13 October 2023
Chicago Bulls fans saw a rare preseason treat in their return to the United Center on Thursday — double overtime in a preseason game. The Bulls fended off a comeback by the reigning NBA champion Denver Nuggets in a 133-124 finish.
Both overtime periods featured a cast of young bench players helmed by second-year guard Dalen Terry, but the entire game gave a glimpse at the blueprint for the lineups and offensive schemes the Bulls will bring into the regular season.
Here are seven takeaways from the game.
1. Coby White maintains his place in starting lineup.
Coby White started his second preseason game at point guard as he continues to emerge as the frontrunner for the position, finishing with eight points and four assists.
Ayo Dosunmu replaced White to begin the second half, but Jevon Carter was not rotated in as coach Billy Donovan continues to weigh different lineups.
“The biggest thing with Jevon is getting him comfortable,” Donovan said. “He’s a guy that’s played a lot of different positions. He’s been off-ball, he’s been a point guard, he’s played both. He’ll find his spots. The biggest thing for us is finding out where he’s most comfortable, on the ball or off the ball.”
2. Bulls’ Big 3 play considerable minutes.
Many teams choose to rest their stars for the majority of the preseason — for instance, Nikola Jokić played 18 minutes Thursday before retiring to the bench for the second half.
But the Bulls chose to ramp up their central trio of starters for a higher volume of minutes against the Nuggets. Zach LaVine played 23 minutes, Nikola Vučević played 22 minutes and DeMar DeRozan played nearly 25 minutes. None of the veterans showed any reluctance toward contact — DeRozan even took a charge before eventually checking out of the game.
With all three players entering the season healthy, Donovan said the Bulls want to give their stars a lengthy on ramp into the full speed.
3. Jevon Carter and Alex Caruso flex perimeter shooting.
Jevon Carter and Alex Caruso are best known for their defense, but both players flexed their effectiveness from 3-point range against the Nuggets. Carter went 2-for-3 from behind the arc and Caruso finished 4-for-6 from deep.
It’s clear why both players are in place to create an upgrade behind the arc. Carter is a sharpshooter who recorded a career-best 42.3% last season.
Caruso was often hampered last season by his requirements as a placeholder point guard — sometimes as a starter, sometimes in the secondary rotation — which took him out of catch-and-shoot opportunities. That problem is removed when Caruso gets to play off ball alongside Carter and Dosunmu.
Their increased output from 3-point range would be a major lift for the Bulls this season.
“We have got to take shots when they’re there,” Donovan said. “We need him to take those shots.”
4. Offense dips back to status quo from behind 3-point arc.
Although Carter and Caruso were firing readily from behind the arc, the rest of the team saw a dip in 3-point production.
The starting unit took only eight combined 3-pointers in the first half and the team took a total of 29 in regulation. That’s a drop from Sunday’s game in Milwaukee, when the Bulls took 35 attempts from 3-point range.
LaVine continued to emphasize the need to increase the volume of shot attempts.
“I don’t think we have a very prolific shooting group, but if we can get a lot of good looks — if we can hit the paint, hit corner threes, swing threes — it opens up for me, DeMar and Vooch to where now we have easier looks and easier shots because they’re not as compressed in the lane,” LaVine said.
5. Ayo Dosunmu stands out on offensive boards.
Dosunmu stood out on the offensive boards, a critical part of his expected impact for the Bulls this season.
Dosunmu registered three offensive rebounds, but his ability to tip ricocheting shots helped to contribute to the team’s total tally of 26 offensive boards. Andre Drummond added nine offensive rebounds.
Dosunmu’s ability to crash the glass will be key for the Bulls, who are emphasizing offensive rebounds as a central component to improving the offense. He finished with seven points, three assists and four rebounds.
6. Julian Phillips dazzles with poster dunk.
Rookie Julian Phillips recorded the highlight of the fourth quarter — a thunderous hammer dunk off the bounce over 7-foot-1 center Jay Huff.
Even in preseason, Phillips hasn’t seen the floor for many minutes, which made his 19 minutes on the court even more important on Thursday night.
7. Dalen Terry comes up clutch in overtime.
Dalen Terry’s shooting concerns continued to dominate his time on the court as he earned extensive minutes through the fourth quarter and both overtimes.
Terry went on a 1-for-7 skid until the final three minutes of the second overtime, when he crushed a dunk and sank a 3-pointer to help the Bulls clinch a win.
Terry’s path into the Bulls rotation has always been anchored on his defense rather than his scoring, which has been a point of emphasis for player development over the past year. But his ability to deliver five crucial points in the end of regulation showed the rookie can make strides in scoring opportunities — especially when he’s fueled by big plays on the opposite end of the court.
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