Another poor effort from Bulls
Surprising news rocked the Eastern Conference on Friday afternoon when the first-place Cleveland Cavaliers decided to fire coach David Blatt and replace him with assistant Tyronn Lue.
It's not the first time a coach has been fired after leading a team to the Finals. Friction between Blatt and LeBron James had been apparent since early last season, so it's not a total shock, but the Cavs are rolling along with a 30-11 record.
Lue's debut will come Saturday on national television against the Bulls. So the Bulls had extra motivation to start their two-game road trip on a good note Friday in Boston.
Instead, it was more bad basketball by the Bulls as they lost 110-101 to the Celtics at TD Garden. The Bulls (24-18) have now lost six of their last eight games and now must play the second-leg of a back-to-back against a rested and attentive Cavaliers squad.
Blatt was always an odd fit for James' homecoming in Cleveland. Though he grew up in Massachusetts, Blatt made his name coaching internationally. After success in Russia and Israel, the Cavs head job was his first experience in the NBA.
Before Friday's game, Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg reflected on the news.
“Such a good man,” Hoiberg said, according to espn.com. “Last year at Iowa State he welcomed me to his training camp and went there, sat in his office, talked to me, gave me film on a bunch of stuff. Just a really good person. I think (he's) a heck of a basketball coach. It's a tough day. He was great to me when I got into this league. It's tough news.”
The Bulls didn't make the day any easier for Hoiberg, essentially following their recent blueprint for failure to the letter.
Slow start? Check. Give up 60 points in first half? Check. Poor shooting and low assists? Check. Almost no help from the supporting cast? Check.
The Bulls trailed 64-49 at halftime, but started to chip into the lead early in the fourth quarter. Jimmy Butler hit 4 straight free throws to cut the margin to 97-96 with 4:58 left.
After getting a defensive stop, the Bulls had a chance to take the lead, but Nikola Mirotic turned the ball over, then the Bulls missed four straight long jumpers. That was the opening Boston needed to produce an 8-0 run and put the game on ice.
Butler skipped shootaround because of flu-like symptoms. But he answered the bell and delivered a strong performance with 28 points and 14 rebounds. Derrick Rose also played well, with 27 points.
Pau Gasol added 18 points and 11 boards, but there wasn't much else on the score sheet. Mirotic went 1-for-7 from the field. Doug McDermott and Tony Snell combined to score 2 points in 40 minutes of action.
The Bulls shot 42.7 percent from the field, finished with a season-low 11 assists and coughed up 20 turnovers.
“We're not giving that extra effort to be a championship team right now,” Rose told reporters after the game, stating the obvious.
Maybe a night in Cleveland and fear of getting embarrassed in the first ABC prime-time telecast of the season will coax a better effort from the Bulls.
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Bulls scouting report
Bulls vs. Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena, 7:30 tonight
TV: ABC
Radio: ESPN 1000-AM
Outlook: In the battle of two teams that lost at home to Golden State by more than 30 points this week, Cleveland (30-11) has a two-game win streak, having bounced back to beat Brooklyn and the L.A. Clippers. The Cavs have gone 12-3 with PG Kyrie Irving in the lineup. He returned on Dec. 20 from the leg injury suffered in last year's Finals and is averaging 16.1 points. As usual, LeBron James leads the way for Cleveland with 25.0 points, 7.1 rebounds and 6.2 assists. PF Kevin Love is averaging 15.7 points and 11 rebounds, while SG J.R. Smith is at 12.2 points. These teams haven't met since opening night at the United Center when the Bulls won 97-95 on Oct. 27. Nikola Mirotic was high-scorer for the Bulls that night with 19 points.
Next: Miami Heat at the United Center on Monday, 7 p.m.
— Mike McGraw