With a 123-110 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Friday, the Bulls have a three-game winning streak for the first time since February 23, 2019.
This is what stood out:
Core comes to play
Bulls fans yearn for Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen to find each other for – really – years flowing in concert with each other. We’ve seen their pick-and-roll chemistry make progress under Billy Donovan. We have seen both steps take offense.
Against the Hornets, they led the offensive charge. LaVine put up 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting (2-for-3 of 3) in the first half, while Markkanen scored 13 points on 6-for-10. From the gate of the third quarter, the team scored the team’s first field goal on a LaVine swing after a Markkanen triplet.
LaVine ended the evening with 25 points, 9 assists and 6 rebounds, including 9 points in the fourth quarter that helped the game. Markkanen scored 23 points on 10-for-17, balancing his efforts evenly between 2- (9) and 3-point (8).
In 2019-20, LaVine and Markkanen each scored 20 or more points in the same game six times in 46 chances. In eight games played together this year, they have achieved the feat three times.
Coby White also scored the required performance, with 18 points, 8 assists and 2 steals. The three combined for 66 of the Bulls’ 123 points.
The Bulls bank is still better than most other banks
The Bulls’ reserves once again sprang up several times in this one. After the Hornets grew as much as a six-point lead in the first quarter, the contributions of Thad Young, Garrett Temple, Otto Porter Jr., Denzel Valentine and Tomáš Satoranský helped to gain a lead from one point to the other.
Then, late in the third, the Hornets turned to very full ball pressure on several possessions to try and dig into their backlog. Buckets from Porter and Temple increased the lead to 12 in the final frame. Bench score ended 46-20 in the Bulls’ favor.
Young and Temple in particular (15 points, three 3s) set an active defensive tone after Hornets hummed early on the offensive side. Valentine hit two tries and threw 3 assistants. Porter scored 7 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter. And in his first action since December 29, after recovering from COVID-19, Tomáš Satoranský had 4 assistants within 11 minutes.
Young talent wins press conferences, but these vets win games.
Quick hits
- Gafford begins: With Wendell Carter jr. Due to a real four-wheel drive, Daniel Gafford got his first start of the season. He played a typical 19 minutes, scoring 7 points, grabbing 6 rebounds and blocking 2 shots.
- Tonight for Patrick Williams: It was a homecoming affair for Williams, but he had a rare night where he looked like a rookie and scored 4 points on 2-for-7 shooting. As for him, he pitched at several open three-point opportunities.
- Hutchison on the edge: Along with Satoranský, Chandler Hutchison was active for the first time since December 29 after recovering from COVID-19. Donovan’s rotation became ten men deep, but Hutchison recorded a DNP.
- Battle of the interior: The Bulls won the paint point battle 64-52, the offensive boards 15-11 and the second-chance points difference 18-6.
Measuring stick game
Donovan underestimated the idea that a victory over the Hornets could send a statement, given their relatively equal footing with the Bulls in the Eastern Conference hierarchy. He prefers to focus on growth in a vacuum.
It is, after all, an important victory of quality against a scrappy Hornet group in their series of the Eastern Conference. Two other criteria: the Bulls have conceded 30 assistants for the fourth time this season and they have won the turnover 20-17. The offense rolls.
With the win, they move to 7-8. Next: The Lakers Saturday at the United Center.
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