Miami and Chicago will get closely acquainted in the coming days, as the Bulls host the Heat on Thursday in the first of three straight matchups between the Eastern Conference counterparts.
The series shifts to south Florida for a weekend back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday. The two teams remain separated by 1 1/2 games in the East – the Heat in eighth place and the Bulls in 10th.
Simone Fontecchio made six 3-pointers on the way to 23 points off the bench, but it wasn’t enough as Miami dropped a 133-124 decision to the Orlando Magic. The Heat have allowed at least 120 points on nine occasions in January, going 2-7 in those games.
“I’ve got to be better (defensively). Coach (Erik Spoelstra) called me out about it,” Norman Powell told reporters following Wednesday’s loss. “I’ve got to come out with a better approach and defensive intensity.”
While Powell volunteered responsibility for setting the tone on defense, he has been Miami’s pace-setter on the offensive end. Powell’s 23.0 points per game lead a Heat team averaging 119.8 points per game, third-most in the NBA.
On the flipside, Miami ranks in the league’s bottom-third on defense by averaging 118.4 points per game allowed. Opponents have made hay on the glass against the Heat, grabbing more than 47 rebounds per game.
Only Washington has allowed more rebounds than Miami.
Kel’el Ware and Bam Adebayo each are averaging almost 10 rebounds per game, but no other Heat player is grabbing more than Jaime Jaquez Jr. (5.3).
The scenario for Chicago this season has played out similarly. The Bulls headed into Wednesday’s 113-110 loss at Indiana averaging almost 118 points per game — good for seventh-most in the NBA — but giving up the league’s fifth-most points per game at almost 120.
Chicago won four straight over a stretch in which it held Brooklyn, the Los Angeles Clippers, Minnesota and Boston to 115 points or fewer. The Bulls recovered defensively at Indiana after giving up 129 points in an 11-point setback to the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, but their 110 points scored were their fewest in the last six games.
Perhaps more concerning for Chicago in Wednesday’s loss was giving up 37 fourth-quarter points to drop a game to a team languishing near the bottom of the conference.
The loss dropped the Bulls a game below .500 and ups the ante for the series against Miami. Both teams are jockeying to climb into the East’s top six, but will face tough personnel decisions in the coming weeks as the NBA trade deadline looms.
“We’ve beaten really good teams this year,” Coby White said in his postgame media availability. “We’ve just got to continue to figure it out, make that push. We’re still in the hunt.”
White is averaging a team-best 18.8 points. Josh Giddey is right behind him at 18.6 points to go along with 7.4 rebounds and 8.8 assists, while Nikola Vucevic contributes 17.0 points and 7.0 boards.
