The ball was mostly walked up and then handed to DeMar or Zach with substantial time off the clock, and the team didn't really have sufficient time to run enough offense. After that, Ayo became more cautious on offense and thus the offense slowed considerably and produced a lot of dribbling. There was a stretch of games when he moved to point guard when teams began to trap and pressure and the Bulls gave up some late leads. And then no fault of his, but Ayo was not a true point guard and became to push the ball and attack. I believe the conventional wisdom will be that the loss of Lonzo Ball changed the dynamic. But it does in some sense come down to the lack of pace and ball movement that accrued to the team as the season went on. As I wrote last week, I don't expect it to happen whether it's because DeRozan would resist or the coach and management would fear alienating one of the best players in the league, perhaps fearing sending the wrong message to him and maybe others. The star to the support role is an intriguing subject, and perhaps could be the sort of innovation that could change some traditional thinking in the NBA. JWill is known more for his D than his offense, but looks like there's more upside potential particularly on O with JWill than with Kessler. His 3-point percentage though is better that Walker Kessler's. He can also hit 3s though needs to improve his percentage. JWill is not as big as the other two I noted above, but seems a bit more flexible (can play the 4 or 5) and better suited to today's game. He's got good size and is a high energy player somewhat in the mold of Bobby Portis (another Razorback) or Christian Wood. So I'm a little more intrigued with another Williams. Walker Kessler seems NBA ready and serviceable but doesn't provide much flexibility and seems more suited for the way the NBA use to be played. Also not sure that Mark Williams is worth trading whoever the Bulls select at 18 and Coby to the team that selects Mark Williams. But I don't think he'll slide to 18 where the Bulls pick. He fits the Bulls need for a back-up 5 and rim protector. But the way so many of these playoff games have been decided suggests there's an obvious priority the Bulls badly need to address. Management after the season vaguely mentioned needs like interior size and defense, perhaps point guard insurance, though Ball supposedly has been progressing well. As much as we celebrated DeRozan's game, the Bulls will have to find more shooters. The Bulls last in the league by a lot in three pointers attempted may just point to the biggest need for next season if the team has a chance to seriously compete. I'd hoped the NBA would not continue to come to this, but at some point I guess you have to give in. The team that made the most threes generally has won. That game and really most of the playoffs. I'm also not one so thrilled to watch 86 threes going up, but it should send a loud message to the Bulls for next season.
It was a heck of an offensive game for the Finals. I keep dismissing the Celtics since I most remember them from coming apart against the Bulls, though it was early in the season. I suspect we'll see Payton in Game 2 with the Warriors giving up 64 points in the second half with Tatum not able to make a shot.
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