Bulls click on all cylinders while rolling past Indiana
Dwyane Wade was fouled on a fast break in the third quarter, walked past the press table and declared, "I'm not as fast as I used to be."
He was a winner in Miami, though, and so far, he and Rajon Rondo have brought the right attitude to the Bulls. On Saturday against Indiana, the Bulls were the high-scoring, ball-sharing squad they were planning to be, rolling past the Indiana Pacers 118-101 at the United Center.
The Bulls (2-0) finished with 34 assists, led by Rondo with 13. Six players scored in double figures, led by Doug McDermott with 23. For the second straight game, the Bulls produced a large rebounding advantage (47-33).
"We've given ourselves the blueprint of what we need to do," Wade said in the locker room. "It's all a confidence-builder. I think the way we played is what we envisioned. We're not like other teams. This team is built differently than how teams are normally built.
"That doesn't mean we can't be successful. So I think we've bought into what our game needs to be and these first two games we've shown what it can look like. We've just got to take a picture of that and always understand and remember it."
The Bulls aren't radically different than other teams, but they probably won't have a dominant scorer. That's why moving the ball, creating open shots, running the floor and grabbing offensive rebounds are so important.
For two games in a row, the Bulls have executed the plan, but it's also just two games into a long season. Both Bulls' opponents, Indiana and Boston, were on the second leg of back-to-back games when they walked into the United Center. Next week will be interesting, with road rematches against the Celtics and Pacers, along with the return of Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah with the New York Knicks.
"We're just in sync," Taj Gibson said. "We've got some good leaders, everybody's just buying in. We've got a point guard (Rondo) who's really unselfish and he's getting everybody in the right position.
"We're real together. We're always meeting. We're always talking. We're always watching film. Rondo's telling people ways they can get better and the ways we can score. It's been great this whole preseason."
This game wasn't as close as the final score indicated. It turned in the second quarter when most of the reserves were on the floor. The Bulls' lineup of Wade plus four subs went on a 16-0 run to take a 43-26 advantage. McDermott, Nikola Mirotic, Michael Carter-Williams and Cristiano Felicio were the other players on the court at the time.
According to espn.com, when the Bulls left the floor with a 62-41 lead, it was their largest halftime edge in three seasons. The lead eventually peaked at 29 points before the Pacers (1-2) rallied during extended garbage time.
This is how the Bulls were hoping to play last season, but they never got there. Somehow, coach Fred Hoiberg's message hit home the second time around.
"It's good to see the things you emphasize that the guys are bought in on it," Hoiberg said. "That's what you want."
Added Gibson, "How Fred wants guys to play is perfect for the personnel we've got. He lets Rondo call the plays and Rondo's always looking for ways to get guys easy buckets. Everybody's moving the ball."
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