Celtics shake off fast start by Parker, cruise past Chicago Bulls
There's a piece of advice the Chicago Bulls repeat often: No one is going to feel sorry for you in the NBA.
The Bulls endured one of those no-sympathy nights in Boston on Wednesday. After a fast start by Jabari Parker, the Celtics hit the gas in the second quarter and rolled to a 111-82 victory at TD Garden.
This was the first stop on the Bulls' Eastern powerhouse tour. They play in Milwaukee on Friday and host Toronto on Saturday.
Parker scored 14 points in the first quarter, capping it off with a late 3-pointer, and the Bulls led 24-19. But the Celtics owned the second quarter 32-11, and the Bulls were only vaguely competitive in the second half.
Zach LaVine's streak of 20-point games to start the season ended at 14. Only Michael Jordan, twice, has done better in franchise history. LaVine finished with 10 points, hitting 3 of 11 shots and getting a technical foul in the second quarter. Parker didn't score after the first quarter and backup guard Shaq Harrison ended up leading the Bulls with 16 points.
Thanks to his fast start, LaVine has been getting heavy attention from opposing defenses and this game was no exception.
"If I'm not getting 25 or 30, it's not looking very good," LaVine told reporters after the game. "I think I was making the right plays. I think we've got to live with that. Eventually those shots are going to go in for our guys.
"I trust the guys more than anything. I'm going to do what I can do to draw two or three defenders, I'm going to kick it out to the corners or two the slots, and look to be aggressive when I can."
Wendell Carter Jr. talked about how the team doesn't handle adversity well during the course of games and suggested a Duke-style solution.
"When the times get hard, I feel like we start to separate," Carter said in the locker room. "I feel like those are the times we need each other the most. It's not so much an offensive or defensive thing. Just coming out of timeouts, we go our separate ways instead of huddling as a team.
"I feel that's important just to talk to one another, interact with one another throughout the game, so we get a feel for one another and know we have each other's back. I feel like that's where we struggle right now."
Carter probably has a point, but it's tough for him to be the catalyst early in his rookie season. His plea brought back memories of the time another rookie from Duke, Jay Williams, stood in the lane before some free throws and motioned for his teammates to huddle up. He was met with an angry stare from Jalen Rose, and no huddle ensued.
The Bulls finished with 22 turnovers and just 16 assists, while shooting 39 percent. It seemed like they were looking for help from the refs and didn't get it. They attempted just 1 free throw until LaVine got to the line with 4:11 left in the third quarter. By the end of the night, though, Boston's free-throw edge was a meager 14-9.
"They do a great job with their verticality," Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. "We talked about it before, it's the best defensive team in the league and you've got to make the extra play, the extra pass when it's there and we didn't do a good enough job with that."
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