Boozer has big night in Bulls' win
While the Bulls rolled past the Minnesota Timberwolves 108-91 on Wednesday night, power forward Carlos Boozer piled up 24 points and 14 rebounds.
It was his highest-scoring game since Feb. 23 and best rebounding night since Jan. 28.
Was this because Boozer finally is starting to feel healthy after sitting out with a sprained ankle earlier this month? Was it a product of Darko Milicic and Minnesota's miserable interior defense? Or did it help that center Joakim Noah skipped the game to rest a mild sprained ankle?
All three explanations might have contributed to Boozer's quality night. Coach Tom Thibodeau thought getting healthy played the biggest role.
“I think for Carlos, the last two days he's practiced really, really well,” Thibodeau told reporters after the game. “I think he's starting to get healthier. When he's healthy and he's practicing hard, he's going to play well. He's proven that.”
In the previous two games, Boozer averaged 14.5 points, 10 rebounds and shot better than 50 percent. So he's hardly been unproductive.
Boozer is a great finisher around the basket, but he hasn't spent much time setting up in the low post and going to work offensively, not like he used to do with Utah.
He also doesn't have the same chemistry in the pick-and-roll with Derrick Rose that he acquired in five seasons on the Jazz with Deron Williams, but that's understandable.
Rose was ready to play, piling up 23 points and 10 assists in just 31 minutes. Luol Deng and C.J. Watson each added 13 points.
The Bulls (54-20) bounced back from Monday's disappointing home loss to Philadelphia. Considering how Thibodeau criticized the team's practice habits after that performance, an easy win over the struggling Timberwolves (17-58) seemed inevitable.
The Bulls shot 50.6 percent from the field, went back to shooting well from 3-point range (8-for-19), piled up a 50-34 rebound advantage, and dished out 31 assists.
“I thought it started yesterday (at practice),” Thibodeau said. “I thought our shootaround was intense; I thought it was serious. I thought our locker room was serious, and I thought our start of the game was serious.
“They're a team that can put points on the board if you're not ready for them. I thought we established a defensive mind-set and established our defensive game plan, and that got us going. I thought it made us aggressive.”
NBA rebound leader Kevin Love returned after missing three games with a groin injury. He grabbed just 9 boards in limited minutes but led the Timberwolves with 16 points.
Before the game, Love endorsed Rose, a summer workout partner, for MVP.
“You look at what he's done with his team, it's tough to argue D-Rose isn't the MVP,” Love said.
“When they break from the huddle, everybody's in. You can tell everybody has the utmost respect for each other and they're all in it to win it. In that regard, I envy that. I salivate for that. I like that a lot.”
Timberwolves assistant coach Bill Laimbeer was a member of the Bad Boy Detroit Pistons who used to beat up on Michael Jordan's Bulls until finally losing in the 1991 conference finals. During a radio interview Wednesday, Laimbeer was tepid in his praise for Rose.
“Derrick Rose has a lot to learn also as far as getting his teammates more involved. He takes the ball a lot himself these days,” Laimbeer said on WMVP's Waddle and Silvy Show.
“But he's a very aggressive player; he's fast, he's strong, and he has the great skill set to be very successful. To compare (Rose with Jordan) would be a stretch at this point.”