Chicago Bulls: 4 Observations in Their Blowout of the Cleveland Cavaliers

The Chicago Bulls beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in a blowout tonight.

The Bulls outscored the Cavs to the tune of 39 points, winning the game 114-75. The Bulls took care of business tonight. In fact, they did better than that: They set a franchise record for blocks with 16.

Elite teams know how to put other teams away. The Bulls did what they had to do and made sure the Cavs didn't steal one. They didn't play down to their opponent.

Kyrie Irving Can Indeed Play

The Cavaliers made the right decision by using their first overall pick on Kyrie Irving. He's currently the favorite for Rookie of the Year.

Irving scored 13 points on 45.5 percent shooting and dished out three assists in 22 minutes of play. He started the game by draining three three-pointers to answer a run by the Bulls.

His assist numbers would have been higher had his teammates converted on more shots. The Bulls made a run each time Irving took a rest on the bench.

He only played 22 minutes tonight after averaging 35.5 minutes a game in the last two games and 28.9 on the season.

Irving is a rookie and the Cavs aren't poised to make a postseason run. Byron Scott should let Irving play.

The Same Can't Necessarily Be Said for Tristan Thompson

The Bulls reached a franchise record in blocks thanks in part to Tristan Thompson, who was routinely blocked throughout the game.

That's something he's going to have to get used to as an undersized power forward.

The Cavaliers surprised a lot of people by taking Thompson with the fourth overall pick. Scouting reports said that he was still an unpolished talent without a postgame and a bad jump shooter.

He went 2-for-10 tonight.

A major bright spot for Thompson coming out of college was his ability to get to the line. Unfortunately, he's shot a paltry 36.8 percent from the line on the season before going 0-2 tonight.

Injuries on the Bulls

The Bulls roster saw three injuries tonight.

Taj Gibson injured his ankle (via SB Nation). He didn't return to the game afterward. SB Nation reported Gibson leaving the Quicken Loans Arena in a walking boot.

Joakim Noah turned his ankle as well (via RotoWorld). The determination was made that he could continue to play. He didn't seem hampered by the injury.

John Lucas left the game in the fourth quarter with a strained left groin (via CBS Sports).

The Bulls will have to monitor these new injuries. Gibson's seems like it may be the most serious. The Bulls pride themselves on their depth and need everyone healthy and contributing.

Another Nice Night for Boozer

Carlos Boozer scored 19 points on 60 percent shooting and added 14 rebounds.

His rainbow fadeaway jump shoot was falling tonight. He didn't have a high percentage shot, but when Boozer's on, he can make it look easy. Chicago has to hope he'll have it on for the Bulls during the postseason.

It's clear that Boozer isn't the low post-banger he was advertised as. He's not worth his contract, either. Boozer can still be a valuable contributor, though. As much as he can irritate, there still aren't many power forwards in the league more skilled than Boozer.

It isn't a coincidence that Boozer and Noah put together nice games when Rip Hamilton is playing.

Tomorrow's Game

The Bulls beat the Cavs with ease. They didn't have to expend much energy to do it, which means they should be relatively rested for tomorrow's game.

In what feels like the millionth back-to-back of the season, the Bulls will face the Charlotte Bobcats at the United Center tomorrow.

The Bulls should have little trouble taking this game—the Bobcats currently have a 3-12 record.

Even Michael Jordan has given up on them, originally contending that the Bobcats would make a playoff push. He's since acknowledged that this season will be more about developing young talent on the roster.

After getting a look at the first and fourth overall picks tonight, the Bulls will see the seventh and ninth overall picks tomorrow.

Bismack Biyombo and Kemba Walker are intriguing additions to the Bobcats lineup. Walker is putting up pretty good numbers, too. He helped lead the Connecticut Huskies to the NCAA championship last year.

I'm sure Derrick Rose is kicking himself for not getting the chance to take a crack at newly drafted point guards Kyrie Irving and Walker.