Another night, another W.
The Joel Embiid-less 76ers put up a valiant effort in the United Center, but the Bulls ultimately held on for a two point win.
Nikola Mirotic was once again the center of attention, this time while coming off the bench as Lauri Markkanen returned to the starting lineup after missing three games with a back injury. Mirotic led the team in scoring and had a double-double, finishing with 22 points and 13 rebounds in 26 minutes of action.
Kris Dunn and Justin Holiday also had big nights, combining for 42 points. The Bulls had seven different players score in double-figures.
The Bulls saw a nine-point halftime lead turn into a nine-point deficit with just over five minutes left to play. But that didn’t stop Fred Hoiberg’s bunch from rallying together for the comeback.
With 5 minutes left in tonight's game, the #Bulls trailed 105-96. Here's what happened next.
NSFW if you're from Philly: pic.twitter.com/thFqQhh25U
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) December 19, 2017
The Bulls keep winning, and coach Hoiberg isn’t shy to say why that is.
“Niko has brought a confidence to this team. You see our bench really rallying behind him when he’s out there making plays. You see the guys on the floor celebrating together when he makes the big plays. … Niko’s been in pressure situations a lot over the course of his basketball life. And it’s great to have an experienced player out there with our young guys to help close some of the close ones. I give Niko a lot of credit; he’s been awesome, especially since he’s been back in the lineup. When you’ve got guys out there playing with confidence, that rubs off on the whole team.”
The revival of Nikola Mirotic continues to both surprise and impress, and he doesn’t plan on cooling off anytime soon.
“When I’m out there, I’m just trying to make it simple,” Mirotic said. “It’s true that I’m playing with a lot of confidence right now. It’s been a long time — I didn’t have fun like now playing basketball. A long, long time.”
With a new and improved Mirotic, Kris Dunn, a healthy Lauri Markkanen and a Zach Lavine return in the near future, the Bulls are suddenly becoming interesting again. How long that will last remains to be seen, but for now I suggest that we sit back and enjoy the ride.
