What should have been a manageable nine-game slate for the Bulls this month turned into a forgettable February.
Lose at New York on Saturday night and the Bulls will finish the month 1-8 and find themselves 20 games below .500. This month largely is a result of rampant injuries, which can’t be ignored but also aren’t solely to blame for this wayward season. Close observers know Chicago’s problems began long before injuries piled up.
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This season has had multiple pivotal moments, occasions in which the Bulls had chances to establish an identity as a rising threat in the East. Each time, they couldn’t. Now, this season can be boiled down to six games and four injuries.
Here are the top 10 moments that sabotaged this Bulls season.
Nov. 5: A lousy finish against the Lakers
This was the culmination of several deflating early-season defeats. The Bulls started 1-4 with road losses to the Hornets, Knicks and Cavs. They lost by 24 in the home opener against Toronto. And two nights after a fifth ludicrous loss in the season’s first seven games, that one at shorthanded Indiana, this happened. On the most anticipated night of the Bulls’ season, Chicago led by as many as 19 and held a 13-point advantage at the start of the fourth quarter. The Bulls promptly blew it. They were outscored 16-0 in fewer than four minutes of game time. L.A. then turned it into a laugher, building a 13-point lead before winning by six. It was Chicago’s fourth ugly finish in seven outings. This one will be remembered for that fateful fourth-quarter drought and the night Bulls coach Jim Boylen refused to call a timeout or re-insert his starters before the Bulls bled out.
Nov. 6: Otto Porter Jr. goes down at Atlanta
No one knew it at the time, but this, the ninth game of the season, would be Porter’s final contest for four months. He left this game in the final five minutes of the first half with a foot injury. The team announced it as a bruised left foot. Two weeks later, a second MRI exam revealed bone bruising that was said to be unseen on the original MRI. Two weeks after that (Dec. 6), a repeat MRI exam revealed “continued bone edema,” and Porter was scheduled to be re-evaluated in another two weeks — after a “brief” period of immobilization. Three days later, Porter underwent further examination by Dr. Bob Anderson, a foot and ankle specialist in Green Bay, Wis., who found a small fracture that had become more defined with repeated imaging tests. The team announced Porter would continue his recovery plan for four weeks before again being re-evaluated. Two days after Christmas, The Athletic’s Shams Charnia reported Porter targeted a return around the All-Star break. Two weeks after the break, we’re still waiting.
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Nov. 16: Beaten at home by bruised and battered Brooklyn
Among this season’s early disappointing trends was the Bulls’ tendency to lose games to teams missing their top talents. They fell to the Pacers at their place without a healthy Victor Oladipo, Domantas Sabonis and Myles Turner on Nov. 3. In some ways, this setback stung worse. The Bulls were at home. The Nets, on the final leg of a five-game trip, were without Kevin Durant (who hasn’t played all season), Kyrie Irving and Caris LeVert. Brooklyn still dominated the Bulls, leading by 13 in the first half before outscoring them 43-33 in the fourth quarter. Spencer Dinwiddie scored 20 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter. The Nets made 11-of-18 shots (61.1 percent) in the fourth quarter and 19-of-21 foul shots.
Nov. 22: Jim Boylen benches Zach LaVine against Miami
It was the benching heard ’round the NBA. Sort of. The anticipated return of Jimmy Butler in his United Center debut as a member of the Heat quickly turned controversial. A 13-0 start by Miami in the game’s first 3 1/2 minutes led to Boylen strangely yanking LaVine — and only LaVine. “I guess I was to blame for it,” LaVine said. “I’ve gotten pulled early before by him. I guess that’s just his thing to do.” Boylen explained that LaVine had three “egregious” defensive mistakes, which he declined to pinpoint. It became a tipping point in the occasionally bumpy relationship between head coach and star player. The Bulls never led that night and trailed by as many as 26 before losing by eight. LaVine took the high road throughout the ordeal, famously responding with a career-best 49 points in a fabulous come-from-behind win the next night at Charlotte. But this was the night Boylen lost a lot of goodwill with his leading scorer.
Nov. 27: No shame in San Francisco
A three-game West Coast trip began with what appeared to be a winnable, got-to-have-it game against the league-worst Golden State Warriors. The Bulls were only one game back of eighth, and this one stood as the Bulls’ best chance at victory. Golden State was without Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson (who hasn’t played all season), D’Angelo Russell, Kevon Looney and Damion Lee. The Bulls had everyone except Porter and Cristiano Felicio. And they lost by 14 to the wounded, 3-15 Warriors. The Bulls got torched by Eric Paschall and Omari Spellman, who combined for 38 points, 18 rebounds and three blocks. After the game, Boylen said there was no shame in losing the game. Three months later, with the Bulls injury ravaged and spiraling out of the playoff picture, Boylen would tell reporters he doesn’t anticipate being evaluated on his dismal win-loss record this season.
Jim Boylen asked how do you bounce back from this loss?
"No shame in this
Practice tomorrow have some turkey
Not the defining moment of the season" pic.twitter.com/llrwHy06uW— Ⓜ️arcusD ▶️ (@_MarcusD3_) November 28, 2019
Dec. 16: A gut-punch in OKC
For one half, everything clicked. The Bulls built a 21-point, first-quarter lead and extended it to 26 midway through the second. It was their best half of the season. Finally, the Bulls looked like a team with promise, a team functioning at the peak of its capabilities. But they blew it again. They squandered that huge lead and lost, getting outscored 60-38 in the second half — another troubling trend this season. Chicago’s net rating is -3.7 points worse in second halves. Similar collapses have taken place all season. This mid-December disappearing act in OKC will go down as the worst.
Dec: 23: Falling short at Orlando
This was their chance. After all the early-season chaos, the Bulls could have pulled into a tie with the Magic for eighth in the standings. Why that mattered two days before Christmas is anyone’s guess. But for the Bulls, it did. They made no secret from the start of the season that their goal this season was to make the playoffs. And after a 12-19 start, they still had everything in front of them. They could still accomplish their goal. First, they wanted this feel-good win. And they couldn’t get it. Chicago lost by eight, mustering only 14 fourth-quarter points in an otherwise hard-fought contest. But the significance was clear: this team, even after two months adjusting to a new system, wasn’t ready to be a consistent winner. The loss ended the Bulls’ two-game winning streak, the second of only three they’ve crafted this season. This would be as close as the Bulls got this year to sniffing playoff basketball.
Via @CodyWesterlund, Boylen today: "I’m not worried about my personal record or my win-loss record. I’ve been asked to establish a style of play, to have a disciplined approach and develop a young group of guys."
Total, and I mean total 180 from goals he gave to start the year: pic.twitter.com/eqqIJ9tGf7
— Stephen Noh (@StephNoh) February 26, 2020
Jan. 6: Wendell Carter Jr. goes down in Dallas
With 8 1/2 minutes remaining in the third quarter, Carter made an aggressive drive into the middle of the paint. He tried to flip up a layup over Mavs forward Dwight Powell, but Carter’s right foot landed on Powell’s. Carter collapsed to the floor as play went the other way. As Powell scored at the other end, Carter remained on the court, writhing in pain. He’d need to be rolled to the locker room in a wheelchair. The diagnosis: a high ankle sprain. The timetable: four to six weeks. Carter said Thursday that he likely will rejoin the lineup Saturday at New York. The Bulls posted a 105.6 defensive rating in 37 games with Carter, the sixth-best among all teams. Since Carter went down, Chicago is 8.1 points per 100 possessions worse and ranks 23rd in defensive rating over the 22 games that Carter has missed. Not all of that drop off is a byproduct of Carter. But most of it is.
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Jan. 23: Another mysterious Lauri Markkanen injury
This one came out of nowhere. An MRI exam conducted on Markkanen’s right hip revealed an early stress reaction of his right pelvis. With rest as the prescribed remedy, Markkanen was expected to miss four to six weeks, a lethal blow to a Bulls offense that ranked fourth-to-last in 46 games with him. Strangely, the Bulls have been a slightly more proficient scoring team in 13 games without Markkanen, boosting their offensive rating by 3.8 points per 100 possessions over that span. But his injury removed one of the more reliable scoring threats, even though Markkanen was never really reliable all year. But the pelvis injury also might have explained some of Markkanen’s prolonged struggles. He never looked like himself this season, save his 35-point, 17-rebound season opener at Charlotte. Markkanen’s list of ailments in his first three seasons is a long one: ankle, elbow, back, a scare tied to a rapid heartbeat and now a pelvis. The 22-year-old was on track toward completing his goal of appearing in all 82 games. But for the third straight season, Markkanen will fail to appear in even 70 games.
Jan. 31: Kris Dunn goes down in Brooklyn
Thirteen seconds into the game, Dunn’s right knee collided with the backside of a fallen Thaddeus Young. Dunn immediately began grimacing and would need to exit the game. An MRI exam revealed an MCL sprain, and Dunn was to be reexamined in two weeks after a period of immobilizing his knee and undergoing physical therapy. Two weeks later, the update was that Dunn would be re-evaluated in another four to six weeks. Now, there is concern Dunn won’t return at all. Back on that final night of January, Nets guard Kyrie Irving provided a preview of what was in store for the Bulls without Dunn. Irving went berserk, posting an opponent season-high 54 points on an incredible 19-of-23 shooting.
Since that contest, Raptors undrafted rookie guard Terence Davis and Sixers sharpshooter Furkan Korkmaz each erupted for 31 points against Chicago, Philadelphia star Ben Simmons registered a relatively easy 19-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist triple-double, Hornets guard Malik Monk scored 25, Washington guard Bradley Beal recorded a then career-best 53 points and Oklahoma City guards Chris Paul, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Dennis Schroder combined for 61 points, 16 rebounds and 17 rebounds on 20-of-38 shooting. Dunn was a legitimate defensive difference-maker in spurts. Without him, the Bulls have plummeted from the league’s ninth rated defense to 29th.
(Top photo: Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images)