The Bernstein Brief: Unwatchable Bulls Aren't Even Trying
By Dan Bernstein--
CBSChicago.com senior columnist
(CBS) Being bad is no excuse for not playing hard.
I get it -- injuries have rendered the Bulls something less than themselves, forcing them to play third-stringers in key roles. Taj Gibson was the latest victim Wednesday night, joining Joakim Noah, Jimmy Butler and Nikola Mirotic on the bench. But in Derrick Rose, Pau Gasol, Mike Dunleavy, Bobby Portis, Tony Snell, Aaron Brooks and Doug McDermott, the Bulls still had seven first-round draft picks on the floor, three of them top-three picks.
It may not be enough talent to win a championship, but it's damn sure enough to compete more than what we saw Wednesday night in a 102-89 road loss to the Magic.
The Bulls keep talking and talking and talking about defense and commitment and communication and doing none of it. Bad teams get whatever they want both going to the basket and uncontested from the perimeter, as the Magic did again immediately after the ball was in the air.
Simple ball screens create huge driving lanes, with no weak-side help on even the very first actions. Secondary breaks are layups every time, with transition matchups now just wishful thinking. The Bulls don't seem to care.
They stood pat at the trade deadline for this.
Dan Bernstein is a co-host of 670 The Score's "Boers and Bernstein Show" in afternoon drive. You can follow him on Twitter @dan_bernstein and read more of his columns here.