Vucevic drops 39 points as Bulls top Spurs |
SAN ANTONIO—No one will tell you that the Chicago Bulls (10-13) are a great team, but they may not be as bad as many thought they would be. This team was expected to be in the running for a top-five pick, which would be good for their future, knowing they can keep their first-round pick at that point.
Instead, you've got a team that doesn't always play well, but they play well enough to keep themselves in many games, as they do have the talent to stay in the play-in race most of the season. That may be what this front office wants, and if that's the case, it is what it is, but the Bulls will continue to be the Bulls whether the fans want to admit it or not. Looking for their second straight win, the Bulls traveled to the AT&T Center to take on the San Antonio Spurs (11-11). For the Bulls to win, they would have to get it done without Coby White who is still out nursing a sprained ankle. Fortunately for the Bulls, the Spurs were also shorthanded as their star Victor Wembanyama was not only out this game but could potentially miss an extended amount of time, which isn't good for their roster. You never want to see guys hurt or play teams shorthanded, but you play the games on your schedule, and the Bulls took care of business in this one, racking up the 139-124 win. This was one of those games in which the Bulls set the tone early, outscoring San Antonio 36-22 after one-quarter of play and never looking back. The remaining three quarters were about as balanced as possible, with the Bulls outscoring the Spurs by just one point, including a third quarter in which San Antonio outscored the Bulls by five. As impressive as the win was, what was more impressive was seeing this offense find a way to score nearly 140 points without one of their premiere scorers. Don't tell that to Bulls big man Nikola Vucevic, who put the team on his back. Vooch has been arguably the best player on the Bulls roster this season, and with a season-high 39 points and eight rebounds, his great season continued. Vooch has been on the trade block since the offseason, and should he continue to play at this level, he will have a very attractive market. With Zach Lavine being held to just 11 points and watching Josh Giddey and Julian Phillips being held under 10, there wasn't much production from the starting five as Vooch shouldered most of the load. Stepping up in place of the injured White is Ayo Dosunmu, who is looking to break out of his prolonged shooting slump. Dosunmu got off to a great start, scoring 11 points in the opening quarter and finishing the game with 27 points. He also pulled down 10 rebounds and dished out 11 assists, posting his first career triple-double in the win. Even with three of the Bulls' five starters being held under 12 points, Dosunmu and Vucevic combined for 66 points, which was nearly half of the team's overall production. That makes things much easier for a shorthanded team, as does having a bench with several great performances. Talen Horton-Tucker continues to go about his business, as he led the Bulls bench with 13 points on 50% shooting. He was one of three players to score in double figures off the bench as Dalen Terry had one of his better showings of the season with 12 points, while Matas Buzelis continues to see an increase in minutes by dropping 11 points. Jalen Smith was the only player to score off the bench with nine points, but that was more than enough for the Bulls to take out the Spurs. With the Spurs down their big star, they knew things were going to be difficult against a Bulls team that can score points in bunches. Like Chicago, they had plenty of production across the board, but none of their starters had more than 16 points, which is one of the biggest reasons they couldn't pick up the win. Jeremy Sochan led the Spurs starters with 16 points, adding 14 rebounds for another double-double. He was joined by Julian Champagnie, Chris Paul, and Stephon Castle, all of whom had finished with 12 points. Paul also came within one assist of a double-double, as that continues to be part of his game. Although the starters may not have had the production the Spurs were looking for, the same can't be said about the bench, particularly Keldon Johnson, who was a man on a mission. Johnson has bounced between reserve player and starter most of his career, but when the Spurs needed him the most, he delivered. Johnson was the big reason why San Antonio remained in this game throughout the second half, leading the Spurs with 28 points in 28 minutes off the bench and doing so on an efficient 11-17 shooting. He was joined by Devin Vessel and his 17 points, but the poor performance by the starters proved to be too much.
SECOND HALF SURGE PUSHES THE SKYFORCE PAST WINDY CITY
While the offense wasn't an issue for the Bulls in San Antonio, it was for Windy City as they fell to the Sioux Falls Skyforce 102-81. This game was much closer than the final score shows throughout the first half, but with the offense being held to 15 points in the third quarter and allowing the Skyforce to push their lead to double digits, it proved to be a deficit that was too much to overcome.
This was only the second game all season in which the Bulls (3-8) didn't have a 20-point scorer, as Adama Sanogo led the way with 16 points and 12 boards. Sanogo was expected to see minutes on the NBA roster this season, but for whatever reason, he struggled far more than he anticipated, leading to some ugly showings from the Bulls.
Sanogo was one of three players to land in double figures as he was joined by DJ Stewart, and he scored 14 points, with Marcus Domask chipping in with 11. When it comes to the Skyforce, it was all about Josh Christopher, who had a massive night across the board. Not only did he lead all scorers with 30 points, but he dished out five assists and pulled down six rebounds to put his full arsenal on display.
Christopher was backed by three more double-digit performers, including two in the starting five, as their production alone was too much for the Bulls to overcome. Nassir Little and Kel'el Ware each picked up 17 points in the starting lineup, with Ware also grabbing 12 boards. Sioux Falls also had Caleb Daniels add 10 points off the bench, which was too much for the Bulls to overcome.
