Brooks leads Bulls' second unit revival
Watching Bulls backup guard Aaron Brooks, it doesn't take long to pick up on his go-to move.
Brooks' specialty is the driving, arm-extended bank shot. Even though he stands well below his listed height of 6 feet, Brooks is able to find the perfect combination of speed plus arm angle to get the shot up and in against much taller opponents.
That is, unless New Orleans center Anthony Davis is roaming the paint. Brooks was clearly leery of the long-armed Chicago native's presence on Saturday at the United Center.
“Of course. That's the first thing you do when you drive. You look for Anthony Davis,” Brooks said with a laugh. “When I see him gone, that's my time to attack. When he came toward me, I tried to kick it out to a 3-point shooter. Your eyes are always peeled for him. My little floater, I just knew I was going to get it off (in Saturday's game) and he blocked it.”
Brooks found his best opportunity to get to the rim late in Saturday's contest. With Pelicans forward Dante Cunningham providing the help defense and Davis on the wrong side of the lane, Brooks banked in the game winner with 40 seconds remaining.
The final basket capped off a game-saving performance from Brooks. He scored 15 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter as the Bulls erased a 6-point deficit to win 98-94.
“With Pau (Gasol) out there, it's hard to help off him because he can shoot so well,” Brooks said. “It just goes by making the right decisions. If you don't see (Davis), you shoot it. If you do see him, it means somebody else is open.”
Brooks has been at the forefront of an interesting Bulls transformation in the last two games. The second unit of Brooks, Joakim Noah, Nikola Mirotic, Doug McDermott and Kirk Hinrich has come alive in wins over the Clippers and Pelicans. They played with pace, moved the ball and became an example for what first-year coach Fred Hoiberg wants to accomplish.
And they've earned more playing time. Except for some brief defensive switches, Brooks played the entire fourth quarter in each of the last two games. Oddly enough, he didn't play at all in the previous three contests as Hoiberg searched for the right combination and favored E'Twaun Moore.
“We wanted to get a guy who can get downhill out there, get into the paint,” Hoiberg said. “We're better when that ball touches the paint, whether we can get to the rim or spray it out for a 3. That's what Aaron provides for us.”
In fact, Brooks can fill two needs for the Bulls — drive into the paint or stay outside and knock down 3-pointers. He went 3-for-6 from long range on Saturday. Brooks has endured plenty of highs and lows during his NBA career, so the three-game layoff didn't bother him much.
“You just want to help out the team, but it's a long season,” he said. “I used that time productively, got some extra conditioning in, some extra shots and it was OK with me.”
Now the next step for the Bulls is to try to get the starting unit playing more like the second string. Too often, the starters bog down into a jog-it-up, dribble-in-one place mode.
“Those guys have really developed a nice chemistry out there,” Hoiberg said of the second unit. “We're getting into our set and if it's not there and something breaks down, the second group is doing a great job of getting into another action, to keep playing.
“And that happens on a lot of possessions. As opposed to just standing and getting the ball to one person and holding it, we continue to cut and move. That's why that second group has had a lot of success lately.”
Because the second unit is playing so well together, Hoiberg is not planning any lineup changes right now. The Bulls hit the midpoint of their five-game homestand Monday when they host lowly Philadelphia. The 76ers were 1-23 heading into Sunday's game at Toronto.
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Bulls scouting report
Bulls vs. Philadelphia 76ers at the United Center, 7 p.m. Monday
TV: Comcast SportsNet
Radio: ESPN 1000-AM
Outlook: Most fans are familiar with the NBA's feel-bad story of the year. The perpetually rebuilding Sixers owned a 1-23 record heading into Sunday's contest at Toronto. One bright spot for Philadelphia is rookie forward and Chicago native Jahlil Okafor, who is averaging 17.3 points and 7.9 rebounds. Second-year C Nerlens Noel (10.3 points, 8.0 rebounds) can be a handful on defense. The Sixers are the league's lowest scoring team at 91.0 ppg. The Bulls won at Philadelphia 111-88 on Nov. 9 and have won six straight at home in the series.
Next: Memphis Grizzlies at the United Center on Wednesday, 7 p.m.
— Mike McGraw