Bulls vs. Hornets

The Bulls took over in the third quarter behind excellent three-point shooting on their way to a comfortable 133-119 win.  

Neat Bullets:

• It was the first time the Bulls scored 100+ points through 3 quarters this season.
  
  
• The 133 total marked a season high in points.
  
  
• Vucevic finished 6-6 from downtown for his first 30-point game of the season, to go along with 14 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 blocks.
  
  
• DeRozan scored a relatively quiet 28 points, with Zach Lavine right behind him at 25.
  
  
• All 5 starters shot over 50% from the field, and the team shot 60% overall.
  
  
• The Bulls finished the night 14-30 from downtown.

Three Thoughts From Today's Game

1. Vucevic In All-Star Form Makes The Bulls Tough To Guard

While the Charlotte defense was softer than my midsection after the Thanksgiving holiday, you can still take away the fact that the Bulls are very difficult to guard when Vucevic is shooting with confidence and the other guys do what they've been doing all year.   Despite the Hornets lacking a legitimate big man to throw against Vucevic, Vooch did most of his work from the outside.  That is not to say he wasn't efficient from close-range.  He made quite a few layups and flip shots -- he just didn't make more than a handful of isolation post moves.  So far this season, those post moves have yielded poor results.  But for the Bulls to have a balanced attack, we should look to give Vooch those opportunities a little more often.  Here is an example of how he can positively influence the offense without even scoring:

Vucevic Creates Opportunities

Vucevic draws the double-team, and then the ball gets swung around for a score as the defense scrambles to recover.  It doesn't show up in the box score, but Vucevic creates the offense simply by posting up and being a scoring threat.  More of this!

2. Vucevic Was Exploited In The Pick-and-Roll

The Hornets attacked Vucevic in the pick-and-roll, and it resulted in at least 5 Charlotte threes.  Vucevic has a habit of sinking way too far into the paint and away from the action.  This means:

-- he leaves the guard hanging out to dry

-- he can't recover to his own man, so if that guy can hit a three we're in trouble

-- penetrating guards get a head of steam entering the lane, putting Vucevic at a major disadvantage, especially considering that he is not a prolific shot-blocker.

The Bulls will need to work with Vucevic on his pick-and-roll defense, or else change the tactic they employ in guarding it.

3. The Dreaded Zone

The Bulls continued to look uncomfortable in the very limited zone they saw today.  If the Knicks and Nets go zone, you better believe the close-outs will be harder.  The Bulls will need to remember the lessons of the past few games.  Flash to the middle, face the basket, if there's no shot, look for the lob to the baseline cutter.  If there's no lob, kick it to the corners and swing it around to get the defense chasing.  We need to be better than going one-on-some from the top-of-the-key.

Go Bulls

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