The Bulls overconfidence lead to their loss against the Pelicans. The Bulls blew a 20-point lead last Monday and lost 123-115 to the New Orleans Pelicans. Bobby Portis had come in for a foul plagued Nikola Mirotic and provoked a turnaround with 11 first quarter points, Portis led the Bulls in the game with 20 points and 11 rebounds while playing a team high of 31 minutes. Fred Hoiberg, Bulls Head Coach, now has a huge problem seeing how much Portis can contribute to the team. Will he likely be benched or not?
“Bobby was awesome, especially that first half,” Hoiberg said. From a to a 65-45 lead late in the second quarter and 66-54 at halftime. “Came off the bench, gave us such a great lift. Hitting shots, banging around, getting offensive rebounds. I thought he battled defensively. Had a tough matchup out there at times with Anthony Davis (26 points in 27 minutes). But great learning experience for him. Really happy with Bobby and the overall energy he’s given us every time he steps on the floor.”
Nba rookies usually don’t play at all during their first year in the league. Hoiberg said he’ll play those who deserve to play no matter the reputation or status, and Portis is already is building a strong case with his relentless rebounding and a nice shooting touch.
The 6’11 Portis made a pair of threes Monday and is 3-7 on threes. He’s only shooting 39 percent overall, but at 11 of 13 at the free throw line has shown he has a reliable shooting stroke.
McDermott finished the night with 17 points on 5-11 shooting, 3-9 from three to go along with eight rebounds. Ever since that second half against the Milwaukee Bucks last week, everything has begun to click for McBuckets. The confidence in his game right now is palpable. He’s making the right reads offensively, whether it’s coming off a screen for a shot, his cuts through the defense or finding the open man on the drive. McDermott is still a work in progress on defense, but his game his trending upward.
“I’m so excited this year, with a new coach I hope we get over Lebron James and the Cavaliers because they are the only ones who can stop the Bulls,” Justin Im Senior said.
The rookies this season are leading the bulls. I can’t wait for what’s in store when Derrick Rose and other starters play next week in their first season game opener against the Cavaliers.
