Chicago Bulls: 2 studs, 1 dud, from tight win over the Knicks

Chicago Bulls studs from road win over the Knicks: DeMar DeRozan

A regular of late on the studs lists for the Bulls, especially in wins for this team, is the dark horse MVP contender and former San Antonio Spurs star shooting guard/forward DeMar DeRozan. The four-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA Team selection came out firing in the second half for the Bulls, which is really when they needed it the most.

DeRozan once again showed that he can close out games for the Bulls thanks to his shot creation and command of the offense. DeRozan’s footwork and midrange game are really unmatched by any other scorer in the Eastern Conference right now, and he proved the value that it can bring to the table in this road win over the Knicks.

Moreover, DeRozan continued his hot scoring streak against the Knicks in this game. This is the second straight game against the Knicks where DeRozan registered at least 30 points. DeRozan managed a game-high 34 points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal, one block, and two turnovers on a very efficient night.

And he shot 12-of-19 from the field, didn’t have any attempts from beyond the arc, and went a solid 10-of-11 from the free-throw line.

I keep mentioning how important it is for the Bulls to get efficient nights out of DeRozan when he is getting this much usage, which will happen often. When DeRozan is scoring at a pace of around 1.5 points per field goal attempt or better, the Bulls are going to be in a good spot to win more often than not.

A good way to highlight this fact is that the Bulls are now 13-4 when DeRozan registers around at least 1.2 points per field goal attempt in games this season. That leaves the Bulls’ record at a measly 2-4 in the four games where he was approximately below that mark this season.