Seldom Used E’Twaun Moore Makes Most of Opportunity

In a game in which Russell Westbrook cockily strutted around the court hitting shot after shot, Bulls seldom used point guard E’Twaun Moore had the final laugh.

The Chicago Bulls used a 36 point 4th quarter scoring spree to down the Oklahoma City Thunders 108-105. Bulls reserve point guard E’Twaun Moore scored 13 points in the 4th quarter to cue a thrilling 4th quarter comeback that culminated in his game-winning three pointer with 2.1 seconds left on the game clock. The Chicago Bulls won the game despite a 43 point effort by Oklahoma City point guard Russell Westbrook. Prior to Thursday night’s game against the Bulls, Westbrook had recorded 4 straight triple doubles.

Here are the highlights from the game.

The final Chicago Bulls offensive possession was originally supposed to be a pass into the post to Pau Gasol. Dunleavy delivered the in-bound pass into Gasol. Realizing immediately that a double team from Westbrook was imminent, Gasol fired a touch pass out to a wide open E’Twaun Moore. Westbrook’s attempt to close out on Moore was a step too late, as E’Twaun hit a three point shot that ultimately won the game for the Chicago Bulls. Here is another highlight of the play courtesy of ESPN.

E’twaun Moore has spent most of his NBA career out of the spotlight. After he hit the biggest shot of his NBA career, he was treated to a post-game interview by Craig Sager.

Moore is the latest in a line of backup point guards who’ve had their careers resurrected in Chicago. Before tonight, Moore didn’t really do much in the NBA. He floated between a number of teams and spent the majority of his time warming the bench. After hitting that incredible shot tonight, two questions need to be answered. Who is E’Twaun Moore and how will he contribute to the Bulls championship run for the remainder of the season?

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E’Twaun Moore played four years of college basketball at Purdue. He averaged 15.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists during his college career. He was named to the All Big Ten first team in 2010 and 2011 and was an honorable mention for an AP All-American designation those same two years. He ended his career with the third most points in school history.

Moore was drafted 55th overall by the Boston Celtics in the 2011 NBA draft. The following season, he was traded to the Houston Rockets in a three team deal. He was waived by Houston and signed with the Orlando Magic where he spent the next two seasons of his careers. Here are his stats from his first three seasons in the NBA.

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2011–12	Boston	38	0	8.7	.387	.378	1.000	.9	.9	.3	.1	2.9
2012–13	Orlando	75	21	22.4	.396	.340	.797	2.2	2.7	.7	.3	7.8
2013–14	Orlando	79	3	19.1	.428	.354	.765	1.7	1.4	.8	.2	6.3

E’Twaun Moore signed with the Chicago Bulls on September 18, 2014. This is when his story really begins, at least from the perspective of Chicago Bulls fans.

Naturally, a first year member of a team coached by Tom Thibodeau isn’t going to get a lot of playing time. Add to this the fact that he is positioned 4th on the point guard pecking order and one can understand why he has had trouble earning playing time this season. However, Moore has made the most of his limited opportunities. He does a good job of getting the offense together and he is a very sensible player that isn’t inclined to play too fast or turn the ball over at a high clip. Despite only averaging 1.9 points per contest, he is shooting 43% from the field (higher than Derrick Rose).

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E’Twaun Moore is valuable to this team. With Derrick Rose once again battling injuries, the Bulls are going to need to be deep at the point guard position. Kirk Hinrich has struggled mightily this season because of his declining athleticism that comes with older age. It can be argued that at this point in both player’s careers, Moore is the better option. Moore runs the offense almost as efficiently as Hinrich. The difference is that, when given the opportunity, Moore can be a prolific scorer and play solid defense against young fast guards.

With E’Twaun Moore defending him in the 4th quarter, Russell Westbrook cooled off considerably. He only made two shots from the field on nine total attempts. Although his game-winning shot will get the majority of the press coverage, Moore’s defense on Westbrook in the 4th was instrumental in allowing the Bulls to pull out this game.

With Rose in the early stages of his rehabilitation process, Tom Thibodeau is going to have to lean on his backup point guards to produce in his absence. Tonight, E’Twaun Moore showed what he can do when given an opportunity. It would be a shame if Thibodeau doesn’t seize this opportunity to give him some consistent playing time in the future.