Game 4: Chicago Bulls (2-3) vs. Dallas Mavericks (4-0) | 105-114 WIN!!!!!

[Jym]

Brad Townsend
@townbrad

Asked whether he felt badly that it was ex-teammate Zach LaVine whom he dunked over with that vicious put-back, Derrick Jones Jr. smiled and said: "Honestly, I’m sorry to say it, I don’t even care if my mom is there."

[StrandedOnBeauboisHill]

4-0 baby

[MarkAguirreWrathofGod]

It's pretty crazy how good Lively already is at passing and its not just in short rolls. He showed it some in college and in SL and it has easily translated to real games. High IQ player, much more than just a basic lob threat. Really refreshing to see.

And he has improved SO much already since this summer. It really bodes well for his, and the teams, future. He took a left handed turnaround and just barely missed but the footwork was so polished and the touch was soft. He can even put it on the deck passably already. There is more Evan Mobley to his game than I think any of us initially imagined.

[MarkAguirreWrathofGod]

Kidd really deserves some credit for that decision.  Hardy down the stretch over THJ and DJJ?  It actually makes sense when you think about how they just kept doubling and beating up Luka the entire night.  Kidd needed another player who could create their own shot.  Hardy wasn’t perfect, but did some smart things.  It was encouraging.

The Rook with 33 minutes?  What.  So that’s what an Offensive Rebound looks like.

Josh is not playing with the same joy as years past.  Contract stuff?  Starting stuff?  Other stuff?

Kidd absolutely deserves credit for this. And I agree with your observation on Josh. In the first game he had some nice midrange moments. He needs to work on incorporating that in-between game as he has a nice touch and has improved at decelerating and changing speeds— which has always been a challenge for him. 

I would still love to see him coming around the top of the key on a dribble handoff. I DO think it’s incumbent upon the coaching staff to put players in their best spots to succeed, even if that means some growing pains as they learn. Green has drifted back to being just a spot up player and it doesn’t play to his full array of gifts. Some of that is no doubt on Green, you can almost see him thinking too much. But the coaching staff needs to get him comfortable handling the ball again and making the right reads again. He has shown that he has the ability to be a playmaker. And like Dan pointed out about needing Hardy as another ball handler, it applies equally to Josh. Especially since he’s looking like a regular closer for us, something Hardy’s size and defense will preclude him from being for awhile yet.

[The Jom]

Chicago game plan was to rough us up. Refs let a lot of it go. Really got to Luka even though he’s got the strength and handles to respond more so than pretty much anyone else in the league. Not so for Josh. His handles aren’t good enough to hang onto the ball while getting hit on a drive. He isn’t strong enough to power through contact and make difficult shots. When the going gets tough, he’s a 3&D guy. That’s why he didn’t break the bank on that extension.

[MarkAguirreWrathofGod]

Side note— Patrick Williams looks broken. He’s still only 22 and desperately needs a change of scenery. Curious to see if any team takes a flyer on him as an RFA this summe. he does have in theory prototypical size and skills as to play 3&D from the 3 or 4 in todays game. He had some nice defensive moments tonight but looks lost on offense. You’d have to think that Chicago would match unless he gets at or over MLE $. But then again, this is the Bulls who gave Coby White and Vic huge extensions this past summer.

---

Chicago game plan was to rough us up. Refs let a lot of it go. Really got to Luka even though he’s got the strength and handles to respond more so than pretty much anyone else in the league. Not so for Josh. His handles aren’t good enough to hang onto the ball while getting hit on a drive. He isn’t strong enough to power through contact and make difficult shots. When the going gets tough, he’s a 3&D guy. That’s why he didn’t break the bank on that extension.

The refs really did let them clutch and grab. They let Caruso get away with a lot of contact, first team all-defense rep will do that I guess. Caruso, Craig and Patrick Williams actually all did nice work on Luka when he wasn’t double or trapped. Torrey Craig is a solid defender and I seem to remember him  being effective against Luka in the past as well.

[IamDougieFresh]

Did anyone else notice Luka losing it on Green for not shooting at the end of the first half or is he pissed about something else?

[Razzmatazz_Hopskidillydoo]

I love Green, but he needs to learn the difference between unselfish play and Ben Simmons.

[Razzmatazz_Hopskidillydoo]

Kidd is a better coach than last year.

Said it once, the Mavs will win enough to mask Kidd's deficiencies.

But I admit he has done some good this time.

He did well inserting Hardy instead of THJ,  did the right thing with Green even if he was underperforming -- still is the right call.
Kidd also realized the Mavs would be destroyed on the boards with DP.
Had DJJ on a defensive play instead of Hardy - was the type of a situational move he didn't do enough of last season.

But.. still the Bulls had no rim protection, and Mavs could have exploited that -- but the Mavs theme at least in 4 games was to live and die with the 3.

[Dundalis]

Kidd is a better coach than last year.

Also, Nico is a better GM.

And Cuban is a better owner.

I think Kidd's first season showed he's a defensive coach. i.e. you actually give him competent defensive players and he can get the team playing good defense. He still has no clue overall what to do offensively, but I think he's a guy if you give him defensive pieces he can take that team places, particularly when he has a savant to take care of the offense.

Lively has phenomenal defensive IQ. You always know the guys with the high defensive IQ, because they don't need to fill up any defensive box score stats to have a huge impact on the game defensively. And at 19 as a center, that's pretty rare and pretty special. We will see what happens with his offense, but just the defensive impact alone is game changing.

[Mavs2021]

I will count this as a loss, cause the oldest player on the court for the last six minutes was 24 years old and I have been told for the last two decades that you can´t win games without experience and that´s why Carlisle always needed to play the retirement home squad.

Very enjoyable. Williams and DJJ turned out much better than expected.

[Dundalis]

I will count this as a loss, cause the oldest player on the court for the last six minutes was 24 years old and I have been told for the last two decades that you can´t win games without experience and that´s why Carlisle always needed to play the retirement home squad.

Very enjoyable. Williams and DJJ turned out much better than expected.

Everything about the last two games makes perfect sense as to why DJJ started over Green when Kyrie was healthy.

[surfpuckmd]

This was a really satisfying win.

We are rebounding really well.  Lively is a big part of this improvement but Grant Williams is really good at boxing out and even THJ is hitting the boards.  Kidd deserves some credit here for shoring up a projected weakness.

The team passing is also pretty terrific especially in this win.  Lively appears to be a basketball savant.  Did anyone actually anticipate him being an excellent passer in his rookie season?  The whole team is making smart passes though.  Kidd deserves a lot of credit here as well.

All the role players made positive contributions in this game.  Grant Williams has been better than I expected and looks like a great signing.

My only complaint would be that Kidd will have to speak up more when the Luka is being bullied.  Luka was hit repeatedly with no calls.  They weren't minor touch fouls.  There were several hits that knocked him down.  The officials chose not to call them.  Luka complained some but I thought handled it pretty well.  Kidd will need to speak up occasionally when this happens.  Kidd is a quiet coach but will need to occasionally find his voice to protect his players.

Overall though, great game by the Mavericks.

[ItsGoTime]

That one play where Luka stretched out both hands with the ball, went up for a shot through Caruso’s armpit, dumped Caruso on the ground and made the short shot is a foul on Caruso 100% of the time when most other superstars do it, especially LBJ. No respect whatsoever from the refs.

[Moviemavguy]

I love Green, but he needs to learn the difference between unselfish play and Ben Simmons.

He doesn't play well with Luka at least on offense.  Something just isn't right between the two.

[sefant]

He doesn't play well with Luka at least on offense.  Something just isn't right between the two.

[Ghost of Podkolzin]

He doesn't play well with Luka at least on offense.  Something just isn't right between the two.

When Luka is on the floor, J.Green goes from efficient scorer to complete shooting paraplegic.  Ben Simmons is the perfect comp.

[KillerLeft]

The team passing is also pretty terrific especially in this win.  Lively appears to be a basketball savant.  Did anyone actually anticipate him being an excellent passer in his rookie season?  The whole team is making smart passes though.  Kidd deserves a lot of credit here as well.

Totally agree. I see a marked uptick in ball movement, and that’s going to pay off BIG TIME once the team develops enough chemistry.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

I've come to the conclusion Green is who he is. He'll have a decent game every now and then, but he doesn't have the cajones to be aggressive and possibly be the 3rd wheel on offense. He got that nice little extension, but I'd be astonished if he took the next step toward being a borderline star. He's too passive.

[StrandedOnBeauboisHill]

I've come to the conclusion Green is who he is.  He'll have a decent game every now and then, but he doesn't have the cajones to be aggressive and possibly be the 3rd wheel on offense. He got that nice little extension, but I'd be astonished if he took the next step toward being a borderline star. He's too passive.

This boards obsession with Green becoming a star is so strange, being a good role player is totally fine.

One of our biggest issues in terms of roster construction was that our role players playing huge minutes in DFS/Bullock couldn't do ANYTHING other than spot up shoot.  Green/Williams just having an ounce of ability to put the ball on the floor just makes the overall offense that much more dynamic.  I mean, I loved DFS as much as anyone but we got so used to his game that Grant Williams using a simple escape dribble to get open in the corners makes him look like Allen Iverson out there.  And obviously there were nights where Bullock was simply doing cardio out there so anything Green gives us his a huge upgrade in my opinion.

Speaking of God King, did cow leave the board?