The Chicago Bulls enter Friday’s visit from the Toronto Raptors with seven losses in their past eight games yet have kept a measure of resolve.
That’s because the team’s three losses since the All-Star break have come by 11 combined points, including a two-point defeat to the Eastern Conference-contending New York Knicks in overtime.
“We put ourselves in a position to win games, so it’s a matter of figuring out how to close these games out,” Bulls guard Josh Giddey said. “The next step for our team is late-game execution, both sides of the ball.”
Wednesday offered the latest case in point. Chicago led the visiting Los Angeles Clippers by two points with 3:58 left in the third quarter before struggling down the stretch. Coby White missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer with 38 seconds left, and the Clippers’ James Harden clinched the 122-117 win with a trey on the next possession.
Coach Billy Donovan praised Chicago’s resilience with several key pieces sidelined, including Nikola Vucevic (right calf tightness), Ayo Dosunmu (left shoulder) and Patrick Williams (right quad).
Amid injuries and trades, Giddey has provided stability as a scorer. He has led or shared the Bulls’ scoring lead in each of their four games since the break.
On Wednesday, he matched recent acquisition Zach Collins with 21 points. Collins added a career-best 17 rebounds as Chicago remained 1.5 games ahead of the Brooklyn Nets for the No. 10 seed in the East. The Raptors are five games back.
“We’re trying to win, trying to get to the playoffs,” Collins said. “We’ve got to be ready to go at all times.”
Toronto is coming off a 111-91 loss against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday in the opener of a four-game road trip.
The Raptors were missing second-leading scorer Scottie Barnes (19.9 points per game), who was sidelined with a left hip contusion after recent right ankle trouble. While center Jakob Poeltl recently returned from an eight-game absence (hip injury), coach Darko Rajakovic is ramping up the big man’s minutes.
Adjusting on the fly and playing cohesively remains the focus for the Raptors, who have lost eight of their past 10.
“There’s going to be an emphasis on the whole team — not on RJ (Barrett), not on (Immanuel) Quickley,” Rajakovic said. “We need to play as a group. We can never have one player step up in the absence of other players. That’s a big part of what we’re always talking about and trying to have, that team mentality first.”
Quickley scored 18 points against the Pacers to clip Barrett (16) for the team lead. Quickley has contributed at least 10 points and six assists in three consecutive games. Barrett, the team’s top scorer at 21.8 points a game, has scored 20-plus points in five of the past six contests.
Chicago can clinch the season series against Toronto with a victory. The teams will meet again April 1 in Chicago.
The Bulls edged the host Raptors 122-121 on Dec. 16 after nearly squandering a 16-point fourth-quarter lead. Chicago rolled to a 122-106 road win on Jan. 31 behind 25 points from White and Vucevic’s 21-point, 12-rebound double-double.
Vucevic has posted double-doubles in six of his past 10 games against Toronto. The Bulls are 6-4 versus Toronto in the past 10 games.
–Field Level Media
