Bulls' offense still seems to get biggest boost from certain lineup
While the coaching staff has changed and a new point guard has been added, the Bulls have kept many of the same character traits they showed in previous seasons.
They still need a kick in the gut sometimes to prompt an increase in intensity, and they have trouble matching up conventionally with many opponents.
After falling behind by 17 points in each half Monday, the Bulls rallied within 2 points in the final seconds but couldn't prevent a 96-93 loss at Orlando.
Former Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz was a guest speaker at Tuesday's practice in Florida, where the Bulls stayed over before their Election Day road trip continues tonight in Cleveland.
This next part should sound familiar to Bulls fans: It took a smaller, three-guard lineup to get the offense rolling late in Monday's game.
The Bulls used Derrick Rose, Ben Gordon and Kirk Hinrich together down the stretch, with Andres Nocioni at power forward in place of slumping Luol Deng.
"It puts pressure on you," Rose said of the three-guard lineup. "Me driving, Kirk and Ben shooting. They drive, I'm cutting. It's a good lineup."
"I still don't think we're where we need to be, in terms of just playing off of each other and knowing what all three of us like doing on the court," Gordon said.
Some of the defensive mismatches created by the small lineups seemed to work in the Bulls' favor. The Magic went to center Dwight Howard against Drew Gooden early in the game while ignoring outside shooters Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu for the most part.
Gooden didn't come close to matching Howard's rebounds (15) or blocks (5), but he did score 21 points, 1 fewer than Howard.
Late in the game, Orlando went away from Howard and tried to exploit the 6-foot-10 Turkoglu against Hinrich, even though Turkoglu went 3-for-16 from the field.
The Bulls (2-2) have been able to average 94.3 points, even though they've often looked confused and uncomfortable on offense.
In the third quarter Monday, the Bulls committed turnovers on five straight possessions, leading to a 13-1 Magic run.
Coach Vinny Del Negro has tried to keep the offensive game plan simple to accommodate Rose, a 20-year-old rookie.
"I think we have offensive threats at every position, from the one to the five," Gooden said. "It's just making the right decision on when to shoot and when to penetrate and when to pass. We've got to get everybody on a string, but it will come in time."
In theory, this has been a promising start to the season because the Bulls figure to get better as the players become more comfortable with the offense and Rose gains experience.
"That was a good comeback," Rose said after Monday's game. "We showed heart out there. We are a young team and we are trying to get to know each other and play with each other.
"For us to go out there and come back like that really showed good signs."
<p class="factboxheadblack">Tonight's tipoff</p> <p class="News">Bulls vs. Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena, 7 p.m.</p> <p class="News"><b>TV:</b> Channel 26, ESPN</p> <p class="News"><b>Radio:</b> WMVP 1000-AM</p> <p class="News"><b>Update:</b> The Cavaliers improved to 2-2 by winning in Dallas on Monday. LeBron James has cut back his scoring so far, averaging 19.7 points, followed by Daniel Gibson at 15.0. Ben Wallace is averaging 7.3 rebounds and 2.7 points in 21 minutes per game. The Bulls have won two of their last three in Cleveland.</p> <p class="News"><b>Next:</b> Phoenix Suns at the United Center, 7:30 p.m. Friday</p>