Bulls add players, but play no defense in loss
The Bulls delivered another reminder Monday that injuries are far from their only problem.
Even with Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler and Mike Dunleavy back in the lineup, the Bulls didn't play any defense and lost badly to the Washington Wizards 117-96 at the Verizon Center.
The Wizards shot slightly under 50 percent from the field overall, but connected on 13 of 21 attempts from 3-point range. Washington point guard John Wall collected an impressive triple-double with 29 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. Those numbers made Wall's 8 turnovers easy to forget.
The Bulls (33-33) have now lost nine of their last 10 road games, with the lone victory coming on Monday in Toronto. The only consolation was Detroit lost to Atlanta Wednesday, so the Bulls remain a few percentage points ahead of the Pistons for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East. The Wizards (32-35) aren't far behind.
"We just couldn't really get a stop tonight, so they got us," said Doug McDermott, who led the Bulls with 20 points. "We've got to come out with urgency. We didn't do that tonight. That's on us."
The Bulls had a rough defensive first half, trailing 63-52 at intermission while Washington hit 8 of 10 shots behind the 3-point arc. Reserve guard Garrett Temple went 5-for-5 from long range.
After falling behind by as many as 14 points in the first quarter, the Bulls came back and took a 43-38 lead in the second, with McDermott doing most of the damage. The Wizards finished the first half up by 11, though, and the Bulls never made a run in the second half.
Playing his second straight game after missing 14 of the previous 15 with a sore left knee, Jimmy Butler scored 17 points on 4-of-12 shooting.
"I don't see anything wrong with my body right now," Butler said at the morning shootaround, according to espn.com. "I've just got to get back into a rhythm."
Rose returned after missing two games with an abductor strain. He scored 16 points in 29 minutes against the Wizards. Mike Dunleavy was back after skipping the Toronto game with a stomach virus and did not score.
If the Bulls are going to make a playoff run, now would be a good time to start. They'll open a four-game homestand on Thursday against Brooklyn. All four opponents - the Nets, Utah, Sacramento and New York - are below .500.
Center Pau Gasol has missed the last two games with a sore right knee. Hoiberg thinks it's likely Gasol will miss a few more.
"Pau most likely will not play (Thursday) is the latest update that we just got," Hoiberg said at shootaround. "He's feeling better. The swelling has gone down significantly. But (he) still has a little bit of pain in his knee."
Taj Gibson, who has been nursing a hamstring injury, played just seven minutes in Washington and sat out the second half. His status for Thursday's game is unknown.
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<p>Bulls scouting report</p>
Bulls vs. Brooklyn Nets at the United Center, 7 p.m. Thursday
TV: Comcast SportsNet
Radio: ESPN 1000-AM
Outlook: The Nets (19-48) have the second-worst record in the East, but won at the United Center 105-102 on Dec. 21 behind 21 points and 12 rebounds by C Brook Lopez. The Bulls won in Brooklyn 115-100 way back on Oct. 28. Lopez leads the Nets at 20.8 ppg, followed by PF Thaddeus Young at 15.1 ppg. Brooklyn's roster is evolving, with Joe Johnson bought out a few weeks ago and PG Jarrett Jack out for the year with a torn ACL. SG Bojan Bogdanovich scored a career-high 44 points against Philadelphia on Monday. Recent addition Sean Kilpatrick is averaging 11.9 points in eight games
Next: Utah Jazz at the United Center on Saturday, 7 p.m.
- Mike McGraw