Reinsdorf’s “Mediocre” Bulls Lose 88

Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Last week, Bulls Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf called the team “mediocre”. He sat down in an interview with Chicago station WGN’s Rich King and said that the Bulls were a middle of the pack team that would probably make the playoffs. He went on to say that the team was not that bad. The Chairman is absolutely right. This is a mediocre, middle of the pack squad. But what gave that away? The record? The Bulls fell back to .500…again losing to the New Orleans Pelicans 88-79. As for the team not being that bad. Eh. Let me put it this way. When the Bulls don’t make shots there are more exciting things to do like…

A) Wash Dishes.

B) Getting your wisdom teeth pulled.

C) Watch paint dry.

D) Don’t know about you guys, but being in a Spanish class with no clue to what the teacher is talking about.

The Bulls shot 38.6 percent from the field for the game. Let’s break this down further shall we? The Bulls went 27-70 from the field, shot 3-16 from three-point land and missed 11 free throws. As a team, the Bulls can’t throw in the ocean standing under water. If they are off, man they are REALLY off. Sometimes the defense just does not matter.  Last night was one of those nights.

DJ Augustin was a bright spot last night, scoring 23 points and dishing out seven assists. The assist total is very impressive considering this team could not score a lick. Want some examples? The Bulls had 39 points at the half. Then went on to score 57 points after three quarters. With eight field goals himself and assisting on seven others, that means he was responsible for over half of the field goals the Bulls had in the game. Really! Taj Gibson helped out with 17 points and ten rebounds. Joakim Noah just keeps coming to work every night to earn his paycheck. He scored 14 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. He extended his double figure rebound total to 18 straight games. Everyone paid attention to Kevin Durant’s 30 point streak, but this streak needs to get its due as well. We are watching something very special people.

Ah, the Carlos Boozer report. He scored four points, grabbed four rebounds, turned the ball over four times and committed four fouls. All in 22 minutes of decrepit work. Is this 14-15 million dollars working for Bulls fans all over the land? If it is, the investment will leave you frustrated and eventually bankrupt.

I wondered what would happen with Anthony Davis the All-Star snub anchoring the  middle in this game. Well he did a lot. He finished with 24 points eight rebounds and six blocks. This stat is ridiculous, he finished the month of January with 51 blocks. That’s more than THREE TEAMS. Tyreke Evans finished with 11. On Monday, I completely went off when Ronny Turiaf scored 14 points on 6-7 shots. Understand he had not scored that much in three years. Last night Alexis Ajinca, who was not in the LEAGUE for the last couple of seasons scores 8 points  on 4-4 shooting. What’s next, I get a 10 day contract with the Sacramento Kings and score 20?

For all of the Bulls fans out there, your loyalty is being challenged. Understand that the Bulls scored 79 points last night. Taj Gibson scored 17 of those points. He’s rumored to be traded. He’s been linked to the Wizards, Bobcats and the Lakers. Kirk Hinrich and Mike Dunleavy is rumored to be traded. They combined to score ten points between them, but Dunleavy is the one that can shoot straight with some consistency. The countdown is on Pippen Peoples, 18 days until the trade deadline. We will find out then how good or bad this team will be. But for now, for tonight at least we know one thing. If the Bulls’ shots aren’t falling, this is a PAINFUL bunch to watch. Trust me.