Four lessons from Chicago Bulls' loss to Suns

After Monday's debacle of a fourth quarter against Phoenix, Chicago Bulls forward Taj Gibson talked about how every game is a lesson learned.

OK, so what should be Bulls learn from being outscored 42-24 in the fourth quarter and blowing a 16-point lead while losing to the Phoenix Suns at the United Center?

Upon further review, some things were just bad luck and others were a recurrence of familiar problems. The ugly fourth quarter breaks down like this:

• First of all, give credit where credit is due.

Suns guard Brandon Knight isn't generally considered a superstar who can take over a game. But Knight has come a long way in the past two years and was a difference-maker down the stretch.

In the first three quarters against the Bulls, Knight scored just 4 points and hit 2 of 6 shots. Then after missing his first shot of the fourth quarter, Knight got hot quickly. He fired off 3 long jumpers and 2 free throws, scoring 9 points in four possessions, while Phoenix trimmed an 11-point lead down to 4.

He finished with 17 points in the fourth quarter.

• Suns coach Jeff Hornacek took advantage of a familiar Bulls' weakness: The big men don't step up on the high screens, which can give guards space to shoot, and Knight did just that.

Knight's opening 3-pointer came when Derrick Rose got lost in transition defense, but Phoenix followed with three straight high screens, which gave Knight two open looks and a trip to the foul line.

This situation won't be easily solved.

Pau Gasol doesn't like to step up when his man sets a screen, and he probably won't change at this point in his career.

The thing is, Gibson was in the game during the first two Knight jumpers and Gibson is supposed to be more mobile than Gasol, so he should have been a little quicker to challenge the shots.

• Careless offensive possessions were another issue. The Bulls had 8 turnovers in the fourth quarter alone and most of them were just poor decisions.

Rose fired a simple pass high and out of bounds. Butler threw the ball off the backboard after overpenetrating. E'Twaun Moore traveled instead of dishing to an open Doug McDermott in the corner.

Nikola Mirotic tried to drive and lost the ball after the offense broke down. Then there were a few careless passes that were stolen and turned into fastbreaks for the Suns.

• Giving up offensive rebounds wasn't a chronic problem in Monday's fourth quarter. The Suns were credited with 4 offensive boards, but they came at key times, including the decisive bucket.

A couple of times one of the Phoenix guards, Knight or Eric Bledsoe, matched up against Mirotic on a switch, launched a long jumper, then sprinted past the 6-foot-10 forward to chase down the rebound.

On the winning basket, Suns forward Jon Leuer missed a corner 3-pointer and Mirza Teletovic probably fouled Rose while grabbing the offensive rebound, but there was a lot of standing around by the Bulls.

If someone put a body on Teletovic, he probably doesn't get the rebound, stumble backward two steps and toss in a 14-footer with 0.3 seconds on the clock.

The Bulls are 11-7 after losing two straight home games. The problem with trying to solve the Bulls' issues is it's never the same thing. Sometimes they start slowly; sometimes can't score in the fourth quarter. On Monday, they couldn't defend in the fourth quarter.

Here are a couple of suggestions: First of all, leave McDermott on the floor and get him involved in the late-game offense. He's quickly becoming the Bulls' most efficient scorer.

The Bulls have essentially committed to playing Gasol at the end of games and know he's not going to jump out on screens. So maybe the Bulls should get Mirotic off the floor late and use Gibson or Joakim Noah as a more mobile big man who should be better on the boards.

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Scouting report

Bulls vs. Boston Celtics at TD Garden, 6 p.m.

TV: Comcast SportsNet, ESPN

Radio: ESPN 1000-AM

Outlook: The Bulls had trouble with the Suns' guard-oriented offense, and the Celtics (12-9) are very similar. Boston's top scorers are guards Isaiah Thomas (21.0 ppg) and Avery Bradley (16.2). Ex-Golden State forward David Lee is out with a heel bruise. The Celtics are the second-highest scoring team in the East at 103.1 ppg, slightly behind Indiana. The Bulls went 3-1 against the Celtics last season and have won three straight in Boston.

Next: Los Angeles Clippers at the United Center, 7 p.m. Thursday

— Mike McGraw