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What we learned from the Chicago Bulls' hard-earned win over the Indiana Pacers
The Chicago Bulls made the right plays in crunchtime to hold off the Indiana Pacers, 112-105, and even their record up at 2-2. Here are a couple of takeaways from the hard-earned win:
Better ball movement
Whereas there were rumblings of missed opportunities in the Bulls' first three games, Monday night's game saw them move the ball better and find easier shots for each other. This was more evident down the stretch when the Bulls recognized the mismatches and found ways to take advantage of them.
“I think we tried to play to that identity for the whole game,” Donovan said. “In the last six to eight minutes, you’re going to start really looking at matchups. But I thought we tried to move the ball.”
As opposing defenders struggled to contain DeRozan, renowned for his ability to close out games, the Bulls distributed the ball and positioned him to exploit scoring opportunities.
“I didn’t feel like the ball stuck. Even if there was a possession where there wasn’t a lot of passes, it was decisive. The minute we start holding the ball and start sizing guys up, the floor shrinks, everybody is in help and it’s really hard to play like that,” Donovan added.
Found Vooch
Through three games, All-Star center Nikola Vucevic hasn’t played the brand of basketball that many have grown accustomed to. However, on Monday night, the versatile big man delivered 24 points, 17 rebounds, and three assists.
He was even more active down the stretch, delivering an and-one against an overwhelmed Tyrese Haliburton to give the Bulls a six-point cushion, 108-102, with under two minutes remaining in the game.
“My teammates did a really good job of trying to find me,” Vucevic said.
The Bulls’ ball movement was crisp down the stretch as DeRozan swung the ball to an open Vucevic on the right wing. With Haliburton closing out hard, Vooch drove the ball to the rim, drawing a foul and scoring the bucket.
“We were more patient reading what they were doing defensively,” Vucevic said. “We attacked certain matchups and attacked the paint. We didn’t shoot the ball extremely well but we stuck with it and kept attacking the paint. Now it’s: Are we going to do it consistently?”
