Chicago Bulls stars LaVine, Markkanen set career-highs in a statement game vs. Celtics

In down-to-the-wire action, Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen of the Chicago Bulls made a statement in Saturday’s victory over the Boston Celtics. Here’s a look at why they are both deserving of my pick for Player of the Game.

After getting off to a slow start early on, the Chicago Bulls made it a priority to close the gap in the first quarter with a bit of encouraging play from Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen.

Here’s what LaVine said after the game:

In case you missed it, the last time both squads faced one another, the Celtics handed the Bulls a 56-point loss, their worst in franchise history. At the time, Kyrie Irving led the Celtics to victory with 37 points, 10 assists and five rebounds.

During Saturday’s game, LaVine and Markkanen went the distance to set new career-highs. LaVine posted 42 points to go along with Markkanen’s personal best of 35 points. On top of that, they made history becoming the latest Bulls duo to post 35-plus points, joining the likes of, among others, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen.

This new development should come with little surprise seeing the way LaVine and Markkanen have played both individually and in tandem.

At 17-for-29 from the field, LaVine shot the ball efficiently in the flow of the offense. One knock on his game all year long has been his tendency to select difficult shots. That did not present much of an issue in Saturday’s meeting with the Celtics. LaVine performed so well he needed a heat-check at one point.

Take a look:

Markkanen’s performance didn’t underwhelm, either. He did a good job of putting himself in a variety of positions for high-quality shots in the paint and beyond the three-point line.

Check it out:

Head coach Jim Boylen promised all season long to open up the offense to allow the Bulls’ young core to develop some chemistry. Mix in some LaVine, add in a bit of Markkanen, and it appears the Bulls know what it takes to win. Let’s hope the Bulls save it, just like LaVine did here when he put Jaylen Brown on a poster.

Not only did the Bulls represent the city of Chicago well in a game that many believed the players took personally, but they also managed to regain and maintain the momentum throughout much of regulation.

This is what Markkanen had to say after the game:

With a win over the Celtics, the Bulls have won their last three games.

Up next, the Bulls will look to extend its winning streak to four games when they meet the Milwaukee Bucks.