Bulls' lackluster finish has Thibs seeing red
Simple logic suggests the Bulls aren't going to win every night while Derrick Rose is sidelined by injuries.
But in the no-excuse world of coach Tom Thibodeau, Friday's result was unacceptable.
With Rose missing for a second straight game because of a groin strain, the Bulls were outscored 28-10 over the final 12:30 and lost to Portland 100-89 at the United Center.
During his postgame news conference, Thibodeau spoke calmly, but his body language suggested pure anger.
“The challenge is to be ready. It starts there,” he said. “You have to understand where intensity comes from. It comes from your concentration and your preparation. It's not from emotion. When you put the work into it, you'll play well. If you practice well, you'll play well. When you start taking shortcuts, the results aren't going to be good.”
Thibodeau mentioned a couple of shortcuts, saying the team didn't have a good shootaround on Friday, while pregame concentration in the locker room was lacking.
“You can't just turn it on and off,” he added. “You're not just going to walk on the court and play well if you haven't put the work into it. We've got to do better.”
The Bulls (36-10) seemed ready to pull away when they opened a 79-72 lead with 40 seconds left in the third. But Portland closed the quarter with 3-point baskets by Nolan Smith and Jamal Crawford, then built on the momentum.
Eventually, the Bulls went from 79-72 up to 82-89 down, allowing the Blazers to go on a 17-3 run.
The Bulls had chances to get back into it, but missed 6 straight shots while trailing by 3 points. Portland's LaMarcus Aldridge (21 points) threw in a couple of jumpers and in between, ex-Bull Kurt Thomas drew a charging foul on C.J. Watson and the home team was officially in trouble.
During the fourth quarter, the Bulls hit a miserable 3-of-23 shots from the field. The Blazers, meanwhile, had no problem finding the hoop. Aldridge connected on 9-of-18 shots, while Nicholas Batum. Wesley Matthews and Raymond Felton all shot 6-for-11, with Smith 5-for-7.
“I can't explain it, but our defense has been lacking for a while now,” center Joakim Noah said. “We need as a team to hold everybody accountable defensively. Offensively, we can definitely do better as well. “Everybody — myself, everybody — we just have to do a better job defensively and hold everybody accountable.”
Asked for details on accountability, Noah provided a few clues. Portland shot 49.4 percent overall and hit 11 of 21 attempts from 3-point range.
“I think everybody on this team plays for the right reasons,” Noah said. “So I don't think there's anything wrong with being critical when we're not playing as well as we should be. I think championship teams can do that. We shouldn't be afraid to say that we should hold each other accountable.”
Portland (21-23) fired coach Nate McMillen on Thursday and the Blazers brought plenty of enthusiasm for interim boss Kaleb Canales.
“We had a lot of team spirit out there tonight,” Canales said. “I think when you're making baskets and playing together, you control the moment. We had a great defensive fourth quarter holding them to 10 points.”
mmcgraw@dailyherald.com