Chicago Bulls: 3 Takeaways From Bulls Loss to 76ers

No. 2: The Chicago Bulls Biggest Weakness was on Full Display in this one

The Bulls bigs got exposed all night by the shorthanded 76ers. Even without their two star players, the 6ers absolutely dominated this game in the paint. They outscored the Bulls in the paint 78-42. That’s while missing their two stars who both excel at scoring in the paint specifically.

Making matters worse, Chicago simply couldn’t stop the 76ers second and third centers on the depth chart. Dwight Howard, who is still a presence when he’s locked in, finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds off the bench.

Tony Bradley, who was inserted into the starting five in Embiid’s absence, also beat up on the Bulls shaky frontcourt. He finished with a solid line of 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 blocked shots. He also shot a remarkable 7-7 from the field and at times looked like a much more developed offensive player than he truly is at this point.

The Bulls allowed those two to shoot a combined 15-19 ( 78.9 percent) from the field. That’s obviously not a recipe for success.

It wasn’t just an easy night for them, though. The rest of the 76ers got in on the action as well throughout the 48-minute game. The number of uncontested layups they had as a team was absolutely unacceptable at the NBA level.

Whether it came off of simple pick and rolls or even simpler drives to the basket, the 76ers got to the rim all night with almost no resistance from the Bulls. This was especially true in the aforementioned Young-Markkenen lineups the Bulls ran a bit too much of.

Wendell Carter Jr. played just 15 minutes in the game, while Daniel Gafford and Luke Kornet combined for 17 minutes off of the bench.