Coach Jim Boylen constantly stresses the importance of “toughness.” But time and time again, the Bulls have imploded with second-half meltdowns.
Not Wednesday.
The Bulls overcame an 18-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Wizards in overtime.
It makes one wonder: Where has this fight and toughness been all season?
Though they’ve had some solid fourth-quarter wins this season, the Bulls have more often than not failed to finish out games this season. Just take Monday’s loss to the Thunder as an example. The Bulls blew a 26-point lead in the second half.
But in Wednesday’s game, the Bulls were resilient down the stretch on both ends of the court.
It was a total team effort with four of their five starters finishing in double-digit scoring. And what really stood out is that guard Zach LaVine played like a leader, and forward Lauri Markkanen scored 31 points.
This is what the Bulls could be. But very little this season has gone according to plan, beginning with the start of their season.
The Bulls had a golden opportunity to rake in wins thanks to a relatively soft schedule in . Instead, they blew it by going 10-9 against teams who are under .500 this season, entering Thursday.
The front office made it clear that the goal for this season was to make it to the playoffs. Anything short would be a disappointment.
Thirty games into the 2019-20 season, no one really knows what to make of the Bulls, who are 11-19.
The Bulls are last in offensive efficiency and tied with the Knicks for the worst field-goal percentage in the league.
It doesn’t help that two of the team’s main foundational pieces have struggled this season. LaVine has made some questionable and regrettable late-game decisions, while Markkanen has spent most of this season struggling with an uncharacteristic funk. Wednesday’s game was Markkanen’s first 30-point performance since the season opener.
The Bulls have also dealt with injuries to Otto Porter Jr. and Chandler Hutchison.
Though the Bulls’ victory over the now 8-18 Wizards doesn’t mean much of anything, it does give them momentum to build off of heading into their next two games against the Pistons and Magic, both of whom are in a similar position as the Bulls.
Or at least that’s what point guard Tomas Satoransky, who scored 17 points in his return to the District, told reporters Wednesday he’s hoping for.
