Bulls vs Heat 7pm CT Apr. 9 2025

[WindyCityBorn]

I like Vuc and I believe he wanted to stay. Guys like that are great at the locker as well…

He absolutely cannot stay beyond his contract, and even that is too long. If the team is going to be built around Coby and Giddey you cannot, under any circumstances, have a C like Vuc as the starter.

Then again knowing AKME, who knows, maybe he'll be here til he retires.

I bet he extends him another year at a cheaper rate.

Vuc is gone. He won’t be back past next season.

[eierluke]

Good game by the Bulls. Billy gets his kudos for resting guys against CLE. No way we win without a rested squad. This was one of the few true quality wins of late. MIA was at full strength and very motivated.

Giddey saw that Coby didn't have it going and was smart enough to know that he needed to attack. A trip dub and 5 stocks...crazy. We gotta stop dissing his defense and 3's...I remember our early discussions on him saying "this guy could be good if he develops a 3 and plays decent defense"...I never thought it would be this season!

Coby either looked off or MIA put extra defensive attention on him.

Vuc gets my criticism often, but I will give him kudos for his play since coming back from injury. Giddey and Coby both know where to get him the ball, which helps him.

Huerter has been this teams unsung hero since Ball and Jones went down. Dude has really stepped up as the glue guy in the starting line-up. Way better in transition scoring and making hustle plays than expected, but that was the guy that I really liked in ATL.

Matas had an efficient offensive game, but his defense was very important IMO.

Good analysis.
Huerter ain't a stopper defensively, but he hustles and offensively he's a good passer and allways has his head switched on.
And say what you want about Vuc, but for a big guy he is a good passer with some awareness.
As for the "athletec or not discussion" here: today we had 5 advanced passer in our starting lineup and no athlete is as fast as a propper passed BBall.

[eierluke]

He absolutely cannot stay beyond his contract, and even that is too long. If the team is going to be built around Coby and Giddey you cannot, under any circumstances, have a C like Vuc as the starter.

Then again knowing AKME, who knows, maybe he'll be here til he retires.

I bet he extends him another year at a cheaper rate.

Vuc is gone. He won’t be back past next season.

If he plays like today (looked motivated) and enjoys playing with this youg squad and likes the city, why not as long as his the salary fits?

[jnrjr79]

I bet he extends him another year at a cheaper rate.

Vuc is gone. He won’t be back past next season.

If he plays like today (looked motivated) and enjoys playing with this youg squad and likes the city, why not as long as his the salary fits?

Because he's not that good in a general sense, the Bulls will have better options, and it would be really nice to have better rim protection when you are going to be trotting out some minus perimeter defenders in Giddey and Coby.

[drosestruts]

What a great game! An important game for both teams - Spoelstra one of, if not THE best coach in the league with a full strength squad.

There's a cliche in the NBA about the team with the best player often winning and having an advantage. The best player on the court tonight was Josh Giddey.


On the Giddey comparison discussion that's going on. Watching last night, some of his drives and odd angles he put layups up at was reminding me of Ginobli. Giddey brings a unique combination of pace, vision, passing, and scoring that just has to be exhausting for defenses. He's developing into a pretty unique player, and one that not only fills the stat sheet but genuinely makes those around him better. We've had a lot of very good individual contributors in recent years, we haven't had someone that helps makes other better for a long time.


Matas Buzelis - we got a steal. Two big shots late. He's confident but he also seems to have a hunger/desire to be better. There was a point late in the 4th where Giddey yelled at him for not inboudning the ball fast enough, shortly after a timeout was called, and you saw Matas go directly to Giddey not in a "don't yell at me way" but genuinely wanting to learn what he wanted in that situation. He's not pouting, sitting away from teammates, fighting with teammates - he's showing a desire to learn and get better. Which is a dangerous combination with how good he already is.

Coby started bad, stuck with it, and delivered big buckets and free throws in the 4th.

Vuc played very well. I've complained about him a lot. Credit when it's due.


Solid contributions from Huerter and Terry. THT also provided some much needed scoring in the late 1st or early 2nd when we were looking very stagnant.

Boo to Boston for sitting their starters against Orlando.

[kodo]

Good game by the Bulls. Billy gets his kudos for resting guys against CLE. No way we win without a rested squad. This was one of the few true quality wins of late. MIA was at full strength and very motivated.

Giddey saw that Coby didn't have it going and was smart enough to know that he needed to attack. A trip dub and 5 stocks...crazy. We gotta stop dissing his defense and 3's...I remember our early discussions on him saying "this guy could be good if he develops a 3 and plays decent defense"...I never thought it would be this season!

Coby either looked off or MIA put extra defensive attention on him.

Vuc gets my criticism often, but I will give him kudos for his play since coming back from injury. Giddey and Coby both know where to get him the ball, which helps him.

Huerter has been this teams unsung hero since Ball and Jones went down. Dude has really stepped up as the glue guy in the starting line-up. Way better in transition scoring and making hustle plays than expected, but that was the guy that I really liked in ATL.

Matas had an efficient offensive game, but his defense was very important IMO.

Agreed on Billy, I was thinking the same thing listening to the Bulls podcast where they thought resting the starters vs CLE was a terrible mistake a huge step backwards for the Bulls. There is 0% chance we win this game off a B2B, Coby was terrible for 40 minutes even with the rest. Giddey had to have that energy to pull off that massive triple double. And we still probably would have lost to CLE, making it 2 Ls in a row.

There's a lot of Billy bashing but he made a great call on this one.

[Chi town]

He absolutely cannot stay beyond his contract, and even that is too long. If the team is going to be built around Coby and Giddey you cannot, under any circumstances, have a C like Vuc as the starter.

Then again knowing AKME, who knows, maybe he'll be here til he retires.

I bet he extends him another year at a cheaper rate.

Vuc is gone. He won’t be back past next season.

We all hope you’re right!

I don’t trust AK at all.

[spongyfungy]

Billy's postgame comments

Watch on YouTube

[Ice Man]

On the Giddey comparison discussion that's going on. Watching last night, some of his drives and odd angles he put layups up at was reminding me of Ginobli.

Yes, yes, yes! I've been thinking all year that I've seen a version of this guy before, somewhere. That's it! Five gold stars for you.

[FriedRise]

A motivated Vooch is a different player than what we're used to seeing. I actually saw him contest multiple times - even getting a block on Bam - and that stuff never happens. 2 assists shy of a triple double and stuffed the stat sheet too with a block and steals. His game is what it is, he's never gonna be a defensive stopper or a rim runner, but you can see how he can contribute to the team and step in when one of our main options is struggling (Coby). A center like Collins or Smith wouldn't be able to do that; it's a give and take.

Matas is so good man. He's an absolute steal at #11, and have eclipsed Pat by a mile and it's only his rookie season.

Giddey's reverse layup/finger roll thing he does looks so weird and has no business going in.

Still can't believe what Herro did lmao. Close game, got a steal, bricked a 3, only to give it right back and blessed us that Buz mug

[FriedRise]

Watch on YouTube

[NecessaryEvil]

Read on Twitter

[ChettheJet]

Looked to be a winnable game before the start. The Bulls finally got into a rhythm near the half and I don't know what overcame the Heat but they let the Bulls take over.

I guess it would take some losing by the Hawks to get to #8 but you never know.

Sometimes when his shot just isn't there Coby tends to try and shoot his way out of that slump but I just don't see him as that kind of shooter. That's different than Vuc who makes a couple and then won't stop from the arc. He would do the team better if he would close up his range inside the logo, either go to the basket more or try to make that one extra pass to a hotter hand and just tell himself it's not his night. I'm not a Dalen Terry fan and last night was why. Yes he made a few threes when needed and hustled but for whatever reason he still tries to play faster than he's capable. Turnovers, going up with nowhere to pass the ball, he's still stepping on the line in the corner. dumb fouls. I look at other teams and think, who when he comes on the market after three years would see enough to make an offer? So why do the Bulls settle for what he is just because they spent a FRP on him.

[WindyCityBorn]

Looked to be a winnable game before the start. The Bulls finally got into a rhythm near the half and I don't know what overcame the Heat but they let the Bulls take over.

I guess it would take some losing by the Hawks to get to #8 but you never know.

Sometimes when his shot just isn't there Coby tends to try and shoot his way out of that slump but I just don't see him as that kind of shooter. That's different than Vuc who makes a couple and then won't stop from the arc. He would do the team better if he would close up his range inside the logo, either go to the basket more or try to make that one extra pass to a hotter hand and just tell himself it's not his night. I'm not a Dalen Terry fan and last night was why. Yes he made a few threes when needed and hustled but for whatever reason he still tries to play faster than he's capable. Turnovers, going up with nowhere to pass the ball, he's still stepping on the line in the corner. dumb fouls. I look at other teams and think, who when he comes on the market after three years would see enough to make an offer? So why do the Bulls settle for what he is just because they spent a FRP on him.

I would keep Terry for the very small amount it will likely cost. He’s good enough to be on the 12 man roster. And he is still getting better.

[Chi town]

Did anyone else have "Nikola Vucevic blocks Bam Adebayo at the rim in year of our Lord (Naismith) 2025" on their BINGO card?
Did I hallucinate that?

Wasn't that followed up BY a Giddey pull up 3?

Both were unexpected gems!!!

[WindyCityBorn]

What a bonehead play be Herro, LOL. Just dunk it.

Giddey's rebounding is kinda unbelievable for a guard, even a big one.

He’s got some Jason Kidd in his game

I'd take that career any time.

What people forget about Kidd is he was a great three-point shooter - .429 for his career on high volume. That's a big difference with Giddey so far, but also goes to show you what consistently being around 40% could do for him. I don't think Giddey will ever equal Kidd as a shooter or defender, but could achieve similar heights as a playmaker, and due to his size be an even better rebounder.

Jason Kidd was horrible 3 point shooter early in his career and only shot 35 percent from 3 for his career. He had two season late in his career where he shot great, but otherwise absolutely not.

His career overall shooting percent is only 40 percent! Giddey will be a significantly better offensive player than Jason Kidd.

[GoBlue72391]

He absolutely cannot stay beyond his contract, and even that is too long. If the team is going to be built around Coby and Giddey you cannot, under any circumstances, have a C like Vuc as the starter.

Then again knowing AKME, who knows, maybe he'll be here til he retires.

I bet he extends him another year at a cheaper rate.

Vuc is gone. He won’t be back past next season.

I'm glad we have a Seer amongst us.

[GoBlue72391]

I like Vuc and I believe he wanted to stay. Guys like that are great at the locker as well…

He absolutely cannot stay beyond his contract, and even that is too long. If the team is going to be built around Coby and Giddey you cannot, under any circumstances, have a C like Vuc as the starter.

Then again knowing AKME, who knows, maybe he'll be here til he retires.

I tend to agree but sometimes I wonder what the half court game looks like with a defensive style big instead of Vooch.

There are some line ups Billy puts out there and you look a think Vooch in the post is the best option.

I think that says more about the offensive skills of the players he's sharing the court with than anything positive about Vuc. If a Vuc post up is the best option outside of the occasional mismatch then there's a serious problem.

[MrSparkle]

I don’t hold vendettas against players. I’m starting to see Vuc play out his deal next season, unless some overpay trade happens (for an expiring Vuc? Not likely). Now that we’re not plodding through miserable inefficient hopeless iso 2P half-court sets, we’re not so reliant on incredible (Caruso/Lonzo) perimeter defense to keep games close. You could live with Vuc’s bad rim protection if you’re running near 1st-place pace and he’s at 61.5% TS (career high, surprisingly). The best version of Vuc is the cheaper, older, lower usage, better shooting one (and lower minutes, now that we have a solid backup big rotation).

Of course a Boston or Cleveland could clamp down and exploit that strategy, atleast after 1 game. But in the meantime, you could address that upgrade without prematurely dumping Vuc. I don’t have faith in Collins/Smith starting 82 games.

[GoBlue72391]

If Giddey is said to be unathletic, then we need to re-define that term. There are a lot of ways of being athletic besides pumping iron, jumping high, and winning sprints, and Giddey is exceptional at pretty much all those other things. He's damned athletic, just not in an Obi Toppin way.

In what ways is he athletic? Traditionally, athleticism has been defined by speed, explosion, leaping ability, agility, lateral quickness, strength, etc.

He seems woefully subpar in most, if not all of those categories, but for the most part he's able to overcome his athletic shortcomings with his craftiness, basketball IQ, size, etc.

He is someone that I would definitely classify as unathletic by NBA standards, but he's able to be successful in spite of that so I'm not too concerned about it. Compared to an average man? Yeah, he'd wipe the floor with us athletically.

I mean sure, if you want to create a new definition of "athletic" so it applies to Giddey, go for it.