It wasn’t pretty, but the Chicago Bulls grinded out a hard-fought win in Memphis 109-107 earning their 17th win on the season and their 4th out of their last 5 games. Zach LaVine led the team in points (30) as he took over in the final quarter of play.
The month of February has been good to the Chicago Bulls. After starting off slow, they opened up the second half of the NBA season with a close win against the Orlando Magic and eventually finished the month of February with a .500 record (5-5); good enough for 17-45 (4th worst record in the NBA). The Chicago Bulls averaged 116.0 points per game, the fifth-highest scoring month in the franchise’s history and their highest since November 1982 (119.2).
As far as tonight’s game went, it was tight throughout. With 20 total lead changes, it wasn’t until late in the fourth quarter that the Chicago Bulls were able to pull away from the battle-tested Memphis Grizzlies which was led by Zach LaVine’s 30 point outing (12 of his points coming in the fourth).
Lauri Markkanen finished the game with his 4th straight double-double (22 points and 10 rebounds), tying his career-best streak and 10th consecutive game of 20+ points and 9+ rebounds. He’s tied with Minnesota Timberwolves’ big man Karl-Anthony Towns with this impressive stat. However, it didn’t look like this stat would remain as the Finnisher started out slow only recording 2 points on 1-of-5 shooting in the first half.
The spectacular defensive performances from Kris Dunn, Otto Porter Jr. and Wayne Selden also didn’t go unnoticed as they combined for seven steals. Selden set his career-high with 4.
Porter – who always wanted to live in Chicago when he was younger – finished the game with 20 points, six rebounds, three steals, and three blocks.
As we turn the page onto another month, Bulls fans are topsy-turvy on what this teams’ direction is taking. With each win, the Bulls’ chances of getting another lottery ball in May decreases. However, with every “con” comes a “pro” and you can see that in every game that the Bulls play. The chemistry that this team has built up and the growth from these young players – especially since the acquisition of Otto Porter Jr. – has been fun to watch. Although I would love to see the Bulls grab a top-3 pick come May, I can’t deny that it has been great to see such a positive effect that Otto Porter Jr. has set not only on players like LaVine and Lauri, but in the locker room as well. Fans don’t realize that Porter is only 25 years old. He’s a 6-year veteran and it was a need that this Bulls team has been longing for.
The Chicago Bulls will look to keep their team swagger up from February into March as they take on the Atlanta Hawks twice starting on Friday (one away and one at home). The Hawks are four games behind the Chicago Bulls for the 4th worst record (21-41).