Dalen Terry supplied a spark of optimism for the Chicago Bulls of their first recreation of the preseason, however there’s nonetheless a lot to repair as they put together to start out the season with out level guard Lonzo Ball.
The bench unit led a thunderous second-half comeback, however the Bulls fell 129-125 of their preseason opener in opposition to the New Orleans Pelicans Tuesday evening on the united Center. The opening half of the sport painted a stark image of ongoing flaws the Bulls nonetheless haven’t fastened after the offseason.
Here are 4 takeaways from the primary Bulls outing of the season.
1. Dalen Terry makes an impression.
The rookie shortly received over Bulls followers in his preseason debut. Terry got here off the bench within the second half, scoring 11 factors to steer the Bulls to a 23-point comeback to regain the lead with 4 minutes to spare.
The Bulls in the end fumbled the lead, however Terry proved his potential to vary a recreation, ending with seven rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Terry sparked the Bulls in transition via his defensive strain, stealing the ball and slamming down a dunk in a full-court breakaway within the fourth quarter to push the Bulls forward by 4 factors.
2. Defense flounders in first outing.
The Bulls protection disintegrated underneath strain, permitting the Pelicans to attain 40 factors within the first quarter and a complete of 70 factors within the first half.
The Pelicans carved via the Bulls’ nonexistent inside protection, scoring 62 factors within the paint regardless of a robust efficiency from Nikola Vučević, who registered 4 blocks.
Zion Williamson overwhelmed the Bulls protection, scoring 13 factors earlier than sitting out a lot of the second half. The Bulls stay an undersized group even with the signing of Andre Drummond within the offseason. As a consequence, the protection struggled to change within the choose and roll in opposition to Williamson, permitting the middle to wreak havoc across the rim.
“We’ve got a long way to go defensively, there’s no question about that,” coach Billy Donovan stated after the loss.
3. Starting level guard place stays huge open.
Tuesday’s recreation didn’t assist present solutions to the Bulls’ wide-open race for a place to begin guard to exchange Ball in the beginning of the season.
Poor ball safety plagued the group all through the sport — the Bulls turned the ball over 26 instances whereas registering 27 assists, stalling in half-court offense all through the primary half.
Zach LaVine contributed 4 of these turnovers and Goran Dragić supplied three extra. Alex Caruso supplied probably the most constant hand mentioning the ball with no turnovers and one help, however nonetheless went 0-for-2 from 3-point vary.
Coby White suffered a left thigh contusion lower than three minutes into his entrance to the sport and remained sidelined for the remainder of the evening regardless of requesting to return within the second half.
Donovan nonetheless hasn’t dedicated to a place to begin guard for the common season and earlier than the sport, he emphasised the fluidity of the position for the Bulls whereas Ball stays sidelined.
“I’m not that wrapped up in who’s starting or not,” Donovan stated. “The combination of players and how those guys all gel and mesh and function together would be more important with where we are at that spot.”
4. Jury out on Patrick Williams.
Williams knew the problem when he entered the preseason — show he can compete with the aggression required of an NBA starter.
But Williams remained timid in opposition to the Pelicans, getting outmuscled repeatedly on the rim by Williamson and solely amassing 5 rebounds. The ahead pulled the set off with barely extra confidence than final season, however his ending wasn’t clear sufficient to make an impression.
Williamson completed 2-for-7 capturing, making a lone 3-pointer within the third quarter.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com