3 Chicago Bulls who impressed in preseason debut vs Pelicans

Chicago Bulls basketball is back, and it didn’t take long for the team to give us a nail-biter and close finish. Although they’d ultimately fall to the New Orleans Pelicans 129-125, there were several key performances of this game that I believe should leave the Bulls feeling excited about the future in spite of the loss.

Pitted against a team just took the 2021 Western Conference champions to six games in last year’s playoffs, has had a full summer to develop their team chemistry, and is now having arguably their best player in Zion Williamson return to the fold, the Bulls were always going to have their hands full with this Pelicans roster.

NOLA’s starting unit looked fierce in their minimal playtime, and a slimmed-down Zion looks every bit of the player that made him such a standout collegiate talent in the first player. When the Pelicans’ bench unit came in, however, these Bulls players really started to hit their stride.

Despite the close loss, the Chicago Bulls displayed improvement in several areas of the game in last night’s contest against New Orleans.

1. Javonte Green

With how many offensive options the Chicago Bulls are loaded up with, I doubt many expected Javonte Green to be one of the premier offensive options for the Bulls last night. Scoring 18 points on 5-of-7 shooting, Green contributed the second most points behind only DeMar DeRozan last night.

What was most impressive is just how he earned his scoring total. Considering the fact that there are so many ball-dominant scoring threats on this team, watching Green earn his buckets by cutting to the rim, getting out in transition, and doing as much as he could without the ball in his hands was very promising. He also chipped in a 3-pointer and went an outstanding 7-for-7 from the charity stripe, after averaging just 1.5 free throws per game last season.

2. Dalen Terry

Entering last night’s contest, most people were probably locked in on watching Patrick Williams and Ayo Dosunmu when it comes to Chicago’s young core. Neither would have the most promising performance, however, as Dalen Terry rose to the occasion and stole the spotlight. To put things into perspective, Terry scored more points than Zach LaVine, had more assists than Alex Caruso, and reeled in as many rebounds as Andre Drummond.

Terry accomplished all of this in just 17 minutes, providing a glimpse of his potential and offering fans a little hope that he may yet crack the rotation this season. Perhaps most impressive at all, Terry displayed a level of confidence and assertiveness that we didn’t quite get to see from him in the Las Vegas Summer League. If he keeps this up, his future in Chicago could be much brighter than originally anticipated.

3. Nikola Vucevic

As the true star of last night’s game, no player impressed me more than Nikola Vucevic. He came out looking like he had something to prove right out of the gate, showing an intensity he seemed to lack for much of last season. The first time he touched the ball, he immediately posted up Jonas Valanciunas instead of hanging around the perimeter and scored Chicago’s first two points of the game. Vooch would immediately follow this up by blocking Zion Williamson on a layup attempt.

If you missed it last night, you can still watch Vucevic’s great opening sequence for yourself below.

This hot start was exactly what Vucevic needed to get going, as he’d cap off a dominant performance by posting 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists with an astounding 7 combined blocks and steals in just 23 minutes of play time. If the Bulls continue to properly utilize Vucevic instead of having him dawdle on the perimeter, there’s no reason to think he can’t return to his All-Star form this season.