Tom Thibodeau is not used to losing in Chicago. So it’s no wonder the former Bulls coach was hostile to the United Center, beating the referees and his players to a mediocre 110-102 loss to the mediocre Bulls.
The Bulls broke a three-game losing streak when Thibodeau’s club fell to a worst season below .500 under .500 against the season. The Knicks have lost five of six games.
They were as cold as a blizzard from the 3-point line and did not stand on the point late.
After a turnover from Julius Randle, Bulls guard Zach LaVine hit the dagger with 22 seconds left to pick up Chicago. LaVine, who would soon be on the trading block, scored 10 of its 21 points in the fourth quarter to return the Knicks from an 11-point deficit.
The Knicks shot 6 of 29 from the 3-point line and failed in the final two minutes. With 3:00 left, rookie Immanuel Quickley gave the Knicks their first lead since early in the first quarter when he immediately drained a 3-foot three-pointer, setting them up 95-94, but there was no magic no more.
Alec Burks (18 points) tied the game 100-100 with a minute left on a three-pointer. But Bulls point guard Coby White responds with a three-pointer and Chicago does not look back.
Randle finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Quickley added 16 points and seven assists, but elsewhere there was not enough support.
After a series of ten games in which he shot 50 percent, RJ Barrett looked windy in Windy City on the second night of a rugby match. He finishes with 14 points and misses all three of the three points, including one wide-ranging attempt late.
Thibodeau looks irritated about the match. After White introduced an open Derrick Gafford for an easy dunk, Thibodeau called a time-out and hit the team for disorganized defense.
Thibodeau was just his third return to Chicago since being sacked there in 2015 after an excellent five-year run as Bulls coach.
Thibodeau, a favorite in Windy City, was asked about the Chicago years before the game.
“I think it was a young team in 2010,” said Thibodeau, the NBA coach of the year. “And we had a lot of headroom. That’s why we added a very hungry group of players – Derrick Rose really took off. Joakim Noah ascended. Luol Deng played at an All-Star level. But the togetherness of that team, how hard they played, how together they played, I think it just resonated with the city. ”
The Bulls took an 11-point lead in the second quarter when Lauri Markannen, the 2017 lottery pick, killed the sluggish Knicks en route to 30 points.
Behind Markannen’s 23 points in the first half, the Bulls led 59-55 at halftime and shot 54.8 percent.
Markannen, the 7-footer from Finland, made 5 of 7 3-point shots in the half to finish 8 of 11 off the field.
Surging Randle did not distinguish himself in the defense against the European, but pumped in 18 points in the first half against him and made a series of mistakes. Randle made 7 out of 7 free throws in the half.
Markannen was the player with whom former Knicks president Phil Jackson was intrigued during the draft in 2017. Jackson tried to manage and trade a Kristaps Porzingis trailer, but took Frank Ntilikina at 8. Nttilikina, in his fourth season, is now out of the Knicks rotation.
Quickley put up eight points in the first half with six assists, though he didn’t shoot it well early after 25-point outings.
The Knicks trailed 11 again in the third quarter and Thibodeau slammed the referees.
A late Knicks rally reduced the deficit to three after three quarters. Randle was the facilitator. He pulls a double team inside and shoots the pass to Alec Burks, who beats in a corner 3.
The Knicks defense sharpened and forced a turnover that led to Randle’s supply to Nerlens Noel for a quick dunk, which brought the Knicks to 84-81 after three quarters.