Fixing their road woes will be key to Bulls building momentum
Maybe the Bulls can write off what happened at Milwaukee as a schedule loss. Playing the second leg of back-to-back games against a team with a rest advantage is tough in itself, let alone the defending champs.
But the Bulls had better figure out how to build some momentum on the road if they want to salvage their season.
Four games are left on their Midwest regional road trip, but three are against losing teams - and all four opponents have a worse record than the Bulls. It starts with New Orleans on Thursday, followed by Cleveland, New York and Washington.
If the Bulls can do well, then come back with five games at the United Center, where they've played well, there's a chance of building some momentum for the playoffs, maybe even claiming homecourt advantage in the first round.
But winning on the road has become an issue. They've lost four straight away from home and seven of their last eight. Four of those defeats were by at least 13 points.
Without even being prompted, Bulls guard Alex Caruso discussed the problem after the blowout loss to the Bucks.
"This has happened too many times," he said. "It really is on the road for us. I feel like at home, we play fine. Those have been the only two good games we've played over the last couple of weeks. It's just something about being on the road where we've got to lock in and get better. We have to have a different mindset going on the road, especially when shots aren't going in."
Caruso went back to the familiar argument about how the Bulls tend to get sloppy. They'll go through lulls with too many mental lapses, unforced errors and missed assignments, and those add up quickly against good teams. Caruso and Tristan Thompson have won championships, but the Bulls' overall lack of winning experience shows.
"There's just little moments here and there, whether it's settling for the easy route on offense or not competing enough on defense, on little instances like box-outs, one-on-ones, forcing catches out, getting coverages right," Caruso said. "You want to win on the road, you can't mess too many of those up, and we're messing way too many of them up.
"I think at home, we do a pretty good job of being locked in, playing desperate, executing coverages, talking. On the road, it's a different animal. These good teams are good teams for a reason. Every team's got talent. We've got plenty of talent on our team. It's not about a talent issue, it's about executing."
For the past two games, coach Billy Donovan started Caruso at point guard, and the team got off to a good start in Milwaukee. But that move also creates a young second group with Ayo Dosunmu, Coby White and just-back-from-an-injury Patrick Williams playing together. When that lineup hit the floor late in the first quarter, the Bucks went on a 13-0 run.
Caruso had an interesting answer when asked what he's trying to teach the younger guys.
"We're trying to teach them the game within the game," he said. "Each possession is its own game in a sense, where you've got to figure out what to do, what the read is, what the look is, then execute and compete. Those are two things that are mandatory if you're trying to win."
Heading into Wednesday's action, the Bulls were No. 5 in the East, 2½ games behind Boston. The Celtics had won nine of 10 before Wednesday's home game against Utah, so moving up in the standings could be challenging.
The Bulls are one game ahead of sixth-place Cleveland, which adds importance to Saturday's game against the Cavs. The Bulls could clinch the season series with a win at Cleveland, and could also win the season series against Boston by beating the Celtics on April 6 at the United Center.
DeRozan on injury report:
DeMar DeRozan is listed as questionable for Thursday's game at New Orleans with a left adductor strain. For the Pelicans, Larry Nance Jr. could make his Louisiana debut after recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery, while Brandon Ingram is doubtful with a hamstring injury.
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