January 16, 2022: Plenty of Guts

You know the saying no guts, no glory? Well, the Bulls showed plenty of guts on Saturday night in Boston, but they didn’t get that glory… yet. It’s been a tough week, really tough. After losing… getting crushed in our last 2 games at the UC, and losing Lavine in the 2nd of those games, we had to head to Boston, to play another tough team, trying to avenge an embarrassing loss to us from earlier in the season. We were already short handed. Williams has been out, so maybe I shouldn’t even include him, but no Lavine, Caruso, Green, or Jones Jr. Then, Ball was announced out too. WTF. Welp, get ready for a rough ride… Instead, the Bulls showed a ton of heart, playing their asses off, coming this close to beating the Celtics in a really good game. I know “winning is everything”, but I’m here to tell you… this type of effort in this particular scenario… will pay dividends come later this year.

If your faith in the Bulls has been shaken this week, which I can understand, hopefully it wasn’t lost. If it was lost, sorry to hear that; if it was only shaken, then hopefully what we saw in Boston in this one has helped shore it up. Ayo… I’m sure there are other rookies in the league that are doing well, but this guy… he has become the Bulls swiss army knife… he does whatever we need. Who would have thought our rookie would be handling the toughest defensive assignments on a regular basis? Oh yeah, he’s holding his own with it too. Not only does he bring the energy off the bench, he brings results too. From swinging the ball around, hitting a corner trey, hitting a little floater, cutting hard to the hole… what more can I say? The kid is damn impressive. For every other team in the NBA to pass him up… thank you. I know the success of a rookie has a lot to do with what scenario he walks into, but the success that Ayo has had… it’s tough for me to imagine that this wouldn’t have travelled with him on any team. But hey, too little too late NBA; we got him, and hopefully he’ll be here for a long, long time.

How about Coby White? I’ll say it again. Last year, I was ready to give up on him, just like Lauri. But, late in the year, against the Heat, when he chased down a fast break on defense, he showed me his heart. The kid brings it, and oh yeah, he can fill it up too. One more time for everyone: after DD and Zach, this kid can get his own shot really well. One thing I will say: don’t force it though. That goes for everybody, even DD, who really seemed to be forcing it down the stretch in this one. Of course, we expect our MVP to carry us down the stretch, but some nights, maybe it’s better to keep running the offense that had been working well in this one. One other thing: Vooch belongs in the paint. He can also hit that open mid range jumper. But please, please no more treys. Every game I’m preaching this to the TV. 3-14 over the last 3 games; 3-13 over the previous 3 games. NO MORE TREYS VOOCH! Get your ass down low. When he does that well, this Bulls team is on another level. He did it well in this one.

I know, it sucks to lose; the first 3 game losing streak of the year is supposed to feel worse than this. Yet, my faith, although it had taken a hit, is still strong in our guys. Not sure there are “good losses”, but man… ton of heart in this one from the Bulls. They’ll have to bring that with them for our MLK matchup against the Grizzlies; what a tough stretch in our schedule. But hey, no excuses, right? Let’s get back in that win column. Go Bulls!