The Chicago Bulls had a nice win in their 2018-19 preseason opener against the New Orleans Pelicans. Here are 3 takeaways from their first preseason game.
The Chicago Bulls played in their highly anticipated first preseason game on September 30. The Bulls played well and ended up beating the New Orleans Pelicans 128-116 at home.
This was the most excited Chicago fans have been for a preseason game in a long time. Getting the first glimpse of hometown kid Jabari Parker in a Bulls uniform was the primary reason for excitement. Along with the Jabari hype, it was also the first look at the new and improved Bulls roster.
Playing without Lauri Markkanen (out 6-8 weeks with an elbow injury), the Bulls started Kris Dunn, Zach LaVine, Justin Holiday, Jabari Parker and Robin Lopez. This will most likely be the starting lineup on opening night against the Philadelphia 76ers as well.
Robin Lopez didn’t get much playing time. Most of the big man minutes went to Parker, Bobby Portis and Wendell Carter Jr.
Carter got off to a bit of a slow start but eventually settled in, scoring 11 points to go along with 7 rebounds.
Cameron Payne also had a good night. He was featured as the lead point guard off the bench and dished out 7 assists in only 20 minutes of game time.
While I know it’s just preseason, there’s still a lot that can be taken from the way the team played. For example, Portis looked really good. He jacked up an insane 19 shots in 19 minutes, connecting on 10 of them. If that’s any indication of what’s to come, the Bulls bench is in good shape.
With that being said, here are 3 takeaways from the win against the Pelicans.