What's Behind Chicago Bulls' Erosion on Defense?
The Chicago Bulls have struggled to win consistently in recent weeks, and the lack of defensive effectiveness has been a major culprit.
Everything was fine at the turn of the New Year. This club kicked off 2015 by winning three straight games, including a very impressive victory over the Houston Rockets. Then they hit a stumbling block and have been blundering ever since.
Since their January 5 contest against James Harden and company, Chicago has gone 4-6. They have allowed 100.9 points per game over that stretch; 106.7 in their losses. One of the lowest moments was a January 12 United Center defeat at the hands of the Orlando Magic. The road team, a bottom-10 squad in terms of points scored, dropped 121 points.
There is a definite problem when it comes to stopping opponents. Unfortunately, pinning down the source of this deficiency is not as easy as the prognosis. Players like Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson have given their input; head coach Tom Thibodeau has countered with his analysis as well. Their distinct assessments offer a glimpse into how complex this predicament has been.
Second verse, same as the first
Questions about Chicago’s waning effort on defense have been lingering for a few months. During a stretch that ran from November 20 to December 6, the team went 4-5. All five of those losses, along with one of the wins, included opponents breaking the century mark.
After a December 6 112-102 drumming by the Golden State Warriors, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune quoted Gibson’s take on the team’s uncharacteristic defensive showing in an article that posted the very next day— “We're giving away too many games being lackadaisical on defense and not trusting each other, not talking, including myself. We're not having each other's backs on certain things.”
In a December 10 article by Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com, Noah echoed his frontcourt comrade’s sentiment—“I think our trust has to be better We're not where we need to be and that's on every area of the defensive end. We all have to do a better job and that goes for everybody. I take the blame for some of it, but we all have to be on the same page.”
Thibdoeau’s response was given in that same article; he disagreed—“That's garbage. That's garbage. Trust, it's work. It's work. That's how you build trust. You got to know what you're doing, you got to be tied together. You got to work at it. It's a cop out.”
One could have easily dismissed this as a bump in the road, but these concerns were raised again after a January 19 double-digit loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. This time it was Derrick Rose voicing communique and effort concerns, once again from Johnson and the Chicago Tribune—“We're not communicating while we're on the floor to one another. Everybody is quiet. Trust plays a part, but communicating on defense in a team sport is huge. We've got to give a better effort.”
These incidents happened about seven weeks apart. In between, the Bulls had a spectacular December showing where they went 11-4 and ended the month winning eight of their last 10 games.
So what made these players go from mediocre to blazing hot then back to mediocre again?
The guilty party
As the list of malefactors for Chicago’s defensive woes continues to grow, the narrative is being propelled by soundbites and quotable lines from players and coaches. The absence of personnel continuity has been mentioned as an aside but is probably the biggest reason why things have not quite been the same for the Bulls this season.
The biggest difference between the Bulls’ fantastic December run and the rest of the 2014-15 NBA season has been the players available. As Johnson pointed out via his Twitter account, Thibdoeau’s original starting unit of Rose, Jimmy Butler, Mike Dunleavy, Pau Gasol and Noah have seen the court only 15 times. Most of those runs were in the month of December. Couple that with the restrictions on the team’s starting point guard and center, and it becomes apparent that jelling has been hampered since the first day.
This was also pointed out in Johnson’s December 7 article, and it rings as the most valid reason for the inconsistency. Without a steady preparation routine, stable on-court performances are going to be hard to attain. Thibodeau is a firm believer in this respect, as Johnson shared in a January 21 write up—“(Practice) is really where you build your chemistry and continuity,” he said.
Confines in the amount of time a player can spend on the court also bounds what they can do in between games. It is clear that with the tight parameters in place, it’s going to take longer to reach the full actualization of this roster’s collective talent.
These spurts of big wins and head-scratching losses might continue for a little while longer. Dunleavy’s health status is still in limbo. Noah is back but for how long is anyone’s guess. Doug McDermott is active again; however, he seemed to be falling out of rotational favor before his injury.
Thibodeau is working with his deepest roster ever, and the most restraints, too. Despite his basketball acumen, there is still a lot to figure out. Fans have seen what this team is capable of when everyone is available. If the nagging health issues can be minimized, stretches like the mid-January run will become distant memories.
All statistics are current as of January 23, 2015.
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