Late defensive lapses doomed the Chicago Bulls in Friday’s loss at Brooklyn.
The Bulls will try to prevent that from becoming a trend on Monday when they return home to meet the slumping Utah Jazz.
Chicago turned a 10-point deficit early in the third quarter into a narrow lead behind a 31-20 run. But the Nets’ Cam Thomas helped the hosts pull away, scoring eight straight points during one fourth-quarter stretch to key a 120-112 victory.
“For a lot of the season, we’ve done a good job and made it tough on guys,” Bulls guard Josh Giddey said. “I don’t think a lot of guys have come out of games saying they didn’t have to work for their buckets. I think with the defensive personnel we’ve got it can’t be a one-man show; it’s got to be a collective effort.
“I think it’s been solid for the most part, but there’s still room for growth in that area.”
Chicago has been competitive behind a fast-paced offense and an array of options behind the arc.
On Friday, Nikola Vucevic finished 10-for-11 from the floor for 28 points to go with 11 rebounds. He has five double-doubles in six games and is shooting 55.2 percent this season, a notable boost from his 49.5 percent career average.
Vucevic went 3-for-4 from long range. Zach LaVine and Coby White each connected on five treys en route to posting 21 points apiece.
Utah’s season-opening slump reached unprecedented depths with Saturday’s 129-103 loss to the Denver Nuggets in the opener of a four-game road trip.
Winless in their first six games, the Jazz have lost the last five by a combined 110 points to set a franchise record. The 1979-80 Jazz held the previous mark with five successive losses by a total of 107 points.
Sparked by Walker Kessler (18 points) and Johnny Juzang (17), Utah tread water for a time, trailing Denver by just nine points at the half.
Denver’s torrid 16-for-32 effort from beyond the arc and 22 Utah turnovers ultimately proved too much for the Jazz, however.
“We’ve got to do a better job valuing the ball,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “Fourteen live-ball turnovers are just hard to combat. I do think there were positives for our team to take away, and we’ll continue to try and build off those.”
One of those, to be sure, is Kessler, who added 14 rebounds to secure his third double-double of the season. The 7-footer in his third season is averaging career bests in points (9.7) and rebounds (11.2).
“I think Walker had some good moments,” Hardy said. “Walker has shown early this season the impact that he can have. The work he’s done on his body is showing up.”
Utah is cultivating younger depth as Lauri Markkanen (back spasms) and Taylor Hendricks (broken right leg) remain out.
Chicago carries a four-game series winning streak into Monday, a stretch aided by LaVine, who has scored at least 20 points in his past 11 games against Utah.
The Bulls are 58-53 against the Jazz all-time but just 23-32 on the road.
–Field Level Media
