Nov. 06--The Bulls improved to 4-2 with their 104-98 home victory over the Thunder. Here are three observations:
Fred Hoiberg had a nice game
First, the Bulls' coach backed up his words to not be afraid to make lineup and rotation changes. Beyond inserting Doug McDermott for Tony Snell, he split up the pairing of Aaron Brooks and E'Twaun Moore for the most part, playing each alongside a starter, and dropped Nikola Mirotic's minutes in a bad matchup game for Mirotic. Hoiberg also increased minutes for an active Joakim Noah.
Then, down the stretch, Hoiberg repeatedly got the matchup he wanted in a pick-and-roll game with Derrick Rose and Pau Gasol, victimizing poor defender Enes Kanter.
The Bulls have now defeated two teams many pick to be in the NBA Finals
Yes, both victories came at home. Yes, Thursday's could've been partly attributed to a schedule assist, with the Thunder finishing four games in five nights. Whatever the case, the Bulls have proven they belong with the league's elite when challenged.
That doesn't excuse the defensive debacle in Charlotte. It does suggest this team has the talent, depth and tenacity to be competitive when it counts.
"We have to bring that same energy every single night no matter who we are playing against whether it's home or away," Jimmy Butler said.
Noah had his best game of the young season
The big man wouldn't go there when asked if he felt the same way, saying, "That's not me." Noah likes talking about his own performance about as often as the Bulls played defense in Charlotte.
But his energy changed the game. And he finished with four points, seven rebounds and four assists for a game-high plus-16.
"Jo's a huge energy guy," Butler said. "He does all the little things for us, making all the right plays. He doesn't get enough credit for what he brings to this team. Without Jo, we wouldn't be the team that we are."
