Well that was a bummer.
Tonight against the visiting Los Angeles Lakers, our Chicago Bulls looked absolutely outmatched from the jump. With D’Angelo Russell back following a two-game absence and LeBron James wisely moved back into the starting lineup (albeit on a minutes restriction), Los Angeles had a much more well-rounded two-way night than they did in the two teams’ prior encounter Sunday, a 118-108 Bulls victory.
A key strategic shift was Lakers head coach Darvin Ham’s decision to double-team Chicago’s best scorers, wings DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine, especially off pick-and-roll actions. As a result, the Bulls were forced to take a bunch of jumpers, to middling results.