Tom Thibodeau is not used to losing in Chicago. So it’s no surprise that the former Bulls coach looked more hostile than usual on Monday night at United Center, hitting referees and his players in a contemptuous 110-102 loss to the mediocre Bulls.
The Bulls broke a three-game losing streak as Thibodeau’s club fell to a season with the worst four games under .500 at 9-13. Coach Knicks said the club had not played “with great effort for a long time”.
The Knicks lost five of six games because they had defensive, offensive failures and even Thibodeau’s post-game Zoom call was interrupted, sustaining technical difficulties due to problems in the Bulls arena.
The Knicks were as cold as a snowstorm on the 3-point line (6 of 29) and did not come up with any clutch markings late. They showed clear to start the game and fell 11 points behind in the first quarter, then came out in a fog to start the third quarter and a four-point deficit at the break rose again to 11.
“I just think we need to get mentally stuck and get off to a better start, first and third,” said Julius Randle, who finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. “Exactly the third, we get out of the holes. We need to come out with more sense of urgency. ”
At the start of the fourth, Thibodeau blew his stack when the Bulls guard, Coby White, snuck into the lane and fed Derrick Gafford wide open for a light dive. Thibodeau requested a timeout and hit the team on the bench.
“It’s just not the effort we’re capable of,” Thibodeau said. “I know we have a very good defensive team and when we focus and put in maximum effort, we are usually pretty good. Using only expiration, trying to fix it. ”
After a Randle turnover, Bulls guard Zach LaVine, whom Thibodeau once traded from Minnesota to Chicago, punched 3 points with 22 seconds left to put Chicago at six with Randle slowly coming out on top .
LaVine, who has been speculated as someone who could enter the trading block later this season or this summer, scored 10 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter to reject the Knicks’ comeback attempt.
“Thibs and I are cool,” Lavine said when asked if the victory was extra sweet. “Playing against the old coaches, I will go out there to win. It’s not a matter of resentment for me. My game of resentment was the first time I played against the Timberwolves. I took this out of my system. ”
Thibodeau thought the Knicks did a good job on LaVine, a budding All-Star, until late.
“You have to get to the shooter at that point in the game,” Thibodeau said. “You need a constant effort for 48 minutes, especially on the road, to get victories and now we’re not there.”
With 3:00 left, rookie goalkeeper Immanuel Quickley gave the Knicks their first lead since the start of the first quarter, when he emptied a 3-meter pointer immediately, putting it 95-94, but there was no magic.
Alec Burks (18 points) tied the game at 100-100, with one minute left on 3 points. But White responded with a 3-pointer and Chicago did not look back.
Quickley finished with 16 points and seven assists, but there was not enough support elsewhere.
After a series of 10 games in which he shot 50%, RJ Barrett looked like a snake in Windy City on the second night of a back-to-back. He finished with 14 points and missed all three triples, including a wide open late attempt.
Thibodeau chose to close with Nerlens Noel in the center, keeping Mitchell Robinson on the bench. As promised, Thibodeau gave Kevin Knox a chance to play for the second game in a row, and the Knicks lost both.
And Thibodeau threw Obi Toppin, who played the first two minutes of the fourth quarter, to bring back Randle, who played 39:12. Thibodeau said he needed Randle to return.
Throughout the competition, Thibodeau looked irritated, as the Knicks didn’t seem to defend much more zealously than when they lost 129 points to the mighty Clippers in Sunday’s loss. Thibodeau was only returning to Chicago for the third time since being fired there in 2015, after a remarkable five years as a coach.
Thibodeau did not blame the loss of the miserable draw in 3 points, continuing the tendency of his team to rank last in the 3-point marks.
“I thought we had a good look at the bucket,” Thibodeau said. “They did not come down for us. We must rely on our defense. ”
Finland’s Lauri Markannen, former president Phil Jackson, who watched in a deal on the night of 2017, killed the lazy Knicks on his way to 30 points, putting 6 3 – the same amount as the entire Knicks team.