Chicago Bulls vs. San Antonio Spurs: 3 takeaways from Home Opener Defeat

Paul Zipser the Disappearing Man

Paul Zipser logged 26 minutes last night in the start and remained a non-factor throughout the night. He mostly played at small forward, although he did spend a brief stretch of time at power forward (spoiler: it did not go well).

The German swingman only attempted five shots and connected on just one of them, a three pointer. He carried almost no gravity with him during the game and routinely passed the ball off immediately after receiving it, generally beyond the arc.

While it is unfair to say he looked disinterested, Zipser just failed to generate anything in the game. His dribble-drives got shut down almost immediately and his transition play was sloppy.

However, the biggest hole in Zipser’s game was his defense.

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Apart from a few possessions guarding Rudy Gay in the post, both Danny Green and Gay routinely blew by Zipser on drives. He also looked lost on rotations, although much of that has to do with the apparent lack of team understanding of Chicago’s current defensive schemes.

Zipser is still an incredibly intriguing prospect, especially for a second round find. He needs to find the consistency he failed to secure last season if he wants to be a part of the Bulls’ future.