Bulls forget the defense in loss to Miami
Most of the Chicago Bulls are too young to remember the mid-1980s when “Miami Vice” ruled pop culture.
But they sure played like they wanted to be Crockett and Tubbs flying across Biscayne Bay in a speedboat Tuesday night. Fast pace, carefree, no defense. The only thing missing was alternate pastel uniforms.
Derrick Rose returned to the lineup after missing three games with right-hamstring tendinitis. But the Bulls were historically bad on defense and lost to the Miami Heat 129-111.
The Heat shot 67.5 percent from the field, hitting 52 of 77 shots overall. That is the highest field-goal percentage by a Bulls opponent in franchise history. The old mark was 67.1 percent against Portland in 1984.
“You've got to find a way to get some — I hate to keep saying it — grit, toughness, nastiness,” coach Fred Hoiberg told reporters after the game. “We just didn't come out of the gate with the right mindset.”
The trouble began right away. Miami hit 16 of 25 shots in the first quarter, took a 36-30 advantage and never looked back.
A couple of familiar faces lit it up for the Heat. Joe Johnson, playing his second game for Miami after taking a buyout from Brooklyn, scored 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting. Former Bulls forward Luol Deng hit 8 of 10 shots for 20 points. Center Hassan Whiteside tacked on 26 points, 14 rebounds and 4 blocks.
“We seem to play harder defensively in practices,” Hoiberg said. “We seem to get deflated when adversity hits us. For whatever reason, we don't get tougher when those situations hit.”
The Bulls (30-29) kept up for a while. Trailing 65-62 at halftime, they hit their first 3 shots in he third quarter, then hit a cold spell. Miami went on a 21-7 run to take a 17-point lead. The Bulls got within 6 in the fourth quarter but couldn't reel in the big fish.
Rose led the Bulls with 17 points, followed by Aaron Brooks with 16 and Pau Gasol with 15. Taj Gibson left the game in the second half because of a right-hamstring injury. Hoiberg said Gibson felt a tweak and will be checked out again Thursday before the Bulls play Orlando.
Now 8-17 since Jan. 9, the Bulls have slipped to ninth place in the Eastern Conference. If the season ended Thursday, the Bulls would be headed to the draft lottery, not the playoffs.
“You should win a game when you score 111 points,” Hoiberg said. “It was a collective effort defensively tonight and it's got to change. … I don't think there's a lack of fight. It's got to be a full 48-minute effort. That's been a problem all year long.”
At the morning shootaround, Rose talked about his journey back from three knee surgeries.
“It's all a learning experience,” Rose said. “The last few times when I was injured — I was just trying to push. But this time when I came back I think my mental (state) is a little bit different where I know it's a process.
“Like I've been saying, it takes patience because you'll drive yourself crazy if you really think about it. But I'm good, I'm at peace with myself, and I know that I'm rebuilding.”
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