Amid a tumultuous week, the Chicago Bulls appeared to be righting the ship. Rumors of discord between DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine were thrown to the wayside in the meantime as Chicago won three straight games against teams with playoff aspirations. Over that span, DeRozan and Ayo Dosunmu nailed game-winners that appeared to be the catalyst the Bulls need for a turnaround. And with the 9-23 Rockets coming to town on Monday night, the Bulls had as good a chance as any to extend their good run of play.
Alas, the Bulls were hit with a sobering reality check. DeMar DeRozan and the rest of his team started out flat, with the Rockets storming off with a 23-5 run to begin the game. Chicago rallied back to take the lead into the halftime intermission, but proceeded to relinquish a 17-1 run in the third quarter that proved to be their undoing.
And surely enough, after the game, DeRozan was back to calling out the Bulls' lack of urgency, particularly on the defensive end.
“[Our poor start was] unacceptable. That just comes with defensive effort, playing with toughness and a sense of urgency. We can’t feel out games. We gotta go out the gate and treat it like it’s the fourth quarter. That’s just how we have to play. We have to be more aware of that,” DeRozan said, per K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago.
The Rockets' core trio of Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, and Kevin Porter Jr. had their way against the Bulls' defense all night long. Porter, in particular, made it rain in United Center with a season-best 36-point performance on 14-22 shooting. Meanwhile, Sengun had a near-perfect 10-12 shooting night, and Green shot above 50 percent from the field for only the second time in the past 14 games.
Meanwhile, Zach LaVine said that the difference between the two teams boiled down to one thing: wanting it more.
“They came out playing harder than us,” LaVine said.
The Bulls schedule isn't getting any easier, as they will look to get back to winning ways against the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night. They will need to ramp up their effort levels lest they get blown away once more.
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