Alex Caruso isn\u2019t walking through that door to help the Bulls.<\/p>\n
Plus, when would Caruso \u2014 the defensive specialist they traded to the Thunder in June for Josh Giddey \u2014 ever walk? He\u2019d more likely sprint in, knock the ball from an opponent\u2019s hands, chase it down, dive for it and find an open teammate with a bounce pass while lying on his back.<\/p>\n
But still, Caruso is gone. And coach Billy Donovan\u2019s crew needs to start doing something about it.<\/p>\n
A little over a week ago, the Bulls (3-6) were seventh in the NBA in defensive efficiency, but even Donovan believed that felt off, given what he has seen from this group.<\/p>\n
Sure enough, they\u2019ll enter Saturday\u2019s game against the Hawks ranked 20th \u2014 a drop closely tied to their allowing 45 points in the fourth quarter against the Timberwolves on Thursday in a game they had controlled through the first three quarters.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe start of that game, we feel like we\u2019re playing the right way,\u201d Giddey said. \u201cThe defense is good, we\u2019re locked in on coverages and the scouting [report], and it\u2019s just too up and down. We need to string 48 minutes together and see where we are collectively.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had individual stretches and team stretches where we look great, but we have stretches where we look horrible. It\u2019s not one person \u2014 it\u2019s a collective effort. And we\u2019ve spoken about it that way, that we have to defend as a team. All of us kind of have to look in the mirror, myself included, and say, \u2018What can we do individually to help this group defensively?\u2019\u2009\u201d<\/p>\n
There may not be much. With guard Lonzo Ball sidelined with a sprained right wrist and forward Patrick Williams still inconsistent on both ends, the Bulls don\u2019t really have a stopper, especially against guards and wings. Their best defensive game plan early on this season was to use their up-tempo pace on offense to tire teams out, which was effective at times but not sustainable.<\/p>\n
They have learned that during their current four-game losing streak, with the third-worst defensive efficiency in the league over the last three games. Even worse, over those same three games, they have allowed a league-worst average of 38.7 points in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
Without Ball, the player most needed on defense is guard Ayo Dosunmu, who has shown flashes of being a lockdown defender out of the backcourt. He just needs to do it consistently.<\/p>\n
\u201cShots come and go, but there is a reality of being able to impact the game on a consistent basis on both ends of the floor,\u201d Donovan said. \u201cI do think that Ayo has developed into being a two-way player. I\u2019ve got a lot of confidence in him in terms of our team, our roster, and what he can do. He leans into that. He\u2019s competitive and he takes those challenges on.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
While there were concerns on film over a week ago for the Bulls’ defense, the numbers were on their side. Now, Billy Donovan’s crew is being taken apart on defense, and the search for help and solutions continues.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5574,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5567","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba"],"yoast_head":"\n