April 06--The Bulls fell to 46-31 with Sunday's 99-94 road loss to the Cavaliers. Here are three observations.
The Bulls struggled to defend the 3-point shot, typically a strength.
Obviously, the Cavaliers hit some tough shots, including J.R. Smith's off-balance 41-footer and Kyrie Irving's 52-footer.
But Joakim Noah offered a surprising response afterward that underscores the occasional differences in his defensive role this season.
"I think I helped off Kevin Love a few times when I should not have," Noah said. "I'm so used to always being the help guy. When I am playing those stretch fours, I have to do a better job of staying at home with my man. Other than that they hit some tough shots; that happens. It's basketball."
If these teams meet in the playoffs, it will be physical.
Cavaliers coach David Blatt even accused the Bulls of going "overboard" with some of their defensive tactics on LeBron James. That seemed odd given James drew the only flagrant foul.
But Noah did foul James hard on one three-point play and Timofey Mozgov displayed the toughness that has somewhat negated a previous Bulls' edge in this matchup.
"It was a foul," Noah said of his play on James. "He was coming down the lane. I'd rather him shoot free throws than get a dunk. It's just basketball. I'm not trying to hurt anyone."
Jimmy Butler is the perfect defender to face James.
This isn't to suggest Butler will stop James, who recorded his first triple-double of the season. It's more an acknowledgement that Butler never gets fazed. He just keeps coming.
Throw in his ability to play physically against James and make him work for everything he gets and that's a needed quality over the course of a best-of-seven series.
"I thought Jimmy played well," coach Tom Thibodeau said.
