The Chicago Bulls’ Thursday night game against the Atlanta Hawks was the closest a basketball game could get to a track meet.
Both teams rank in the top three in pace, which is a stat that measures possessions per 48 minutes.
The Hawks won the game 141-133. Just by looking at the final score, you can see the effects of the pace– more possessions equals more points. To see the benefits of pace, you have to look deeper at the scoring per quarter.
HOW PACE TRANSLATES INTO WINS
The Bulls started the fourth quarter up 17 and ended up losing by eight, meaning Atlanta outscored them by 25 in the quarter.
The Hawks didn’t have a stingy defensive scheme to limit the amount of points the Bulls scored. Chicago scored 25 points in the fourth… the Hawks scored 50.
Atlanta could do this by having enough possessions in the quarter to even score 50 points. Pace goes both ways. If you have 100 possessions in a game, the other team also does. This means a defense must focus on rebounding and turnovers to end the other team’s possession.
The Hawks accomplished that in the fourth quarter, outrebounding the Bulls by 11 and winning the turnover battle one to five. A deficit is never too large for a fast-paced team and can even cause upsets.
Last season’s Indiana Pacers, appropriately named, were second in pace and the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. They were the lower seed in every series they were in, but they made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals. Their pace opened the door for upsets even though they were the worse team record-wise.
To reach the ECF, the Pacers had to play the Knicks, who are coached by Tom Thibodeau. Thibodeau is infamous for playing his starters for a large number of minutes. The Pacers’ fast play exhausted the Knick starters, and they won the series.
THE RUNNING OF THE BULLS
Now, back to the Bulls. They are second in pace. This is a giant leap from 28th in pace last year. So what has changed?
Injuries plagued the Chicago Bulls last season. Zach LaVine and Patrick Williams both had surgery during the season. Many other players had stretches of absences.
The Bulls relied on DeMar DeRozan to carry the offensive load. Last season, at 34 years old, DeRozan played a league-high 37.8 minutes per game. His back-to-the-basket and midrange offense slowed the game down, reducing the number of possessions.
During the Billy Donovan era, the Bulls’ pace has hovered around the league average. Injuries and DeRozan’s playing style caused their pace to drop, but it didn’t regress to the mean: It skyrocketed. So, what is the reason Chicago’s pace increased?
Roster construction.
The Bulls got rid of DeRozan and traded Alex Caruso to get Josh Giddey during the offseason. These changes gave the Bulls more depth and made the team younger.
In the aforementioned Hawks game, the Bulls were without Giddey, Lonzo Ball and Matas Buzelis but still had their normal 10-man rotation. The Bulls got valuable minutes from the players who are normally at the end of their bench. Jevon Carter averages less than seven minutes per game but scored 26 points in 35 minutes against the Hawks.
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The increase in bench depth allows the starters to get more rest, allowing Chicago to keep up the pace throughout the game. The Bulls only have one player in the top 50 in minutes per game: LaVine, who is 44th.
Despite the reduction in minutes from previous seasons, many Bulls are producing at a career-best level. Nikola Vucevic is having the most efficient season of his career, while Giddey and Ayo Dosunmu are averaging career-best assists per game. Even though the Bulls are having an exceptional offensive season, they still have around the same record as previous years.
HOW THE BULLS CAN BUILD ON THEIR PACE
The Bulls currently average the sixth most points per game in the NBA but give up the second most points. They must fix their defense before Chicago can capitalize on their offensive production.
The Bulls are 25th in defensive rating, have the worst paint defense, and force the second-lowest number of turnovers. They must focus on limiting easy baskets and forcing turnovers to ensure their pace doesn’t benefit the opposing team’s offense.
Vucevic, the Bulls starting center, is the worst paint defender in the league based on opponent FG% at the rim.
It is unlikely that the Bulls will fix their defensive struggles during this season. Until that happens, they will be an entertaining and high-scoring team without any success.
Depending on who the Bulls get at the trade deadline, they could greatly benefit from getting a rim-protecting big man in the draft. Chicago will be without their first-round pick unless they finish as a bottom-10 team in the league.
Having to wait longer as a Bulls fan after 10 straight seasons without a playoff series win seems torturous. This time, there is something to look forward to as both the front office and coaching staff have changed philosophies and are building toward the future.
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