Why are Chicago Bulls suddenly playing well?
Now that the Chicago Bulls are trending upward in the playoff race, a couple of questions are relevant.
The first is, why are they suddenly playing better? Sunday's victory in New Orleans was their fourth in a row, matching a season-high, and they've won six of eight.
It's not all due to an easy schedule. The Bulls finish the regular season against five opponents that have been eliminated from the playoffs, but they also beat Cleveland, Milwaukee and Utah during this surge.
Actually, the reasons are obvious. One is Jimmy Butler pushing himself back to superstar level.
In the nine games since Dwyane Wade went out with an elbow injury, Butler has averaged 28.6 points, 8.1 assists and shot 54 percent from the field.
Those numbers compare well to what LeBron James has done in the same span. Butler was named Eastern Conference player of the week Monday, the third time this season he's gotten that honor.
In back-to-back wins over the Hawks and Pelicans this weekend, Butler averaged an even 36.0 points and shot better than 50 percent both days.
"I just want to win," Butler told reporters after the win in New Orleans. "I think my will to do that is going to overcome all the fatigue," Butler said. "At this time of the year, everybody's tired, everybody's nicked up. But when you have mental toughness, you overcome all that."
The other glaring improvement is 3-point shooting. The Bulls have at least 10 3-pointers in seven consecutive games and in the last six, they've shot better than 40 percent from long range.
For most of the season, the Bulls were dead last in the NBA in both 3-point percentage and 3-pointers per game.
In the last seven contests, they are easily the best 3-point shooting team in the league at 44.1 percent and their 11.7 makes per game rank fourth.
Assists also have seen a big jump. The Bulls have averaged 27.6 in the last seven, compared to 21.9 before this run began.
"When everybody's attacking and getting it to the open guy, everybody's going to get open shots," Butler explained.
The other prominent question is whether Wade's absence is a reason the Bulls are playing better and if he comes back for the playoffs, as expected, will it mess up their new chemistry?
That's a tough one to prove either way. The Bulls are 6-3 since Wade suffered the sprained right elbow against Memphis on March 15. It's very possible the threat of missing the playoffs lit a fire under all the Bulls.
But it is clear Butler has taken it upon himself to do more and the Bulls' younger players seemed to get a boost of confidence when asked to do more.
Spacing on offense is a legitimate concern. The Bulls seemed to be at their best all season when they've been able to surround Butler with shooters, giving him space to make a move or kick out to an open man.
The projected playoff starting lineup of Butler, Wade, Rajon Rondo, Robin Lopez and Nikola Mirotic has just one traditional 3-point shooter.
But Rondo suddenly has found his long range. A career 30-percent shooter from 3-point land, Rondo shot .514 from behind the arc in March. So even when Wade comes back, the Bulls still could spread the floor if Rondo keeps this up.
There are couple of other developments that led to the Bulls shooting better from 3-point land.
Rookie Denzel Valentine isn't great at many things yet, but he is good at knocking down open 3-pointers, and the Bulls needed that.
If Wade comes back, expect to see more of coach Fred Hoiberg's favored rotation, where Wade checks out early - probably for Valentine - then comes back at the end of the first quarter to lead the second group.
Also, between Mirotic, Bobby Portis and Joffrey Lauvergne, the Bulls now have three big men who can help spread the floor.
They rode Mirotic when he was red-hot for a few games, then in New Orleans, Portis and Lauvergne combined to hit 6 of 9 from 3-point land.
Hoiberg has started using Lauvergne at times to finish games instead of Lopez.
If two of the three big guys have a hot hand, the Bulls can put multiple big men on the floor who can hit the 3, and that's been a tough matchup for opponents.
If the young guys keep up their confidence when Wade returns, the Bulls should be a dangerous first-round matchup if they make the playoffs.
If those guys start deferring to the 13-time all-star, there could be problems. But keep in mind, Butler went on a tear at midseason when Wade was out there with him, so there's no reason to be pessimistic.
"Our chemistry is really good now," Valentine said Saturday. "Guys that aren't playing as much, really positive. They're pushing us at practice.
"We had a really competitive 4-on-4 game (Friday). Cam Payne got the best of me, me and him were going at it and everyone was competing. We've just been competing in practice and trying to have a competitive culture."
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Scouting report
Bulls vs. New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, 7 p.m. Tuesday
TV: Comcast SportsNet
Radio: WLS 890-AM
Outlook: The Bulls lost twice to the Knicks early this season, but things haven't gone well in New York lately. Two of the Knicks' ex-Bulls are out for the season, Derrick Rose because of a meniscus tear in his left knee and Joakim Noah due to a suspension for using a banned supplement. SF Carmelo Anthony (22.5 ppg) missed the past two games with a sore back but is expected to play in this one. He shot an uncharacteristic 39 percent from the field in March. PF Kristaps Porzingis (18.1 ppg) is having a good sophomore season. New York is starting a couple of rookies, PG Ron Baker and C Willy Hernangomez, in place of Rose and Noah. The Knicks (29-48) have lost 10 of 13.
Next: Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center, 6 p.m. Thursday
- Mike McGraw