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DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine Lead Bulls Past Trae Young, Hawks for 4th Straight Win
December 28, 2021
The Chicago Bulls keep finding ways to win. The Atlanta Hawks can't seem to find any consistency this season.
Led by the dynamic duo of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, the Bulls knocked off Atlanta 130-118 on Monday night.
There wasn't much Atlanta could do against a Bulls team that shot 18-of-37 from three (48.6 percent) and had 29 assists on 51 made field goals.
Chicago (21-10) has now won four games in a row and eight of its last 10, while the Hawks (15-18) find themselves in a 4-9 stretch dating back to late November.
The Bulls and Hawks took very different approaches to the offseason. The Bulls, who missed the playoffs last year, were extremely busy in the summer, adding players like DeRozan, Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso, among others.
The Hawks kept their young core intact, meanwhile, after surprisingly reaching the Eastern Conference Finals.
Both approaches made sense. But at least for the moment, the Bulls and Hawks are moving in opposite directions.
Key Stats
Zach LaVine, CHI: 30 points, nine assists
DeMar DeRozan, CHI: 35 points, 10 assists, five rebounds
Nikola Vucevic, CHI: 24 points, 17 rebounds, six assists
Trae Young, ATL: 29 points, nine assists
Cam Reddish, ATL: 33 points
Bogdan Bogdanovic, ATL: 20 points
LaVine And DeRozan Were en Fuego
When your two best players combine to shoot 25-of-41 from the field and 7-of-10 from three, post 65 combined points and dish 19 combined assists, well, you're going to be tough to beat.
Put simply, LaVine and DeRozan were awesome Monday night. Just awesome.
NBA.com/Stats @nbastatsZach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan are the first pair of teammates to reach 20+ points and 5+ assists in a single half since the start of the play-by-play era (1997-98). <a href="https://twitter.com/EliasSports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EliasSports</a> <br><br>LaVine: 23 PTS, 5 AST<br>DeRozan: 21 PTS, 5 AST <a href="https://t.co/6wBsBJxFdv">pic.twitter.com/6wBsBJxFdv</a>
It was DeRozan's ninth 30-point game of the season and LaVine's 10th. DeRozan also had his first double-double of the year. They were so good that they made Nikola Vucevic's monster night a virtual afterthought.
There's a reason the Bulls have been one of the top teams in the NBA this season, and it starts with this duo. On a night when Chicago didn't have Ball or Caruso available, LaVine and DeRozan put on an absolute show.
Reddish More Than Did His Part
For the second time in the past four games, Reddish eclipsed the 30-point mark. He made a career-high eight threes. He did his best to give Young a running mate to keep up with the red-hot pair of LaVine and DeRozan on a night when the Hawks were short-handed.
Ultimately, the Hawks came up short. That isn't on Reddish, though.
It's fair to question his future in Atlanta given the team's stockpile of talented wings and need for a true star next to Young. But if nothing else, he sure is increasing his trade value by the day.
Well, if the Hawks dare to trade him at this point, that is.
What's Next?
These teams meet again in Chicago on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET.