Bulls' Giddey exhibits signs of offensive focal point in loss to Knicks

The rebuilding Chicago Bulls are much more than a pushover for the third-placed New York Knicks. Chicago has already defeated New York twice this season, once in November and again in January. Through two contests, the Bulls averaged an impressive 131.5 points against the Knicks.

New York's third and final opportunity to usurp the Bulls nearly ended in yet another defeat. The Knicks needed five additional minutes to knock off the pesky Bulls. While both previous battles were high-scoring affairs, this time around went much different.

Chicago shot a lowly 39.8 percent from the field. New York didn't fare much better, converting merely 43.0 percent of its field goals and 30.4 percent of its triples. The post-All-Star rustiness was evident. Both squads shot less than 30 percent from the floor in the first quarter. The second quarter wasn't all that much different; neither team cleared the 40 percent threshold.

However, the third quarter went vastly different. Both teams shot 62.5 percent from the field. The Bulls, who outscored the Knicks by five points in the third, converted seven three-pointers. Then came the fourth. Chicago shot 27.3 percent from the floor but managed to keep the score close. The final stanza came down to the last few minutes. A Nikola Vucevic triple with under a minute left gave Chicago the lead before a Jalen Brunson jumper tied the contest at 104.

The Knicks overpowered the Bulls in overtime, outscoring Chicago 7-2 in three minutes of action. Chicago would come back, scoring the next five points, but ultimately came up short as Vucevic missed a fadeaway jumper as time expired. The big man dropped 21 and nine against the Knicks. Despite the impressive performance and late-game heroics, the player of the game honors ultimately went to Josh Giddey.

Josh Giddey's proving to be an impactful scorer for Chicago

The 6-foot-8 point guard scored 27 points, his season-high, converting 11-of-18 field goal attempts. Giddey also drained four triples, his most since October 30. Aside from the fantastic scoring numbers, Giddey grabbed a season-high 16 rebounds and added four assists.

Following Zach LaVine's departure on February 3, Chicago has been without an alpha scorer in the backcourt. While Coby White could surely assume that role, he's scored 11 points or fewer in three straight contests. Meanwhile, Giddey has scored 11, 17, and 27 in the Bulls' most recent affairs. Furthermore, he's shot 20-of-36 from the floor and 8-of-14 from beyond the arc in the same span.

One or even three games aren't enough to say whether the Bulls have found their next go-to scorer, post-LaVine. Nonetheless, Giddey has a lot on the line as the season comes to a close. The former sixth-overall pick was traded to Chicago in the offseason, eyeing a rookie-scale contract extension. However, the Bulls and Giddey never came to an agreement, forcing the Aussie to play out the final season of his contract before he enters restricted free agency this summer.

Giddey is auditioning for Chicago and the rest of the NBA over the final two months of the NBA season. His first game, post-All-Star break, was an overwhelming success. But can he continue this stretch of impressive offensive performances for 26 more contests? Who's to say? Giddey has shown signs of being an elite scorer. He's a terrific passer and rebounder but has lacked a complete offensive arsenal.

The 23-year-old has seemingly found his scoring groove in February. Giddey is averaging 18.4 points per game through seven contests in February—the third most in any month in his career. If Giddey can keep it up, Chicago will undoubtedly feel confident in signing the former Oklahoma City Thunder guard to a multi-year contract in July.