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Wrong time for relaxing
Knicks' escape at the UC is proof that Boylan can't be Bulls' only kick-start

January 10, 2008
BY JOHN JACKSON jjackson@suntimes.com
Because the Bulls won four of their first six games under Jim Boylan, there was optimism that the sudden coaching change two weeks ago might have jolted the underachieving team into playing up to its potential.

Nice theory, but a 105-100 home loss Tuesday to the New York Knicks -- who entered with a seven-game losing streak and a 1-13 road record -- proved that optimism was merely wishful thinking.

Sure, the Bulls were playing shorthanded, with Luol Deng (Achilles tendinitis) sitting out and Andres Nocioni limited by illness, but they were healthy enough to turn away the pathetic Knicks, especially considering they held a 13-point advantage (after a scoring correction) with 11 minutes to play.

''There were a couple of plays we could have made,'' guard Ben Gordon said. ''We need to step on teams' throats when we have that kind of lead, especially a team like New York that struggles and gets discouraged when things don't go their way. We didn't take advantage of that.''

'Below-average team'
That has been the story all season, particularly at the United Center, where the Bulls already have as many losses (10) as they did all of last season. Whether it's Boylan or Scott Skiles at the helm, the Bulls (13-20) have been a struggling bunch prone to lapses of confidence, execution and effort.

Their longest winning streak is two games, and we're far enough into the regular season that it must be asked whether they simply are as bad as their record.

''We're playing like that,'' guard Chris Duhon said. ''We're playing like an average team -- we're playing like a below-average team.

''Do we have the capability of being better than that? Of course, but it's up to us. We can't place any titles on us just because of what we've done in the past. We're this year's team, and we're a below-average team right now.''

Boylan has avoided such blunt assessments since he took the reins. He has been mostly encouraging and optimistic. He addressed the players before practice Wednesday and informed them that they were just four games out of fourth place in the Eastern Conference.

''We want our guys focused on the task at hand, which is trying to get something going and get ourselves back into the playoffs,'' Boylan said. ''Luckily, even though we've struggled some this year, we're still within reach of that. If we can put together a couple weeks of good, solid basketball, we'll be in good shape.''

To put together a couple weeks of good basketball, Boylan needs to make some changes.

For starters, I'd like to see less of some starters -- particularly Ben Wallace.

Although his numbers and effort have improved under Boylan, the offensively challenged center played a major role in the Bulls' fourth-quarter meltdown against the Knicks. After he returned to the court with 10 minutes left, the Bulls scored only eight points. Wallace was scoreless in the fourth quarter, even though he often was left unguarded, and had just two rebounds.

Turn to Gray
Rookie Aaron Gray (12 points and four rebounds in just under 10 minutes) should have played more down the stretch. He was 5-for-6 from the field and had one of the Bulls' six field goals in the fourth quarter despite playing less than two minutes in the quarter.

The other change I'd like to see is better ball movement at the end of games. Far too often, the Bulls have been content to put the ball in Gordon's hands and let him try to create something. Throughout his time with the Bulls, Gordon has been a solid fourth-quarter scorer, but he's not great at creating shots one-on-one because of his size and shaky ballhandling.

There's a reason why the Bulls have dropped every close game of late -- including a couple of overtime losses at home -- with the exception of a victory Saturday against the Sacramento Kings.

They simply can't afford to let any more winnable games slip away.

'We're playing like that,'' guard Chris Duhon said. ''We're playing like an average team -- we're playing like a below-average team.

'Do we have the capability of being better than that? Of course, but it's up to us. We can't place any titles on us just because of what we've done in the past. We're this year's team, and we're a below-average team right now.''

For starters, I'd like to see less of some starters -- particularly Ben Wallace.

Rookie Aaron Gray (12 points and four rebounds in just under 10 minutes) should have played more down the stretch. He was 5-for-6 from the field and had one of the Bulls' six field goals in the fourth quarter despite playing less than two minutes in the quarter.

The other change I'd like to see is better ball movement at the end of games. Far too often, the Bulls have been content to put the ball in Gordon's hands and let him try to create something. Throughout his time with the Bulls, Gordon has been a solid fourth-quarter scorer, but he's not great at creating shots one-on-one because of his size and shaky ballhandling.

They simply can't afford to let any more winnable games slip away.