The next morning, after falling 123-119 to Magic in the first leg of a consecutive fight in Orlando, the Bulls woke up with a strong message from Billy Donovan.
“Go outside and try to blow these guys up,” said Zach LaVine when asked what it was about.
Mission Accomplished. The Bulls won a resounding 118-92 victory over the Magic, beating Orlando 64-33 between the second and third quarters.
Here’s what stood out the most:
Zach LaVine came out aggressive – and continued
During three quarters of the first game in this series, Zach LaVine had just 2 points and 1 basket made. Although he had 7 assists entering the room – and scored 24 in the final period – Donovan after the competition called for more downhill aggression from LaVine earlier, with an emphasis on driving, then scoring or spraying for teammates.
Well, the Bulls star delivered that on Saturday and a few more. At the end of the first quarter, he scored (11) or helped (2) on 17 of the Bulls’ 31 points. At halftime, he scored 22 points and was the only person in the game to attempt double-digit pitches.
He finished with 39 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists (2 turnovers). 16 out of 25 on the ground, 5 out of 6 out of 3. This is his ninth game of 30 points of the season, and he made everything look easy.
“I told you yesterday that I was going to go out and be more aggressive,” LaVine told reporters after the game. “I think that being aggressive with my kick, jump or drop to create and reach the basket is a good thing. But everything I had to do to help us win, I did that tonight.”
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Lineup joking
Playing without Lauri Markkanen, Otto Porter Jr. and Wendell Carter Jr., Donovan advanced 10 minutes in the minutes that mattered from this game and featured some new and minor lineups. Depending on your personal preference for positional distinctions: The Bulls played most of this with three “guards” on the ground, outside Branco, LaVine, Satoranský, Denzel Valentine, Garrett Temple, Ryan Arcidiacono group.
Valentine started in Markkanen’s place – sliding Patrick Williams into the position of a real striker – and played 37 minutes, scoring 20 points (both season highs) and giving 4 assists. His strong sailing game continues.
RELATED: Valentine Playing Confident, Savoring the Bulls Revival
On the attacking court Cristiano Felício even made 6 solid minutes in the second half, scoring 2 points, scoring an assist and scoring an offensive foul on Nikola Vučević (the Bulls scored Magic for 10 in those minutes).
So, yes, Donovan threw the kitchen sink in Orlando – well, except for Chandler Hutchison, who looks just outside the rotation.
Coby White joined
Since Daniel Gafford joined the starting lineup, Thad Young has been Donovan’s first substitute in the game – usually between three and five minutes from the first.
Saturday was Tomáš Satoranský, for Coby White, at 7:31 of the first. And Satoranský was introduced to the scorer’s table with several possessions before a stoppage allowed him to check in.
Satoranský quickly added 6 points and 3 assists in the first, playing predominantly alongside Zach LaVine, exhibiting disturbing distance on the defensive end and good two-player chemistry with Thad Young in the attack. White checked in at LaVine at the end of the quarter, but ended the first 12 goalless minutes (0 to 3 shots) with 0 assists and 1 turnover.
At halftime, Satoranský had another assist and a theft to his name, while White remained goalless in 0 to 6 shots
White, however, ran out of the gates in the third, scoring 13 points in the first six and a half minutes of the quarter, a period in which the Bulls increased an advantage of 18 points in the interval to 33. The bag was out – – of double pull-up mids, for two catch-and-shoot triples, for a layup and one in the transition that caused a rally cry.
In short, the night ended with each much-needed performance – by far the best attack by Satoranský (27 minutes) since the return of his fight against COVID-19 and a confidence booster for White, whose production has been inconsistent since the night of his career against the Kings on 6 January.
Recipe for success
As hurt as the Bulls are, Magic, remember, came into play without Aaron Gordon, Markelle Fultz, Jonathan Isaac, Al-Farouq Aminu and Michael Carter-Williams. Just before the start, Evan Fournier – who scored 20 in the first game – also became a late scratch.
That inactive list made Friday’s loss even more discouraging. And Saturday’s beating is refreshing.
The ingredients were all there. The Bulls put four holders – who, in a relatively rarechain, carried the charge – in double digits, and made up 50-50 pitches and 3 field trips. They had 28 assists against 12 turns.
And on the defensive side, the Bulls played perhaps their most tenacious game. The Magic ended with less than 40 percent of field shots and 25 percent of 3, tried just 12 free throws a night after making 37, and was beaten and beaten in paint by the Bulls. Although it is difficult to keep Nikola Vučević completely defeated, a group shot defensively kept him with 17 points and 7 rebounds in one night after scoring 43, the best of his career.
Yes, Magic dropped to 18 in the fourth period. But the outcome of the recovery remains a source of pride. The Bulls also hope that this will lift them out of a recent malaise.
And … The sequence ends!
Next: back home to the Wizards on Monday.
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