Wade from long range keys Chicago Bulls' opening-night win
Maybe Fred Hoiberg's best skill as an NBA head coach is teaching guys how to shoot from long range.
Hoiberg was a pretty good 3-point shooter in his day and was spotted working with Dwyane Wade after practice this week on the finer points of launching from behind the arc.
Lo and behold, Wade not only knocked down his first 3 attempts from 3-point range Thursday night, he buried a long one when it counted most.
Wade's 3-pointer with 26.3 seconds left held off a Boston rally and saved the regular-season opener for the Chicago Bulls. They beat the Celtics 105-99 at the United Center in Wade's first official game in a Bulls uniform.
"He's got that natural lean on his shot, which you don't want to mess with," Hoiberg said. "Obviously, he's going to put himself in the Hall of Fame with that shot. It's just tweaking a couple of things and not completely redoing it.
"He's bought into it, and for a guy that's been in the league as long as he has, that says a lot about him, that he's willing to add a new element to his game."
Wade shot just 15.9 percent from 3-point range for Miami last year in the regular season, though he improved considerably in the playoffs.
"Not saying I've never practiced on 3s before. I have," Wade said. "First of all, he hasn't said a word about any 3-point shot I have shot all preseason, not even if it's a bad one. He's given me confidence to keep shooting because he knows we're going to need guys to hit timely shots like that. It's worked."
The shooting seemed to be contagious. Jimmy Butler also went 4-for-6 from long range. In the fourth quarter, notoriously poor 3-point shooter Michael Carter-Williams drained a long one to give the Bulls a 10-point lead. The former rookie of the year has shot 25 percent from 3-point range in his NBA career.
Butler led the Bulls with 24 points, while Wade finished with 22. Taj Gibson had a nice game with 18 points and 10 rebounds, while Nikola Mirotic had a solid all-around game with 15 points and 9 rebounds.
The Bulls dominated the glass, winning the rebounds 55-36 and second-chance points 18-5. After the Bulls took an early 25-10 lead, the game got physical as the Celtics picked up their defense. Butler got into a mild scuffle with former Marquette teammate Jae Crowder in the second quarter.
The Bulls opened a 95-81 advantage with 7:13 left on Butler's running bank shot. But Boston responded with a 9-0 run and Hoiberg didn't send Wade back on the floor until the lead was down to 95-90.
Gibson hit a couple of baskets from in close to keep the Bulls ahead. The lead was at 2 points when Wade pump-faked Avery Bradley into the air and tried to draw contact. But Wade didn't get a foul call and the ball fell well short of the rim.
The Celtics took over with a chance to tie in the final minute. Mirotic got matched onto rookie Jaylen Brown and held his ground. Brown jumped in the air, couldn't decide what to do with the ball and ended up traveling. On the other end, Wade hit the 3 that put the Bulls in command, then forced a turnover by knocking the ball away from Gerald Green.
The Bulls officially signed 6-foot-6 shooting guard R.J. Hunter before the game. He already had a name plate installed in the Bulls' locker room.
Hunter was a late first-round pick, No. 28 overall, by Boston last year. He appeared in 36 games as a rookie, then was waived by the Celtics last week. He's probably best known for hitting a last-second 3-pointer to beat Baylor in the NCAA Tournament while playing for his dad at Georgia State.
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