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2017 NBA Playoffs: Chicago Bulls vs. Boston Celtics Game 4 Analysis

By Dru Berry

Apr 23, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (4) dribbles the ball as Chicago Bulls guard Isaiah Canaan (0) defends during the first half in game four of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 23, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (4) dribbles the ball as Chicago Bulls guard Isaiah Canaan (0) defends during the first half in game four of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Chicago Bulls hosted the Boston Celtics on Sunday looking to take a commanding 3-1 series lead in Game 4. The Bulls then proceeded to lay a dud of a performance.

104. 18. 95. 24. Final

In Game 4 of their series on Sunday, the Boston Celtics tripped up the Chicago Bulls, winning 104-95 at the United Center. Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, Derrick Rose, and most importantly, Ben Gordon were all in attendance.

Can someone give my man Ben Gordon a 10-day contract just for this series?

It was a weird, weird game that didn’t feel as close as it was. The Bulls looked as bad as ever at points in this game and played 11 players. Isaiah Canaan was freed from the witness protection agency. Gerald Green set Chicago on fire until he got injured.

Like I said, it was a weird game.

First Half

Chicago got out to an absolutely atrocious start to this ballgame. With 7:19 left in the first quarter, the Bulls trailed 14-4 and shot 2-of-10 from the field. At that point, Jerian Grant was 0-for-3 from the field and getting torched guarding the Isaiah Thomas-Al Horford pick and roll.

Enter Michael Carter-Williams.

He committed two fouls in five minutes, one of which occurred right underneath the Celtics basket after the ball was inbounded to Isaiah Thomas. It was perhaps the most brain-dead foul I’ve seen this season. Then, Fred Hoiberg inserted Isaiah Canaan, who played 21 minutes in March and April combined.

Canaan played 13 minutes in the first half and scored five points with one made 3-pointer.

Chicago’s offense continued to be nonexistent throughout the first half. The Bulls finished the half shooting 38 percent from the field and 3-of-11 from 3. The offense consisted of a lot of ISOs and ugly post-ups. In fact, the only thing the Bulls had going for them was Jimmy Butler.

Butler was relentless attacking the rim. He converted 11-of-14 free throw attempts and finished the half with 17 points, five assists and four rebounds. The only reason Chicago had a puncher’s shot heading into halftime was because Jimmy dragged them there.

One fun thing from the first half: Bobby Portis running the fast break and dishing to Cristiano Felicio.

Boston led Chicago 57-46 going into halftime.

Second half

The Bulls got off to a much better start in the third quarter. Butler continued to press the issue and scored nine points. He also made 5-of-6 free throw attempts in the quarter — however, two of those free throws were after technical calls.

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    • Isaiah Thomas picked up a technical foul at the end of the third and had four fouls for the game. He received it after jawing back and forth with MCW. This game was testy to say the least. Jimmy and Marcus Smart got into it, Canaan attempted to stare down Avery Bradley after making him dribble the ball out of bounds, Nikola Mirotic also attempted a stare down, this one on Jae Crowder. Not to mention Robin Lopez trying to untie Crowder’s shoe.

    Chicago came back from 20 points down to take a 65-63 lead with 4:35 left in the third quarter after a Lopez bucket served up by Butler. The Celtics outscored the Bulls 16-5 the rest of the quarter as Chicago saw its offense devolve into bricks and turnovers.

    While the Bulls struggled to score, Thomas took over the game for the Celtics. He simply couldn’t be guarded, slithering into the lane for layups or kicking it out to the open man. Thomas finished with 33 points and seven assists.

    By the time Thomas was done accounting for everything Boston did, they led Chicago 86-76 with nine minutes left in the fourth. Chicago would try to make a run late, but made too many poor plays down the stretch to stand a chance. Dwyane Wade in particular was bad in the fourth quarter.

    Wade blew a fast break layup that could have cut the lead to seven with a little under 6:30 left in the game. The Celtics immediately turned it into an and-1 opportunity on the other hand. A minute later with Chicago down nine again coming down the court, Wade attempted a lob to Butler that was basically a chest pass to Smart. Boston turned that into a dunk and an 11-point lead that would never really be threatened.

    Next: Rajon Rondo fined $25,000 for trip attempt on Jae Crowder

    Fun fact to think about until Game 5 on Wednesday: Jimmy Butler made and shot (19-23) more free throws than the entire Celtics team (18-22).

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