The Bulls dropped to 0-2 after Saturday’s 125-106 loss to the Pacers at United Center. Here are the notes:
The defensive response was lacking
The Pacers went from 100 points with 10 minutes, 56 seconds remaining. That was after the Hawks passed the century mark with 5:58 remaining in the third at the opening of Wednesday’s season.
After a more urgent first quarter in which the Bulls led by one, the changes began to increase and the Bulls began to succumb to adversity in the game again with a poor transition defense, short closings and a lack of recognition on the weak side.
Pacers hit 55.9 percent. Domantas Sabonis recorded a double triple of 22 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, the fifth of his career.
Coach Billy Donovan talked about the need to limit tours, provide better help and more endurance by fighting across screens. Little of that happened.
The Pacers recorded an impressive 76 points in the painting. This is the second game in a row that the Bulls have been mistreated in painting.
Wendell Carter Jr.’s fights are real
The big man of the third year was so frustrated at one point that he punched the basket and scored a technical foul. Donovan challenged another false call on Carter against Sabonis.
The challenge was not successful. Carter’s offensive game too.
He finished 2 out of 10 and missed his only 3 point attempt. Dated from the preseason, Carter is 1 to 19 in the 3-point range.
Worse, it looks like a slow step on both ends.
Turnover issues
For the second straight game, the Bulls had problems with the ball’s safety. The Pacers scored 25 points on the Bulls’ 20 balls.
The most striking stretch occurred in the second quarter. That was when the Pacers enjoyed the rarely seen 21-0 series in which rookie Patrick Williams made consecutive twists trying to get in on the attack against the pressure of the entire court. Zach LaVine threw a lazy pass to the cross court that Justin Holiday stole and waltzed for a quick dunk.
The twists showed a drought that had seven consecutive errors and six twists while facing a 5-minute drought.
To complete, Pacers opened the second half with an 18-0 streak, while the Bulls held on for almost another 5 full minutes without scoring.
Williams and Coby White committed four turnovers each.
In the opening, Atlanta scored 29 points in 17 Bulls turns.
Reinforcements for rotation
The regular season debuts proved all the rage for the Bulls, who welcomed Garrett Temple, Denzel Valentine and Tomas Satoransky. The first two did not play because of a fight with COVID-19 and a tendon strain in the thigh, respectively.
Satoransky played the first pre-season game before a long quarantine because of exposure to Noah Vonleh, who also tested positive for coronavirus.
They made their impact felt immediately – before the wheels fell, a second quarter stretch. Satoransky posted two quick assists and stabbed the track for a finger roll. Temple had a theft and candy pass to Lauri Markkanen for a dunk. Valentine made his first attempt, a 3-point one.
Donovan spoke openly about how the rotation will be fluid because players are still working to get in shape after a compressed training camp and the absences mentioned above. In the first half, Chandler Hutchison, Daniel Gafford and Ryan Arcidiacono did not play.
These three players plus Adam Mokoka and Valentine helped the Bulls to dominate trash time for the second time in a row to make the final look more respectable than it really was.