Bulls' 3-point shooting hits rock bottom
For a while, it seemed like the Bulls may not be as bad a 3-point shooting team as everyone expected, when Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler both shot the long ball well in preseason.
Now reality has set in.
Through Saturday, the Bulls ranked 30th in the NBA in all three relevant categories - 3-pointers made (6.1), 3-point attempts (19.7) and 3-point percentage (.308). Last, last and last.
Even though the team's best 3-point shooter, Doug McDermott, is back from a concussion, the Bulls hit a low point in Saturday's win over Miami when they went 1 for 8 from 3-point range.
Earlier this week, the Bulls were nearly as bad, going 2 for 15 from behind the arc in Detroit. Four times in their last seven games, the Bulls have shot below 20 percent from 3-point range.
After beating Miami, coach Fred Hoiberg chose to look on the bright side.
"Where I look is the 28 free throws, the 20 second-chance points," he said. "That's an area where we can make up for some of that. I'm confident we'll hit double-digits again in 3-pointers this season. I can't tell you exactly when, but I'm confident we'll get there.
"Niko (Mirotic) is shooting the ball better, he's a lot more confident right now. Getting Doug back out there, obviously, helps us with our spacing. We'll get it going. Right now, you shoot 8 of them, you kind of take what the defense gives you."
True, the Bulls are third in the league in made free throws per game (20.6), which adds to the point total. They're also tied for first, with New York, in second-chance points, with 16.1 per game.
So maybe that's how the Bulls can be a playoff team while bucking the NBA's 3-point trend. The top three teams in 3-pointers per game have some of the best records in the league, Cleveland, Golden State and Houston. On the other hand, Memphis has made the playoffs six years in a row without making many 3-pointers.
The Bulls still managed to score 105 points against Miami on Saturday with their lone 3-pointer by Mirotic. Hoiberg said the stats were a "take what the defense gives you" scenario.
"If we get open ones we're going to shoot them," he said. "But if we can get into the paint and score and get to the free-throw line, obviously that's what we're looking to do early in possessions."
In the first six games of the season, the Bulls shot .388 from 3-point range, which would rank fourth in the league today. When the Bulls reverted to the mean, it was a long fall.
Among the Bulls' regulars, Butler is the best 3-point shooter at 35.1 percent, followed by Wade at 34.3. McDermott (32.1 percent) hasn't gotten going yet, while Mirotic and Isaiah Canaan are shooting below 30 percent.
Canaan didn't play at all against Miami, missing his first game of the season, while Hoiberg gave Denzel Valentine and Jerian Grant a few minutes.
"Denzel's had some good practices. We wanted to give him a look," Hoiberg said. "And Jerian, we wanted to get some ballhandling in there in the second half. We're still confident in Isaiah and he'll be back in there soon."
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