Presented by Nationwide Insurance Agent Jeff Vukovich
The Chicago Bulls evened their record at 1-1 with a wild 104-103 overtime win over the Toronto Raptors on Friday night at the United Centre.
“We had lulls, but we never gave in,” DeMar DeRozan said. “We persevered and fought until the end and gave ourselves a chance to win. And that’s what we did.”
Here are 10 observations from the win:
—DeRozan and Alex Caurso played heroes. DeRozan scored 18 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter and Caruso made several defensive plays down the stretch before sinking the game-winning 3-pointer with 2.3 seconds left in transition on a nice feed from Zach LaVine after Caruso hit Pascal Siakam at the other End blocked had end.
“I give Zach a lot of credit. He kept his head in the game and played an incredible pass to Alex. He could have tried to force his way in there and go to the rim,” coach Billy Donovan said. “It was good that he entrusted Alex with the passport.”
—Offensively, everything is a slog through two games, especially in the half court. The Bulls had several possessions where they had a hard time completing any passes at all. Add poor shooting and you get an ugly result. The Bulls scored six points in the first 7:12 of the fourth quarter and shot 37.4 percent overall, including 20 percent from 3-point range.
—DeRozan single-handedly brought the Bulls back to life. DeRozan used his pump-fake magic to repeatedly get to the free throw line, but missed the third of three free throws with 12.7 seconds left in regulation to tie the game – and ran into traffic in the ensuing scramble – and a free throw with 0.7 seconds left in regulation after Caruso made a Siakam tackle on an inbounds.
“Definitely win. That’s my mindset every fourth quarter,” DeRozan said. “Be aggressive. No matter what happened in the last three quarters. It’s time.”
—The Raptors opened the second half with an 11-0 run, extending a run that began in the second quarter to 23-0. The slow start in both halves, not to mention the slow start on Wednesday, makes it immediately clear how fit the starting lineup is. While it would be a huge surprise if Donovan made a move so early in the season on Saturday night in Detroit, it’s a move to keep an eye on.
—LaVine had his second straight rough night. After shooting 4-for-16 in the opening game, LaVine shot 3-for-14 and finished the night at minus-23. LaVine also took the stage for second-half warmups, wearing a lower back bandage and pad.
“It just got a little stiff,” LaVine said. “When you play against Toronto, you have to guard different positions. You guard the 4 and the 5 with the 3 and the 4. So it got a little tight. But we managed to figure it out.”
When asked if he planned to play in Saturday’s back-to-back game against the Pistons, LaVine said the team would evaluate it and find a solution on Saturday.
If LaVine plays, he will need to address his shooting issues early in the season.
“We’re all just trying to find a rhythm, including me of course,” LaVine said. “You work on a lot of things throughout the season. You try to find things that get you involved. I just didn’t find that in the first few games. I didn’t want to force anything either.”
“But of course I have to start getting things going. This is not the way I should act.”
—Williams was eliminated in the 8th minute and 29th second of the third quarter and did not play again. Williams played just 13 minutes and shot 1-for-5, adding three rebounds and two steals. His replacement, Torrey Craig, played 23 minutes.
“It’s probably a tough game for him considering we got off to such a slow start that I felt like I messed something up at the end. And the same thing happened at the start of the third period,” Donovan said. “I don’t think it was Patrick’s fault at all. It’s just that the group didn’t start off that well.”
—Craig arrived at the United Center wearing a Dennis Rodman T-shirt and then did his best Worm impersonation by creating extra possessions and attacking the offensive glass. The Bulls ranked 28th in offensive rebounds and 30th in second-chance points last season. Craig grabbed three offensive rebounds as the Bulls finished with 24 second-chance points.
—Nikola Vucevic was able to repeat his eight field goal attempts from the last game in the first half alone. He finished the game with 11 points and 12 rebounds on 4-for-15 shooting. He apparently became the main topic of Wednesday’s season opener when he and Donovan engaged in a heated exchange in the third quarter over Vucevic’s frustration with the offense. But it wasn’t about shots or even touches, but rather about offensive stagnation. Still, the Bulls made a concerted attempt to exploit Vucevic’s inconsistency more often, especially when Jakob Poeltl played just ten minutes in the first half with three fouls.
—In a difficult start, the Bulls missed their first five shots, including two 3-point attempts each from Coby White and Williams, and committed two turnovers. Worse, they failed to get out in transition after forcing two Raptors turnovers and became stagnant in the halfcourt. Donovan called his first timeout just three minutes into the game as the Raptors led 8-0. DeRozan scored on a drive after the timeout. But that didn’t stop the bleeding. The Raptors took a 16-4 lead and Donovan went to Craig and Caruso early, causing LaVine to stumble again in the second group. These moves, along with White’s attack as part of a strong stretch, completely turned the script on its head. Until a dunk from OG Anunoby just beat the buzzer in the first quarter, the Bulls were enjoying a dominant 20-0 run. Caruso accepted two charges. Craig added offensive rebounds or tips for three additional possessions, one of which led to his own three-pointer. White also scored four points and fed Vucevic during the run for a traditional three-point play.
DeRozan guaranteed a better performance. It didn’t come early. The Bulls got off to a miserable start before clamping down on defense and going on a dominant 20-0 run. DeRozan is not one to use empty words or make empty promises. He said the Bulls performed better because he saw their expert response to Wednesday’s disastrous season-opening loss. Usage wasn’t the problem, especially on the defensive side. The execution was. The Bulls had 17 turnovers.
—Both coaches won challenges and thus received a second challenge. In Donovan’s case, the Bulls were able to turn White’s attack on Poeltl into a three-point play because White scored on that play. Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic used his second challenge unsuccessfully. Just using the second challenge cost a time out under the new rules. Donovan followed suit in the fourth quarter, winning his second tackle, keeping the Raptors away from the free throw line and helping LaVine avoid his fourth foul.
Click here to follow the Bulls Talk Podcast.