine’s first game, he led the Bulls with team-high 23 points in 28 minutes. DeMar DeRozan scored 13 points on 3-for-9 shooting and got ejected during the fourth quarter.

4 Takeaways from Bulls loss

1. Cavs get hot after slow start

Cleveland got down early, losing 12-5. But once Cedi Osman entered the game, he provided the spark for the Cavaliers to take control of the game. They caught fire, shooting 62.8% from the field in the first half, with Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley combining for 29 points. The more impressive stat was Cleveland shooting a ridiculous 71.4% from three in the first half.

By the time Chicago tried to fight to get back in the game. The shooting damage was done, and Cleveland kept hitting shots at the right moments to stop the chances of a Bulls comeback. Six players for the Cavaliers finished double-digits, Mitchell with 32 points, Mobley with 16 points, and LeVert with 14. Cedi Osman and Kevin Love got 15 points each, and former Bull Robin Lopez scored 12 points. Osman was critical for Cleveland as he finished the game with a plus/minus of +41.

2. Cold Shooting Night for Chicago

The Bulls started the game by making five out of their six shots in the five minutes of action. But the Bulls only made 6 out of 17 shots for the rest of the first quarter. If you want to compete for the best of the NBA, you have to make threes, and the Bulls went ice cold, going 7-for-29 from three. Nikola Vucevic hit a couple of threes to cut the Cavaliers’ lead to 11. After a couple of DeMar DeRozan free throws, the Cavaliers responded with a wide-open three by Kevin Love and a floater by Donavon Mitchell, boosting their lead to 89-75 with 2:28 left in the third quarter.

Chicago would go on to finish the game shooting 40.5% from the field. Only three players scored in double-digits for the Bulls, Lavine with 23. Vucevic got 16 points, and DeRozan got 13.

3. Vucevic, Lavine or DeRozan must be in the game

After Nikola Vucevic, Zach Lavine, and DeMar DeRozan exited the game with 1:26 left during the first quarter to get some rest, with the score of 27-23, the Cavaliers up. Cleveland took advantage fast and went on a 24-9 run with the Bulls’ big three on the bench. By the time DeRozan got back in the game, Chicago was down 51-33, and the damage was done. The Bulls couldn’t get the Cavaliers lead within nine.

The lineup that ultimately cost the Bulls a chance of winning the game was Goran Dragic, Coby White, Alex Caruso, Derrick Jones Jr, and Andre Drummond. For some reason, Billy Donavon decided to play Jones Jr for the first time all season. This lineup did alright during the preseason but failed during this game, and was no ball movement. No one was moving without the ball, leading to the Cavaliers taking advantage with their starters on the court.

4. Incoming Bulls Starting Lineup Change?

After three games and Javonte Green having a great preseason, Green should be starting Monday night. Once Green replaced Williams in the third quarter, Chicago seemed to play with more pace and energy with Green. The Bulls were able to cut the lead down to nine points. But Chicago could not get enough stops and make any shots to get back in the game. Seeing Green help provide a spark for the starters is what could lead to a lineup change for Monday night.

Patrick Williams played for only 15 minutes and scored six points on 2-for-7 shooting. If Williams came off the bench, he would have a better chance of getting more scoring opportunities. But in the starting lineup, he is probably the fourth-best scoring option on the team, and with Lonzo Ball in the lineup, he is the worst scoring option in the starting lineup. Williams might get the start on Monday just because of guarding Celtics star Jayson Tatum. But expect Green to get more minutes to provide a boost for the starters.

Final Thoughts

Zach Lavine Shines

Many Bulls fans will look more at the negatives, and one of the few positives was the return of Zach Lavine against the Cavaliers. Lavine got going early with a step-back three and letting Bulls fans know he was back. He finished the game by making 9 out of 17 shots. But expect Lavine to play on Monday and Wednesday. But with back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday, Lavine could miss one of those games. The Friday night game in San Antonio would likely be the game he misses. Remember, doctors, decide if he can play, not Lavine.

Cavaliers get first win of 2022-23 season

The Cavaliers will have to be ready since they will be playing the second half of back-to-back games. After a disappointing loss against Toronto on Wednesday, the Cavaliers got a must needed win against the Bulls. Donovan Mitchell got his first win in a Cavaliers jersey and will get a warm welcome in Cleveland when they face the Wizards. Cleveland will be facing Washington.

Up Next

Chicago will host Boston on Monday.

Cleveland will have their home opener on Sunday against Washington.

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Game Preview: Bulls looking to bounce back against Cavs

October 22, 2022

(Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Chicago Bulls will play their home opener tonight against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Both teams are coming off losses for the Bulls losing last night to the Washington Wizards. While the Cavs lost their season opener against the Toronto Raptors. Both teams will be without starting point guards with Lonzo Ball out for Chicago. Cleveland will play tonight’s game without Darius Garland.

Matchup to Watch

Zach Lavine vs Donavon Mitchell

With Darius Garland out for the Cavs, Donavon Mitchell will have a more significant scoring role tonight when he faces Zach Lavine and the Bulls. In his Cavaliers debut, Mitchell scored 31 points and got nine assists on 12-for-21 shooting from the field. Mitchell got traded over the summer to Cleveland in exchange for Lauri Markkanen, Ochai Agbaji, Collin Sexton, three first-round picks, and two pick swaps to the Utah Jazz.

After missing the first two games due to left knee management, Zach Lavine will make his 2022-2023 regular season debut in a competitive matchup against the Cavs. Lavine will most likely have the tough assignment of guarding Mitchell. There is a possibility Lavine could be a minutes restriction, but the Bulls will need his scoring production to match Mitchell. Lavine averaged 8.7 points and 3.0 assists during the preseason in three games.

Keys to the Game

Scoring Production from Williams and Dosunmu

If Chicago has plans to get past the first round of playoffs, Patrick Williams will need to play better. In the first two games, he not scored in double-digits and put up seven points last night. He had the worst plus/minus as a Bulls starter at -23 against the Wizards. Moving without the ball is vital for Williams to succeed with DeRozan and/or Lavine on the court. He can not stand still in the corner and wait to take a problematic three-point shot. Against Cleveland, he will have a tough assignment against tall and lengthy Evan Mobley.

Ayo Dosunmu became quiet after the first quarter against the Wizards last night. With Garland out and playing in the United Center, he has a good chance of having a bounce-back game. Throughout the first five quarters of the season, he can see his confidence has grown, and he has become an excellent two-way player to watch. Last season, as a starter at the United Center, he averaged 9.9 points and 5.4 assists but shot 53.1% from the field and 37.5% from three.

Perimeter/Transition Defense

During the first two games, at times, the Bulls perimeter/transition defense seemed to not exist. That led to the Wizards taking a double-digit lead within the first minute of the second half. In game one of the season, Chicago allowed Miami got wide open three pointers by bad transition defense. Tonight will be a tough and physical battle and points will be hard to score on both sides. It doesn’t help when you face two centers at least seven feet tall of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley.

If the Bulls can get back on defense and pick up their man fast, that will be key. You do not want your small guards making mistakes by somehow guarding Allen or Mobley. That would allow a mismatch and possibly easy two points in the post. Communicating by every Bulls player will be necessary. If Chicago is locked in defensively for 48 minutes, the Bulls can send the Cavaliers back home with a 0-2 record.

Injury Report

Bulls

Player Injury Status
Lonzo Ball Knee Out

Cavaliers

Player Injury Status
Darlius Garland Eye Out
Dylan Windler Ankle Out
Ricky Rubio Knee Out

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Bulls comeback falls short against Wizards, 102-100

October 22, 2022

(Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images)

After trailing by as much as 17 points, the Chicago Bulls’ comeback in the second half came up short, with DeMar DeRozan missing a three-pointer to win the game. Washington improves to 2-0, while the Bulls fall to 1-1. DeRozan finished the game with team-high 32 points, six assists, and six rebounds. Bradley Beal gave the Wizards the lead with a lending floater with 7.4 seconds left in the game.

The Wizards got led by Kyle Kuzma, with 26 points and six rebounds, who shot 50% from the field, and three. Bradley Beal was quiet for the first three quarters but scored 11 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter. Kristaps Porzingis scored 14 points but got only three rebounds. Porzingis fouled out with less than four minutes left in the game. Rui Hachimura was the other scorer in double-digits with 12 points.

Here are four Takeaways

1. Vucevic took advantage of mismatches

During game one of the season against Miami, the Bulls did not take advantage of some easy mismatches in the post for Vucevic. After Chicago watched the tape, whenever the Wizards switched, the Bulls took advantage fast. That led Vucevic to have 10 points, with six coming from the free throw line within the game’s first six minutes. Most of those free throws were costed by mismatches in the post.

During the second quarter, Vucevic stopped the Wizards’ 14-0 run with a three-pointer and a floater to cut the lead to six at halftime. Vucevic would finish the game making 12-of-12 free throws but only made 5 out of 14 shots. With 50 seconds left in the game, he missed a critical three-pointer that could have given the Bulls their first lead since the second quarter. Vucevic would finish the game with 24 points and eight rebounds in 30 minutes.

2. Bench Mob Improvements

Drummond and Dragic are providing what the Bulls need and have had solid together so far this season. Last season, the Bulls were 29th in the NBA in bench points per game, which has flipped around so far with new additions of Drummond and Dragic. Andre Drummond got his first double-double of the season with 10 points and ten rebounds in 18 minutes. Dragic finished the game with seven points and five assists and struggled shooting 3-for-8 from the field. But Dragic finished with a plus/minus of +22, which was the highest on the Bulls.

Coby White has now scored in double-digits in two straight games with 10 points on 50% shooting from the field and made 2-of-4 three-point attempts. White played meaningful minutes throughout the fourth quarter but did not finish the game. The other player to come off the bench was Javonte Green, who did not score in 15 minutes.

3. Scoring struggles except for DeRozan and Vucevic

DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic combined for 56 points on 16-for-37 shooting. The rest of the team went 17-for-42 from the field. Starters except for Vucevic and DeRozan combined to make 6 of 18 shots. Patrick Williams got 10 points with only five shots attempted. Williams finished the game with the worst plus/minus for the Bulls, which was -23. Ayo Dosunmu scored all seven of his points in the first quarter. He went 0-for-4 from the field for the rest of the game.

Zach Lavine’s replacement in the starting lineup, Alex Caruso, struggled offensively going 1-for-4 from the field, resulting in three points. He was sloppy with the ball and had four turnovers, but he defensively played solid, getting three steals. The good news is Zach Lavine will likely play against the Cavaliers.

4. Bulls fought but couldn’t get the lead

Within the first minute of the second half, Washington built their lead to double-digits with two threes by Kyle Kuzma. Minutes later, Chicago was down by 17 points after a Monte Morris floater, 71-54. The Bulls responded with a 20-6 run to finish the third quarter. That made the score 77-74 entering the fourth quarter.

Bradley Beal officially arrived in the fourth quarter when he scored almost half of the Wizards with 12 points in the fourth quarter. Beal helped the Wizards hold the lead for the rest of the game. With three minutes left in the game, down 98-91, the Bulls made a final push but came up short. DeRozan missed a potential game-winner. In the fourth quarter, Chicago shot 30% from the field, making only six shots and one three-pointer. Beal made five shots alone. Chicago was not able to get back the lead.

Final Thoughts

Good News, Zach Lavine will return tomorrow

Before tipoff, Billy Donavon told reporters guard Zach Lavine is expected to play in the Bulls’ season home opener against the Cleveland Cavaliers. If Lavine had played against the Wizards, Chicago would have likely finished the night with a 2-0 record. The schedule will not get any easier with upcoming matchups against the Cavaliers, Celtics, and 76ers in the coming days. The good news is that both games will happen at the United Center.

The Wizards will compete to be in Play-In

Bradley Beal didn’t need to score every possession, which is a good sign. Washington is another team in Eastern Conference that will be fighting to play in the play-in tournament. The Wizards will join six other teams with a 2-0 record.

Up Next

Chicago will play their home opener against Cleveland on Saturday.

Washington will travel to play Cleveland on Sunday.

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Windy City Bulls Acquire Carlik Jones and Ben Moore in 3-Team Trade

October 21, 2022

(Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Windy City Bulls are involved in their second three-team trade for the second time this offseason. Windy City will send returning the player right of Hassani Gravett to the Memphis Hustle and a 2023 first-round pick to the Texas Legends. While Windy City will receive player rights of Carlik Jones from the Legends and Ben Moore from the Hustle.

Carlik Jones received a training camp contract with the Chicago Bulls after playing on the Bulls Summer League team. Jones averaged 1.3 points and 2.3 assists in three games during the preseason. But Chicago was more impressed with performances in Las Vegas, leading the team in assists (6.2) and fourth in points (11.6). His best performance in Vegas was against the Dallas Mavericks when he scored 17 points on 7-for-7 shooting from the field.

Last season, Jones averaged 21.1 points and 7.5 assists in 33 games with the Texas Legend. With Windy City trading away their 2023 first-round pick, expect Carlik Jones to start and often play in close games.

Ben Moore returning home

Ben Moore will get the chance to play in his hometown state of Illinois. Moore grew up in Bolingbrook, IL, less than an hour from NOW Arena. The NOW area is where the Windy City Bulls will play their home games. After going undrafted in the 2017 NBA Draft, Moore signed with the Indiana Pacers for the 2017 NBA Summer League. In January of 2018, the Pacers signed Moore to a two-way contract, where he split time with the Pacers and the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

Moore signed a two-way contract with the San Antonio Spurs in 2018 before returning to the Fort Mad Ants in 2019. He returned to the G League last year with the Memphis Hustle. Moore averaged 10.6 points and 8.3 rebounds in 21 games with the Hustle.

After being a part of the Windy City Bulls organization for a month and a half, he will play in Memphis. Gravett averaged 12.6 points and 4.3 assists in two seasons in the G League with the Lakeland Magic. When Gravett got called up to the NBA, he averaged 6.2 points and 2.4 assists in eight games with the Orlando Magic. Gravett will likely become a starter in Memphis.

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Game Preview: Bulls look to stay hot against Wizards

October 21, 2022

(Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)

After a 116-108 win over the Miami Heat, the Chicago Bulls will look to complete their small two-game road trip with the perfect record of 2-0 against the Washington Wizards. The Wizards are coming off a close 114-107 win over the Indiana Pacers. Last season, Chicago won all three matchups, including a three-point game-winner by DeMar DeRozan in the first matchup against Washington.

Washington is led by their big three: Bradley Beal, Kyle Kuzma, and Kristaps Porzingis. Expect others to contribute, including former Bull Daniel Gafford and Will Barton. Beal will get a warm welcome back in his home area after having his season cut short due to a wrist injury. The Wizards are a team that can make the play-in tournament with their big three, but now they will get their first test of the season. Indiana was rebuilding and was without Myles Turner.

Matchup to Watch

Alex Caruso vs Bradley Beal

With Lavine out for the second straight game, Alex Caruso will get the start and will have a tough assignment of guarding Bradley Beal. Beal will cause problems for Caruso, but if Caruso can get the ball out of his hands. In his first game of the season, Beal got 23 points on 9-for-17 shooting from the field. But he struggled from three, making two out of seven attempts.

Beal will be the first option for Washington, but the second and third options got cold at times against the Pacers. Kuzma and Porzingis combined to shoot 13-for-33 from the field. Though these guys can wake up anytime, taking Beal out of the game offensively is critical for a win.

Keys to the Game

Good Start

Chicago has not seemed to get off to a good start. Miami got hot early in the season opener with a 13-4 run. But slowly, the Bulls got back in the game. The Bulls do not want to play from behind every game, especially when you have to play Cleveland the next night back at home. Washington outscored Indiana 36-25 in the first quarter and never allowed the Pacers to take the lead during the game. Indiana had chances, but they couldn’t make any shots at the right time.

DeMar DeRozan and Patrick Williams are two players from Chicago that must start better. DeRozan got going in the second half, but Williams got his bucket of the season in the third quarter. Vucevic should continue to receive touches in the post.

Paint Defense

Nikola Vucevic had an excellent defensive game against the Heat with three blocks and limiting Bam Adebayo to shoot 5-for-15 from the field. That performance will be needed again when he faces Washington’s bigs of Porzingis and Gafford. Washington got 53 rebounds and 14 offensive rebounds as a team, leading to 14 second-chance points on Wednesday.

The rebounding could be a problem, but the more significant concern is with paint in the paint. On Wednesday, Washington scored 58 points in the paint. Remember, Myles Turner didn’t play well, and Indiana could not stop anyone on the Wizards from attacking the basket. Bulls’ centers Andre Drummond and Nikola Vucevic will hopefully hold their own in the paint and prevent any easy buckets Friday night against the Wizards.

Keep an eye on the Shooters

On Wednesday, one of Chicago’s most significant flaws against Miami was allowing wide-open three-point attempts. The Bulls got lucky in the second half when the Heat went cold. But Tyler Herro, Max Strus, and Duncan Robinson made the Bulls pay when they were open. Herro, Strus, and Robinson combined to shoot 10-for-18 from three. The rest of the team shot 2-for-10 from three. There were times Bulls defenders could have rotated and let someone take the three, but that did not happen.

You must know where the main three-point shooters are at all times. On the Wizards, the main shooters to look out for are Kyle Kuzma, Will Barton, and Kristaps Porzingis. Last season, all three players shot at least 35% from three. Getting out to the three and contesting on every shot is vital for Chicago to run on offense transition, which is what the Bulls want to be known for.

Injury Report

Bulls

Player Injury Status
Zach Lavine Left Knee Management Out
Lonzo Ball Knee Out

Wizards

Player Injury Status
Deni Avdija Ankle Questionable
Vernon Carey Jr Concussion Questionable

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4 Takeaways from Bulls 116-108 win over Heat

October 20, 2022

(Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)

The Chicago Bulls will start the regular season 1-0 for the second consecutive season with their 116-108 win over the Miami Heat. DeMar DeRozan led the Bulls with 37 points, 28 points in the second half. He joins Jordan as the only players in Bulls history to score 37 or more points in a season opener. Nikola Vucevic got his first double-double of the season with 15 points and 17 rebounds. Jimmy Butler scored 24 points, and Bam Adebayo got 12 points but struggled to shoot 5-for-15 from the field.

1. Don’t leave the Shooters Open

For the first time in Tyler Herro’s NBA career, he got the chance to be a starter for the season opener and showed early in the game why he deserved the four-year-$130M contract extension. He got going early by scoring 1/3 of the Heat’s points in the first quarter against the Bulls with 11 points and finished with 22 points. Max Strus contributed with 22 points off the bench, going 5-for-7 from three. The other main shooter for Miami, Duncan Robinson, got five points with only making one three-pointer.

Miami’s three-point shooting was the main reason for Chicago’s being down by nine points early in the first quarter. The Bulls must know who the deadly shooters are and stay on them at all times during the game. Defending the three-point is critical for Chicago to stay in games. Miami finished the first half shooting 52.9% from three but shot 27.3% from three in the second half.

2. Solid Bulls debuts by Drummond and Dragic

In his Bulls debut, Andre Drummond had nine points and five rebounds but also went 5-for-5 from the free-throw line. Drummond provides the most needed big-man boost that the Bulls were looking for last season. He did finish the game with the worst plus/minus with -9. But if Vucevic, for some reason, goes down with an injury, Chicago can trust Drummond to play 25+ minutes, unlike Tony Bradley or Tristin Thompson last season.

During the preseason, one player that struggled was Goran Dragic. Dragic went 4-for-4 from three in the first half. But Dragic provided the spark the Bulls needed to get their first lead of the game during the second quarter. The last time that happened for Dragic was when he played for Miami.

3. Great Second Half for Chicago

The Bulls started the second half with a 34-19 run, and all of a sudden, Miami found themselves down 93-78. One of the significant reasons for the big run was because of their defense. Chicago forced Miami to take tough shots and shut down Jimmy Butler in the second half. Butler went 1-for-6 from the field in the second half. Slowly, the Bulls built their lead and got must needed stops.

4. Hot Second Half for DeMar DeRozan

Another reason for a tremendous second half was because DeMar DeRozan became alive in the second half after scoring only eight points in the first half. DeRozan scored 19 points and played the entire third quarter. After Miami got back in the game, DeRozan got in and made sure the Heat had no chance. DeRozan finished the game with 37 points, nine assists, and six rebounds.

Final Thoughts

No Lavine No Problem

Many Bulls fans were upset with the Zach Lavine news about not playing in the season opener. But Chicago didn’t have any problems without Lavine. Even without Lavine, they beat one of the top five teams in the Eastern Conference. Chicago forced 19 turnovers, which resulted in 17 points. Lavine will not play on Friday and will likely play on Saturday against the improved Cavaliers.

Heat couldn’t finish comeback

Miami cut the Bulls’ lead down to four points, 102-98, with a Max Strus three, but Chicago responded fast. For the rest of the game, Miami couldn’t get any stops, and there wasn’t any production. No one, including Jimmy Butler, could have stopped DeMar DeRozan. Miami will look to get their first win on Friday against the Boston Celtics, who eliminated them in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Up Next

Chicago will travel to Washington D.C. to face the Wizards on Friday.

Miami will stay home to host Boston on Friday.

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Bulls start regular season with matchup against Butler, Heat

October 19, 2022

(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

The Chicago Bulls will start the 2022-23 regular season on the road against the Miami Heat at 6:30 CT tonight. Some bad news for the Bulls is Zach Lavine is out, and Chicago has lost seven out of the last eight games against Miami and got swept last season. But don’t forget about DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic; the Bulls are looking to improve their record against the contenders of the Eastern Conference.

These teams took turns holding the best record in the Eastern Conference last season. Miami finished the 2021-22 regular season with the best record in the East but got eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the Conference Finals.

Patrick Williams gets the Start

According to head coach Billy Donavon, Patrick Williams will start against Miami. But that doesn’t mean Williams will start every game. In some games, Javonte Green may start to match what the opponent’s starting lineup looks like. With no Zach Lavine, expect Williams to have more scoring opportunities and to help out DeRozan and Vucevic.

Matchup to Watch

Nikola Vucevic vs Bam Adebayo

Nikola Vucevic will get his first big test defensively of the season against Bam Adebayo, who has earned NBA All-Defensive Second Team three times. Adebayo, over the summer, explained how he deserved Defensive Player of the Year and why he wants to prove the doubters wrong. Just like Adebayo, Vucevic will like to prove his haters wrong after struggling last season offensively and defensively. But both players managed to average double-doubles, with Vucevic having 17.6 points and 11.0 rebounds and Adebayo with 19.1 points and 10.1 rebounds in 56 games.

The key focus for this game is for Bam to be consistent on offense and Vucevic’s interior defense. These two players must play During the Eastern Conference Finals; in some games, Bam looked great, but in some games didn’t play well. In three of the seven games, he scored in single digits, and Miami lost in two of those three games. Everyone knows how great he is on defense, but it’s time to watch him become the second option on the Heat. Vucevic, during the preseason, showed some development on defense, but it was preseason. Now it’s time to show how much he has improved. Whoever wins this battle, their team will probably get the win.

Keys to the Game

Early Post Touches for Vucevic

Getting Nikola Vucevic post-touches early in games will often lead to great things for the Bulls. Not only will Vucevic have higher confidence in shooting from deep, but that will also create easy shots for the rest of the team. Not only will Vucevic do well offensively, but he will show more effort on defense and be motivated, which was inconstant last season with the scoring coming by DeRozan and Lavine.

Vucevic is the key to getting the Bulls a positive record to start the season. Just remember, last season, when Nikola Vucevic scored at least 23 points, Chicago had an 11-2 record. Vucevic didn’t score above 15 points in any of the four matchups against the Heat. He shot below 45% from the field twice.

Ball Movement

One of the positive things during the preseason was the ball movement and everybody getting involved in the offense. Chicago can not afford to trust DeMar DeRozan on an isolation every possession, especially against a dynamic defensive team of the Miami Heat. If you are Chicago, you must keep the Heat moving instead of playing slow and allowing the Heat to play their 2-3 zone. Miami’s 2-3 zone ruined the Bulls’ offense last season, and the Heat didn’t allow the Bulls to shoot at least 50% from the field in any of the four games.

The stat line to know about ball movement is the Bulls had a 15-3 record when having at least 28 assists as a team last season. Chicago shot at least 50% from the field in 17 of those 18 games. One player that will get teammates involved is Ayo Dosunmu. Dosunmu has learned how to get his teammates by Lonzo Ball over the summer.

Bench Production

With no Zach Lavine, that must mean everyone must step up, that means players like Coby White, Javonte Green, Andre Drummond, and Goran Dragic. The two players to look out for are Green and White off the bench, assuming Caruso gets the start instead of Lavine. With no Victor Oladipo for Miami, Chicago has a great chance of outscoring Miami in the bench points department.

Injury Report

Bulls

Player Injury Status
Zach Lavine Left Knee Management Out
Alex Caruso Left Calf Will Play
Lonzo Ball Knee Out

Heat

Player Injury Status
Victor Oladipo Knee Out
Omer Yurtseven Ankle Out

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Bulls finalize 2022-23 Roster

October 16, 2022

(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

With less than five days until opening night, the Chicago Bulls have adjusted their roster and given their second and final two-way contract. Chicago has made some roster changes ahead of Wednesday’s first 2022-23 Regular Season matchup. These changes were not significant for the main rotation of players but are essential for those fighting for the two-way contracts during the preseason. Here are details about the final touches made on the Chicago Bulls 2022-23 Roster.

Kostas Antetokounmpo signs Two-way Contract

After playing in two of the four preseason games, Kostas Antetokounmpo, brother of Giannis Antetokounmpo, has earned one of the two two-way contracts. Having a two-way contract means they will split time between the Chicago Bulls and the affiliate team Windy City Bulls, the G League team. Kostas will join Malcolm Hill with the Bulls players with two-way contracts. But Kostas and Malcolm are not eligible to play in the NBA Postseason.

One of the reasons for signing Kostas Antetokounmpo could be to encourage his brother and superstar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, to play in Chicago when he becomes a free agent. Kostas Antetokounmpo averaged 2.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in two of the four preseason games.

Bulls waive Justin Lewis and release Carlik Jones

Justin Lewis was one of two players (Lonzo Ball) on the Bulls’ preseason roster to play in any of the preseason games. Lewis will remain with the Bulls as he is recovering from an ACL injury. After he recovers, he could sign with the Windy City Bulls to play in the G League. Lewis averaged 16.8 points and 7.9 rebounds in his sophomore year at Marquette University.

Carlik Jones had good moments with the Bulls Summer League team in July but was not good enough. Jones averaged 1.3 points and 2.3 in three games with the Bulls during the preseason. One reason for Jones getting released could be that Chicago can not afford to have another guard on their roster. None of the Bulls’ two-way contracts got given to a guard. Jones may get an offer soon to join and play for the Windy City Bulls.

Chicago sign/cut Okaro White

The one player that caught Bulls fans off guard was the signing forward Okaro White on a one-year deal. Okaro White played for the Miami Heat and Washington Wizards in three NBA seasons. But he got cut shortly after and is on his way to join the Chicago Bulls affiliate team, Windy City Bulls.

He has averaged 2.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 44 regular-season games. His last NBA game was on December 16th, 2018, against the Los Angeles Lakers, and his previous G League game was on March 6th, 2019, against the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

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