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Chris Duhon is trying to stay positive as he struggles through another shooting slump. The Bulls point guard is shooting just 14 percent from the field since joining the starting lineup Dec. 28.
"The thing with me is sometimes I let my shot bother me," Duhon said Monday at the Berto Center. "I'll pass up shots or the shots I do take, I'm not fully confident in shooting. I've got to be confident the whole time. Nobody shoots 100 percent. Guys go through rough stretches."
Duhon has been there before. He went through a nearly identical slump last year in early January that lasted a few weeks.
"I was thinking about that at home yesterday, that it was kind of like the same time last year," he said. "Right now, I'm just trying to get extra shots up, trying not to let that mess up my head in any way. Last year it kind of got to me. This year, I've just got to find a way, (maybe) try to find different ways to score. I just can't hesitate."
Coach Jim Boylan voiced support for his point guard. While Duhon has missed 23 of his last 24 field-goal attempts, he's also piled up 27 assists compared to 4 turnovers during his six games in the starting lineup.
"I think that sometimes guys can contribute in different ways and it's not always putting the ball in the basket," Boylan said. "Du's been struggling with his shot, but he's been taking care of the ball. He's been running the offense for us. He's been playing good defense."
Boylan stressed the importance of Duhon continuing to shoot the ball in rhythm when he's open. Even if the ball doesn't find the net, the Bulls lead the NBA in offensive rebounds per game.
"He's never been a knock-down shooter," Boylan said. "He's always been a little up and down. So I'm expecting him to turn it around and start shooting the ball a little bit better for us. When he does, it's going to make us a better team."

kyrv wrote:This is very ironic since Thabo/Tyrus/Noah/Gray (can we get an acronym for them? )

richard wrote:-= original quote snipped =-



T N T, gee.

kyrv wrote:This is very ironic since Thabo/Tyrus/Noah/Gray (can we get an acronym for them? ) , can't afford mistakes for the most part, or they grab some bench.

AirP. wrote:I didn't expect good things from Duhon starting, not because it's Duhon but because of the guys he's playing with, they're good players but not the right type of player. Look at what he has to work with offensivly... Wallace.. blow easy ones, Joe Smith, spot up jumpshooter, low post player, Deng(he's the exception), Hinrich's a spot up shooter. All but Deng are pretty non athletic which isn't a good mix with Duhon's game, they're better suited for Hinrich's game. Duhon isn't a sit on the parameter and hit jumpers kind of guy and that's what they have to be with what they have on the court to start games... it drop's Duhon's confidence and things go down from there.

I begin to wonder just how effective Chicago's defense would be if we left Gordon on whoever he was guarding and didn't help, try to lock everyone else down and see if Gordon would get abused enough to overcome the better defense on everyone else instead of switching and helping so much. If a 20 ppg guy went off, would it be enough more points then we're giving up by switching off and leaving other players open?

kyrv wrote:Okay, I really like Dunon as a backup PG. When he starts or plays big minutes, over time, he kind of reveals, he's a good *backup* PG.

This is very ironic since Thabo/Tyrus/Noah/Gray (can we get an acronym for them? ) , can't afford mistakes for the most part, or they grab some bench.

They have to hope that 1) someone else is injured, 2) someone is foul trouble, or 3) someone is playing terribly just to get in, then they *must* play well to stay in.

Conversely Duhon just has to 'remain confident'.

I'll take Duhon's role.

...he's also piled up 27 assists compared to 4 turnovers during his six games in the starting lineup...

TeamMan wrote:

...he's also piled up 27 assists compared to 4 turnovers during his six games in the starting lineup...

That's an A/T of 6.75...while averaging 4.5 apg.

Almost any coach will take that from his starting PG and run with it.

Fewer TOs means fewer chances for the other team to have long scoring stretches, which keeps you in the game.

And the Bulls have been in EVERY game since Du became the starting PG. Our two loses were both in OT and (of course) were games that we could have won.

So the Bulls could easily be 6-0 instead of 4-2.

Cliff Levingston wrote:This is a prime example of how the numbers can lie.

Most guys get good assist numbers off making plays for others via breaking down the defense. Duhon gets them by making safe passes to jump shooters; something that anyone (ahem, Hinrich) could do if put at the PG position within our offense.