The Chicago Bulls opened up their 2024-25 season on Wednesday night with a loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, and they are hoping to bounce back on Friday night against the Milwaukee Bucks. Things didn't go to plan for the Bulls against the Pelicans, but there were some takeaways that the team had that they can use to help them against the Bucks.
Not everything was negative on Wednesday night. The Bulls were in the game for awhile, but they didn't start or end the second half well. One major positive was the play of Zach LaVine, who ended up having 27 points. He knows that coming out of the gates strong is crucial.
“We’ve got to do a better job of coming out and hitting first,” Zach LaVine said, according to an article from NBA.com. “They did that and we didn’t get enough good shots and the result is what it is. We’ve got to be a little more physical and help each other. They were getting to their stuff and they were dictating the physicality of where they wanted to go instead of us speeding them up. They came out and adjusted in the second half, but like I said, I think in the structure of what we did, we played the right way. We just got to do a better job of it.”
That is something to keep an eye on Friday as the Bulls hope to avoid an 0-2 hole. Starting strong is obviously crucial in both the first half and the second half of a game, but starting the season strong record wise is crucial as well. Chicago needs to get some momentum rolling as this first month is very important, but getting a win in Milwaukee will not be easy.
The Bulls and Bucks will tip at 7:00 CT on Friday night from Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. The Bucks are 1-0 and they are favored by 9.5 in this one. The Bulls will be right back to it on Saturday for their home opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder.