The Bulls' young bench players have been having big games respectively where they scored a lot of points and played solid defense, but the problem is that they cannot become consistent. Rookie, Denzel Valentine has been the most consistent bench player. He has been scoring at least ten points games every game. Even though he has had consistent scoring, his shooting percentage is awful. Recently, he has had a shooting percentage of 30%. He is supposed to be a great three point shooter, so this is slightly concerning. However, he is a rookie and barely played the first half of the season, so he will most likely continue to develop and improve as the season goes on.
Other Bulls bench players who have played exceptionally recently are Bobby Portis, Nikola Mirotic, and Joffrey Lauvergne. They each have had a couple big games lately, but none of them have been consistent every single game. If they play well and generate a lot of offense every game and not just a select few, then the Bulls could generate a winning streak. However, if they don't put effort into some games they will not be able to win.
The Bulls won their last game against the Detroit Pistons, which is a crucial win this late in the season. Also, the Pistons were ahead of the Bulls in the standings prior to that game and now the Bulls are above them after their great victory. Jimmy Butler had a double-double on the game with 16 points and 12 rebounds, Paul Zipser had 15 points, Joffrey Lauvergne scored 17, Bobby Portis scored 12, but the player who really carried the team in that game was Nikola Mirotic. He scored 28 points and his field goal percentage was 80%, which is incredible for him. There are rumors that he will be traded over the off season since his three point shooting percentage has been awful this season and his offense has been progressively getting worse. After that outstanding performance in the Bulls' win, those rumors may disappear. If he continues to play like he did against the Pistons, then the Bulls may want to keep him as a crucial piece of their roster. It's a little surprising that they won, considering they were missing a great scorer as of late, Robin Lopez.
Lopez was handed a one-game suspension after he got into a fight with Toronto Raptors forward, Serge Ibaka. This is said to be one of the worst fights in the NBA, since it was not just a typical player scuffle. Lopez and Ibaka threw actual punches at each other and even though none of them connected, the intent was definitely there. The fight started as Ibaka elbowed Lopez in the back and the fight quickly escalated from there. Ibaka was also suspended for one game as well. There is a photo from their fight below from USA Today.
The Bulls' season is looking up as everyone contributed in their win over the Pistons and they look like a playoff-caliber team. However, their season could go downhill from here as they blew a huge lead in their loss to the Raptors on Tuesday. If they make the playoffs, Dwyane Wade said that he will play, even if his fractured wrist is not entirely healed. Only time will tell if the Bulls will make the playoffs or if they will completely fall apart and hit rock bottom.
That's all for this week!
This is a great article and we'll see if the Bulls' make it there
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