After failing to score a single point on Sunday night in the Chicago Bulls’ loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, Josh Giddey came out looking like the energizer bunny.
The lead guard attempted to set the tone early with his uptempo play and decision-making. He ended up scoring or assisting on 14 of the team’s first 17 points, paving the way for Chicago to go up by double digits midway through the first quarter. It was an impressive start … but not one that rubbed off on his teammates.
While the Bulls held the Clippers to 18 points in the opening quarter, they only finished with 25 points of their own. Los Angeles quickly made them pay for not creating a larger cushion and used three straight transition buckets to grab a 32-27 lead roughly 4 minutes into the quarter. Norman Powell sank a layup, Terance Mann soared for the slam, and Kevin Porter Jr. followed with a dunk of his own. Fastbreak scores ultimately proved to make a significant difference in the quarter. The Clippers entered halftime with a 15-5 advantage in this department, as well as a +10 edge in points in the paint.
Meanwhile, Chicago’s offense remained ice-cold. Nine of their 17 made field goals in the first half came from behind the arc. They shot just 34.7 percent from the field and walked into the locker room down 50-48.
Giddey must have handed Zach LaVine his batteries during the break. The Chicago Bulls’ leading scorer put together an explosive third quarter. By the 3:30 mark, he was single-handedly outscoring the Clippers 15-12. We watched him drain back-to-back threes, finish strong through traffic, and deliver one of his best dunks of the season.
Take a look:
Add in a few nice buckets from Talen Horton-Tucker and the second unit, and the Bulls were suddenly up 18 points. They outscored Los Angeles a staggering 36-16 in the quarter and held them to 6-26 shooting. More specifically, the Clippers were 4-12 in the paint and 2-13 from three. While the Bulls’ deserve credit for playing some engaged defense, there is no question the Clippers looked like they were struggling to keep up on the backend of the back-to-back.
While Los Angeles toyed with the idea of a comeback, LaVine was too motivated to let that happen. He drained a three immediately after the Clippers cut it to an 11-point game, passing the 30-point threshold for the 13th time this season. The Clippers would throw one more punch with old friend Derrick Jones Jr. making it a 9-point game with 3:24 remaining, but then Josh Giddey showed back up. Over the next three Bulls possessions, he drained two free throws, assisted Talen Horton-Tucker for the slam, and snatched an offensive rebound for the putback. The Bulls basically sealed their 112-99 victory there, snapping their five-game skid.
Player Grades
Zach LaVine – A
Stats: 35 PTS, 11-21 FG, 5-12 3PT, 8-10 FT
Zach LaVine shined like a star tonight. While it wasn’t the prettiest game for his teammates, he embraced the challenge and did all of the heavy lifting. He completely tore apart the Clippers’ defense and looked determined to break the Bulls out of their slump.
Josh Giddey – A
Stats: 18 PTS, 10 REB, 9 AST
This was easily one of Josh Giddey’s best games of the season. Not only was he aggressive scoring downhill, but his decision-making and consistent effort on the glass helped ensure LaVine’s efforts didn’t go to waste. He was a +17 on the night, and you could tell.
Matas Buzelis – A
Stats: 5 PTS, 4 REB
Why does he get an A after shooting 1-6 from the field and only playing 12 minutes? Because he reportedly committed to the dunk contest tonight!
Talen Horton-Tucker – B+
Stats: 18 PTS, 3 AST
While it may not have been a particularly efficient performance for Talen Horton-Tucker, his microwave scoring off the bench was much-needed tonight with Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu sitting out.
Nikola Vucevic – C-
Stats: 14 PTS, 8 REB, 4 AST
This game was set up perfectly for Nikola Vucevic to dominate. Ivica Zubac was missing his first game of the season, leaving the Clippers with either Mo Bamba or a small-ball lineup. Instead, Vucevic shot only 6-15 from the field and 1-5 from downtown.
Box Score
Check out the full box score here.
