The Bulls are coming off a victory against the Indiana Pacers last night and were looking to carry that momentum into their next game. The schedule had the Charlotte Hornets next up for the Bulls on Wednesday. Well yet again the Bulls will see one of their games being postponed.
#Bulls-Hornets game set for tomorrow has been postponed due to contact tracing for Charlotte, NBA says.
Bulls' next game is at 76ers on Friday.
— Cody Westerlund (@CodyWesterlund) February 16, 2021
This marks the third time for the Bulls this season that a game has been postponed. The Bulls will now have three days without a game as they play the 76ers on Friday. While it’s unfortunate the Bulls have had three games postponed it does give them time to get in some much-needed practices.
What will the Bulls do during this time?
The Bulls are currently on the road as they went to Indianapolis yesterday for the game against the Pacers. This break between games now gives them a chance to get back to Chicago in between games. Due to inclement weather in Indiana, the Bulls stayed overnight instead of flying to Charlotte. They now will take the short trip back up to Chicago and practice at home ahead of their matchup on Friday.
Bulls are indeed returning to Chicago and will fly out to Philly after Thursday's practice in advance of Friday's game there. https://t.co/nREweH7FXH
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) February 16, 2021
The Bulls can use this time to prepare for the 76ers. They will definitely need that time to prepare for a tough matchup. This time will especially be important for center Wendell Carter Jr. he’s coming off a quad injury and played 21 minutes last night.
Billy Donovan needs to break the streak
Since this is becoming a commonly occurring event with games being postponed we can now look at how the Bulls are performing after a postponement. Thus far the Bulls are 0-2 coming off an extended break. The team has losses against the OKC Thunder and the Portland Trail Blazers. This next matchup is going to be a tough one. If head coach Billy Donovan is going to break this winless streak the Bulls will need to bring their A-game. The 76ers are the #1 seed in the east currently. Center Joel Embiid is playing at an MVP level and guard Ben Simmons just had a career night last night. The Bulls will need to either shoot lights out or up their defensive game. The good news for the Bulls is guard Zach LaVine is continuing to play lights out.
Zach LaVine should be an All-Star.
28.2 PPG
5.5 RPG
5.2 APG
51.5 FG%
43.1 3P%There are only two players averaging 25/5/5 on 50/40% shooting this season — Zach Lavine and Kevin Durant. pic.twitter.com/9tlO5o5bcL
— StatMuse (@statmuse) February 16, 2021
The Bulls will need every bit of LaVine when they meet the 76ers on Friday. While the Bulls get some extended time with no games it will also be crucial for them to figure out what they can do defensively to slow down the 76ers.
The center position will be key
Like I said earlier Joel Embiid is playing at an MVP level. The Bull’s center position is a much different story this season. Carter jr. has missed time due to injury. Backup center Daniel Gafford looked spectacular early on in the season and has completely fallen off. Additionally, backup centers Cristiano Felicio and Luke Kornet haven’t produced much while on the court. If Carter can only go for 20-25 minutes against the 76ers the Bulls will need to find some way to slow Embiid down. Last night the Bulls featured a lineup with 4 guards down the stretch along with forward Thaddeus Young. While it worked against the Pacers it won’t be as easy against the 76ers. Donovan will need to come up with a lineup to slow Embiid when Carter can’t be on the court.
Donovan doesn’t appear to have faith in his backup centers as Kornet played 9 minutes last night and Gafford never entered the game. This postponement comes at another great time for the Bulls. Donovan can use this time to scheme for a tough team ahead and the Bulls can get another look at how they stack up against top-ti teams in the East.
