Dec. 22--The Bulls dropped to 15-11 with their home loss to the Nets, their third straight. Here are three observations.
The response following 48 hours of team turmoil was poor
Following the morning shootaround, both Jimmy Butler and coach Fred Hoiberg talked about Butler's strong words about Hoiberg's coaching style and subsequent meeting as an opportunity for team growth. Instead, the Bulls lost to a team that had dropped 12 of 13 road games and was finishing a back-to-back.
That's extremely troubling, which is why Hoiberg called it a "bad, bad loss." Players were at a loss to describe another inconsistent effort that featured Hoiberg using his sixth different lineup and trying Nikola Mirotic at small forward for Tony Snell.
Mirotic shot 3-for-9 for eight points. Bobby Portis, who took Mirotic's frontcourt minutes, took nine shots in 14 minutes and looked more like a rookie than a savior. And Derrick Rose had one of his poorer defensive games while committing the same number of turnovers as field goals with three.
With the upcoming schedule turning more difficult and Joakim Noah's status doubtful after he heard his shoulder pop out of joint, this stretch won't get any easier.
The defense is showing signs of slippage
That's three straight opponents who have shot 45 percent or better and scored over 100 points. And the Pistons had hit the century mark in regulation before the four overtimes.
The Bulls still lead the league in opponents' field-goal percentage at .418. But the help defense mindset that had been so prevalent all season hasn't been as consistent of late.
The Bulls also allowed the Nets to grab 15 offensive rebounds, a problem area all season that had been better of late.
"The biggest thing was we help and we wouldn't be there for the next guy," Hoiberg said. "We were good at that for a while. The last couple of games we've gotten away from it. We'll get back to it (Tuesday at practice) and hopefully make improvements. If not, it could get ugly at Oklahoma City on Christmas."
The Bulls played with better pace
Perhaps the most frustrating aspect to the Nets' loss is the fact the Bulls finally showed some signs of embracing Hoiberg's style of play offensively. They shot 45.3 percent and consistently got into sets crisply and quickly. They tallied 16 fast-break points. Rose consistently crossed halfcourt near 21 seconds, Hoiberg's preferred time on the shot clock.
But the sense of urgency didn't translate to defense and rebounding. And that's a huge issue for this team, playing consistently in all areas on a nightly basis.
