In another nice win for second-year head coach Billy Donovan and the Chicago Bulls in the midst of this preseason slate, it’s hard to not get excited about the entertainment factor that this team could deliver this season. The preseason usually isn’t too indicative of how the season will turn out, but this Bulls team is surely showing some solid early signs.
The first two games of the preseason saw the Bulls deliver two wins at home at the United Center on Oct. 5 and 8. First and foremost, it was the Bulls dominating the divisional foe Cleveland Cavaliers at home on Oct. 5 in a 131-95 win.
And then, the Bulls downed the New Orleans Pelicans at home at the United Center on Oct. 8 by another convincing margin. The Bulls got the win over the Pelicans on the night of Oct. 8 by the final score of 121-85.
It’s hard to tell how this play during the preseason will translate. Plenty of teams that won’t make the playoffs this season are likely going to have a good preseason. And while I’m not saying that will be the case for the Bulls this season, the point is that we can’t get too carried away about two wins over short-handed teams in the preseason.
Garrett Temple high on the Chicago Bulls direction under Billy Donovan
Another preseason game, another ex-Bulls appearance.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) October 8, 2021
Garrett Temple: “I think Billy’s done a great job. I think he’s going to turn this thing around.”
Tomas Satoransky: “I was prepared that a change might happen. I’m old enough. experienced enough to know it’s part of the biz.”
But there are some things being said about Donovan and the Bulls during the preseason that are encouraging about the direction of this team. Ahead of the Bulls facing a couple of players from last season’s team against the Pelicans heading into the weekend, one had an interesting take about the direction that Chicago is headed in.
Veteran former Bulls shooting guard Garrett Temple stated heading into this meeting between Chicago and NOLA on Oct. 8 that he believes that Donovan has “done a great job” and that he’s “going to turn this thing around”.
Temple was one of the veteran voices in the locker room last season for the Bulls. And hearing him say something like that is huge, especially given the quick end to his time in Chicago.
The Bulls front office dealt out the likes of Temple, combo guard Tomas Satoransky, and some draft capital to the Pelicans for point guard Lonzo Ball in a big sign-and-trade deal a couple of months ago. Lonzo had himself a big game in the preseason win over the Pelicans on Oct. 8.
Temple actually got the start for the Pelicans in this meeting with the Bulls. He registered seven points, four rebounds, and one assist on 3-of-6 shooting from the field and 1-of-4 from beyond the arc. But he only got 18 minutes on the floor for the Pelicans, despite the start.
It will be interesting to see how Sato and Temple do with the Pelicans this season. They were key contributors to an improving Bulls team last season. But it was time for the franchise to take the next step forward this season. We’ll see how Donovan and the Bulls can capitalize with all of these new pieces this season.