© Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports
Billy Donovan says Chicago Bulls have to be better in clutch situations
The Chicago Bulls will have to figure out how to close out "clutch" time situations if they want to be a playoff team. That was evident again on Wednesday in a 111-115 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, a game that could have gone either way as it remained tied at 109-all with 56.6 seconds remaining.
DeRozan falters
Wednesday's matchup had all the makings of a DeMar DeRozan special. The 5-time All-Star was going toe-to-toe with the Pelicans' Brandon Ingram, who scored 16 points in the fourth quarter. A driving dunk tied the game at 109-all before Ingram unlocked it, 111-109, with a midrange jumper.
DeRozan had a shot at tying the game but missed a floater. After a free throw by Zion Williamson put the Pelicans up by three, 112-109, the Bulls forward fumbled the inbound pass. It was a costly mistake as time ticked away, and the Bulls were forced to foul Herb Jones, who made both free throws to put the Pelicans up by 5, 114-109.
"That was on me. I'll take it. It wasn't nobody else's fault. Just went off my leg. Should have caught it; hit my leg first. It's frustrating as hell not giving ourselves an opportunity to see what could've happened. It was just a couple of key mental mistakes," said DeRozan after the game.
The loss left the Bulls at 6-7. They are also the only team without a victory this season in "clutch situations," defined by the NBA as "the last five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime when neither team is ahead by more than 5 points."
Donovan sounds the alarm
Bulls' head coach Billy Donovan said that while these losses sting, it's still early in the season. He did, however, stress the importance of figuring out how to win these close games.
"These are opportunities for us to get better from and learn from. But I can't sit there and say it's been one thing," said Donovan.
The Bulls were ranked third last season in most "clutch" wins at 25-16, thanks to DeRozan's heroics.
Now, the Bulls are at 0-6, and it's apparent that they're missing that closer.
"One of the plays I thought was big, the ball got inbounded, and we turned the ball over; those things can't happen. We've got to be able to inbound the ball. Some of the end of game stuff has been a variety of things that have come to bite us a little bit," said Donovan.
