All the Chicago Bulls needed to break their five-game streak was a team that tries to lose more than they actually do. So we saw the Bulls almost completely dominate in a chanceless game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, one of the few teams with a worse record than them in the Eastern Conference.
Setting
The Bulls took advantage of the hype surrounding the acquisition of Nikola Vucevic at the trade deadline to find themselves in a series of games that went nowhere. Since switching to the win/shot ratio, the Bulls have gone 4-9, losing in Games 4 and 5.
Of course, Vucevic’s move isn’t just about this year, but there were also early murmurs about the acquisition of Vucevic and, to a lesser extent, Daniel Theis and Troy Brown Jr. Chicago would help make the playoffs this year. After losing against the Toronto Raptors, the Bulls desperately needed a win to stay in the playoffs.
Summary
The Bulls, still without Zach LaVine due to an NBA health and safety protocol, started the game swinging and played Vucevic from the start. They’ve been betting on Vuèeviè all night. The Cavaliers had no answer for the big man, who did score 25 points.
Lauri Markkanen continued the trend of big men with big nights against Cleveland. He scored 16 points on 50% from the field and from the three-point line. It wasn’t the best offensive performance, but the Bulls were efficient enough (50% from the field and 40% from deep) and the Cavaliers were scrappy enough to finish the game with Chicago winning by ten.
Plus, we think the Bulls social media team is excited about it.
THE BULLS WIN.
THE BULLS WIN.
THE BULLS WIN.
THE BULLS WIN.
THE BULLS WIN.
THE BULLS WIN.
– Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) April 18, 2021
Pop Quiz: Good defense or just a really bad team?
The Bulls held the Cavaliers to 96 points tonight. That’s good, right? In today’s NBA, scoring over 100 points is a given. The Bulls have scored 112.3 points per game, which ranks 17th in the league. So we can assume the Bulls really stopped the Cavaliers, right? Of course, if you’re reading this, you know I missed something.
The Cavaliers are averaging 103.9 points per game, which ranks 30th in the NBA. Nice math for you: There are only 30 teams in the NBA. That makes the Cavaliers the worst team in the NBA. But the Bulls aren’t suddenly inundated with defensive stops.
What now?
The Bulls play Monday at 6:30 p.m. CT against the fifth-seeded Boston Celtics. The game will be broadcast on NBC Sports Chicago. The Celtics are on a five-game winning streak, and a win against them would be a big boost for the Bulls in the playoffs. As you look forward to Monday’s game, find all the Bulls news, articles, podcasts and more on Bulls On Tap presented by .
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