Bulls take down the Bucks on the road for their fifth straight win
What. Is. Happening.
The Chicago Bulls sealed their fifth victory in a row on Friday night, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks 115–109 and confusing the hell out of everyone watching. Chicago has looked like a completely different team with the addition of Nikola Mirotic, and Friday night was no exception. The bearded power forward scored 22 points and shot 3-of-7 from deep, including a dagger to ice the game late. However, it was ironically Bobby Portis that served as Mirotic’s partner in crime, dropping a career-high 27 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. The Bulls shot well from deep, got to the line, and took advantage of easy scoring opportunities. They actually looked like a competent professional basketball team.
On Milwaukee’s side, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton both scored 29 points, and the Greek Freak had 16 rebounds and four assists as well, but it wasn’t enough to seal the game. Their oft-maligned defense was fairly successful throughout the game, but when the other team is making open 3s, sometimes there just isn’t much you can do.
We need to talk about Denzel Valentine. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen opposing offenses look upward and thank God when he checks into the game, and he just seems to have little to no feel for what’s going on. He played 18 minutes on Friday, scoring only two points and picking up three fouls. He was one of only three Bulls with a negative plus-minus at -13, and when David Nwaba took his place in the lineup, it was like a completely different team was playing. Speaking of Nwaba, this guy is legit good. 13 points and eight rebounds is only the tip of the iceberg when discussing what Nwaba brought to the court on Friday. At 24 years old, Nwaba is an excellent defender and an absurd athlete (although if you read K.C. Johnson’s latest, it seems Nwaba isn’t even the best athlete in his own family). He’s got a knack for getting to the rim, and even if he doesn’t improve another lick in his career, he’s already the kind of cost-effective two-way wing that this league craves in the worst way. It pains me to say it, but GarPax made a good move by bringing him in.
Despite an extended run from the Bucks in the third quarter, the Bulls managed to wrestle back control in the fourth, and a deep 3-pointer from Mirotic put them up five and effectively sealed the game. As exciting as it was, it paled in comparision to how Robin Lopez wanted to celebrate. Roll tape:
Long live Robin Lopez.
The Bulls have risen uncomfortably high from their last-place standing over this five-game winning streak, but I am still confident that they’ll finish where they need to finish when all is said and done. Mirotic is making a very intriguing trade case for himself right now, and if a few more wins here means a favorable deal for the Montenegrin in January, then that could very well be for the best. Plus, Chicago can do plenty of resting its guys and play Denzel Valentine 36 minutes any night. They won’t have any problem losing. Still, if it comes lottery time and the Atlanta Hawks are sitting on the dais with better odds than Chicago, I will hold it against Mirotic for the rest of my life because that’s the healthy thing to do.
The Bulls will take the weekend off and play the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night for a potential sixth straight win. Stay tuned.
