For the first time in too long — maybe weeks, maybe a month — the Chicago Bulls took complete control of a game.
Monday night’s 113-99 win over the Toronto Raptors at the United Center couldn’t have come at a more necessary, even desperate time. After weeks of blowout losses and scattered grind-it-out wins, the Bulls were crumbling in confidence and in the Eastern Conference standings.
But they won Monday in their style on their home court. The victory ended a three-game losing streak, but more importantly, it proved the Bulls’ winning formula from early in the season still has the same bite.
“There was times in all these games ... we’ve had moments we played really, really good basketball, but it’s just not sustained for a long enough period of time,” coach Billy Donovan said. “We had these moments and these lapses that really hurt us. But tonight, from start to finish, we played to an identity.”
The win served as a welcome-back party for forward Patrick Williams, who played his first game in almost five months after wrist surgery.
Before the game, Williams joked that every player improbably hopes to score 30 points in his return game. Williams didn’t go on a scoring spree, but his return was promising in its consistency.
He bounced into 3-pointers and second-chance opportunities on offense and kept a hand in the passing lane to divert the Raptors on defense. In the third quarter, Williams used his physicality to poke away passes on defense and rumble down the court to flip a back-handed layup into the basket. The second-year forward finished with seven points and two rebounds in 19 minutes.
“I can’t really put it into words, honestly,” Williams said. “Just having something taken from you for so long, something that you love, and finally being able to get it back and enjoy it again — there’s really nothing like it.”
While Williams brought a spark to the nearly healthy Bulls, Zach LaVine took control of the game in the third quarter.
LaVine hasn’t always been himself since his left knee flared up just before the All-Star break. He has been hesitant at times to drive to the rim and slow to pull up for his typically lethal jumpers. When the Bulls aren’t shooting well, LaVine visibly carries the weight of their frustration.
But when LaVine barreled out of the locker room and into the third quarter, he played with the same combination of fury and precision that earned him love in Chicago long before the Bulls started winning. He blew down the court to set up Alex Caruso for a 3-pointer, then scored three baskets in a row to break the game open for the Bulls.
LaVine finished the quarter with 16 points after scoring eight in the entire first half. His explosive output led the Bulls through a 15-0 run and a 21-8 finish over the final 6:42 of the quarter, establishing a double-digit lead they wouldn’t shake for the rest of the game.
“That’s just Zach being Zach,” Williams said. “Last year, before DeMar (DeRozan) was here, Zach did that every game. It’s nothing new to me to see. It’s good to see him get back in his rhythm, get back in his flow.”
With LaVine churning out points, the rest of the Bulls offense played with the fluidity missing in recent weeks. LaVine and DeRozan each scored 26 points, while Nikola Vučević found space in the point to score 19 points. After being outshot in free throws consistently through their losing stretch, the Bulls forced their way to the line 24 times.
The Bulls defense also was honed by Caruso, who replaced Ayo Dosunmu in the starting lineup. After the Bulls forced 29 points off turnovers — their second-highest number of the season — Donovan said he might make the change permanent.
The Raptors coughed up the ball 12 times, forced into blunders as the Bulls guards hounded passes along the perimeter. Early in the second half, Scottie Barnes chucked a rushed pass three feet above the head of Precious Achiuwa and into the hands of an ecstatic fan. The Raptors shot 18.8% from 3-point range as the Bulls forced them to take increasingly haphazard shots.
One good night — no matter how spectacular — can do only so much to bolster confidence.
The Bulls still are correcting a free fall down the East standings. They haven’t beaten top teams with consistency, and the long-held hope of Lonzo Ball’s return by the end of the regular season is fading.
The celebratory period won’t last 24 hours before the Bulls have to head north to face the Milwaukee Bucks in a back-to-back. And the Raptors entered the game at a disadvantage — playing on the second night of a road back-to-back while missing starters OG Anunoby and Gary Trent Jr.
But after the win, the Bulls soaked in the much-needed reminder of who they are — and who they can be.
“We just need to get that confidence and that swagger back,” LaVine said.
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