Bulls no match for Nuggets as offensive struggles continue |
DENVER - It is starting to become a broken record for the Chicago Bulls (2-5). This team plays great defense most of the game, but can't score consistently or shoot the ball from distance. I know we are only seven games into the NBA season, but one more game puts us 10% into the season, and the same offensive concerns from last year are still sitting here this season. Something has to change if this team wants to go anywhere, but judging by what we have seen this season, that change doesn't appear to be coming anytime soon.
Coming off another heartbreaking loss on Friday to the Nets as part of the inaugural season tournament, the Bulls were back on the court Saturday for the back end of a back-to-back against the defending NBA Champion Denver Nuggets (6-1) at the Pepsi Center. For those wondering if the Nuggets may suffer from what they call an NBA Championship hangover, all they have done is get off to a 6-1 start this season, including 4-0 at home, as they appear to be just as good if not better than their team from last season. For the most part, the Bulls gave the Nuggets everything they could handle and more in the first half, as their defense set the tone in the first quarter before the offense started to pick things up in the second. That alone helped the Bulls grab a 53-51 lead at the break as they played arguably their best half of basketball this season. Then came the second half, in particular the third quarter, where the Bulls offense not only went quiet, but the defense started to fall apart at the wrong time. Denver not only outscored the Bulls 35-21 in the third but then 37-27 in the fourth as a narrow first-half lead by the Bulls turned into a lopsided defeat as the Nuggets remain perfect at home with an impressive 123-101 victory. When the Bulls are at their best, the Big Three leads the way from start to finish, but when they are at their worst, it is the Big Three that tends to struggle. That was the case last night as Nikola Vucevic led the way for Chicago with 19 points, but just seven rebounds. Vucevic is a good enough player to lead the team in scoring in some games, but when he does that by scoring less than 20 points, your offense is in trouble. A big reason for the Bulls offensive struggles in this one was the lack of scoring from Demar Derozan and Zach Lavine as the duo didn't even combine for 30 points. For just the second time this season, DeRozan was held under 20 points as he finished with 17 points while also adding six assists. Lavine, on the other hand, has been much more consistent as of late, but still needs to play to the level he is capable of. Another horrible night shooting the basketball led to Lavine finishing with just 12 points while adding four rebounds and dishing out four assists. Given his lack of production, the Bulls needed to get more production from other players, and Jevon Carter was the one guy who stepped up in a massive way. Seen as a player who could start once the season got underway, Carter has been carving out his role off of the bench so far this season, and with 16 points, he delivered his best game as a Bull so far. Considering the Bulls had 35 points from the bench, he nearly scored half of their points as Patrick Williams, and his seven points was the only other player to put up more than five points. Coby White added 11 points to give the Bulls four starters with double figures, but that was nowhere enough to top the Bulls. As expected, the Nuggets will go as far as the MVP takes them, but even when he doesn't have the game he typically has, Jokic still makes an impact. Jokic led the way for both sides on Saturday as he put up 28 points, pulling down 16 rebounds and dishing out nine assists for a near triple-double. Jokic has been a triple-double machine over the past five seasons, and there is a reason why he is always in the MVP conversation. A big reason for the Nuggets and their overall success the past few seasons has been the surrounding cast they have put around Jokic, and Michael Porter Jr came up huge on Saturday. The former No. 1 overall pick from the University of Missouri dealt with injuries early in his career but has now turned into a great player as he added 27 points and gave Denver two players who outscored anyone on the Bulls. When that happens, you will be hard to beat, but the Nuggets had far more than just those two that produced on the court. Aaron Gordon put forth a massive double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 10 points to give the Nuggets four starters with at least 10 points. You also had Collin Gillespie (16) and Julian Strawther (10) coming through with great games off of the bench as the Nuggets proved to be too much for the Bulls yet again. The scariest part of this overall outcome is that the Nuggets dropped more than 120 points without much production from Jamal Murray. Arguably, their second-best player, the Bulls, did a great job making his life difficult, holding him to two points, but he did only play 10 minutes, which goes to show you how good this Denver team will be once he gives them more production on the court.
