which Bulls will show up tonight?
Earlier this week, it looked like your Chicago Bulls were sinking fast, having lost four straight contests. There was pervasive chatter that a certain $215 million shooting guard was unhappy with his role on the club, and to be fair, so is everyone watching his erratic play. Calls to tear it all down were coming from inside the house.
But now, suddenly, the team is showing (mild) signs of life. The Bulls have won two straight games against similarly “mid” clubs in the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks. If you put the output of the two contests under a microscope, Chicago may have been a bit more lucky than good. The 113-103 Miami victory was achieved on a night where both old pal Jimmy Butler and overpaid-but-still-decent point guard Kyle Lowry were sidelined. The Hawks win happened on a last-second Ayo Dosunmu putback to beat the buzzer in regulation, and of course Atlanta was missing John Collins. The Bulls, as is their wont, shot far fewer treys than either opponent.
Can the team’s luck hold against a mostly-healthy buzzsaw of a New York Knicks club that last vanquished the Bulls while in the midst of an eventual eight-game winning streak tonight?
The Knicks have won each of their previous three meetings with the Bulls this season, the most recent encounter a 114-91 smackdown a week ago. Chicago has had trouble containing standout point guard Jalen Brunson in particular, but as a whole the team has allowed New York to get its offense cooking basically from all over the floor. The Bulls’ half-hearted defense on the perimeter doesn’t exactly figure to improve with Alex Caruso officially ruled out tonight, either.
Let’s just get the slaughter over with and move on.
Injury Report:
For the Bulls, Alex Caruso is out with a rare two-for-one injury: he sprained his shoulder fighting with Hawks small forward De’Andre Hunter for a loose ball during the Bulls’ eventual last-minute 110-108 victory Wednesday, and also suffered a concussion in the offing.
Derrick Jones Jr. is also out for the second straight bout with a sprained left ankle. Javonte Green has been listed as “merely” doubtful with a sore right knee.
Thankfully, at least one non-Ayo Dosunmu point guard may be available, as Goran Dragic (left ankle soreness) has been listed as probable to play.
For the Knicks, starting shooting guard Quentin Grimes is questionable to play with a sprained right ankle, while power forward Obi Toppin is unavailable as he continues to recover from his right leg fracture.
Game Time: 6:30 p.m. CT on NBC Sports Chicago.