The Chicago Bulls held on to take down the Cavaliers on the NBA’s opening night
The Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers met up on Tuesday night to help tip-off the 2015-16 NBA season in a matchup that many predict will be a preview of the 2016 Eastern Conference Finals. If that’s the case, then we could be in for a treat given the action that LeBron James, Jimmy Butler, Kevin Love, and company treated us to in the United Center on Tuesday night.
Chicago jumped out to a big lead in the first quarter as the Cavaliers were struggling to shoot the basketball while Derrick Rose, Butler, and Nikola Mirotic were staying aggressive on the offensive end of the floor. However, LeBron and company would then start to methodically chip away at the Bulls’ lead.
While Kevin Love was largely inefficient on the evening, he hit some big shots in the second half to keep his team in the thick of things, as did Mo Williams in his return to the Cavaliers. James was also obviously involved in the comeback attempt, but it was J.R. Smith who really hurt the Cavs as they tried to sneak out the win.
After being down by 13 points at one point, Cleveland had climbed back to gain a lead. That’s when Smith decided to overreact to a foul call and get whistled for a technical foul. That gave the Bulls the lead back, one which they never relinquished.
Three Stars
Nikola Mirotic is entering his second year in the league, but the forward was huge for the Bulls as he put up 19 points and nine rebounds in just 25 minutes of action.
Derrick Rose wasn’t particularly efficient on the night as he went 8-22 from the floor, but he was aggressive and an effective leader on his way to 18 points and five assists in the victory.
It wasn’t a particularly flashy season debut for LeBron James, but that just means he started off the year with a 25-point, 10-rebound, and five-assist game against the Bulls. Ho-hum.
Highlights
First big LeBron James dunk of the season #Cavs vs #Bulls https://t.co/xQ0XDZ1XIR
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) October 28, 2015
Kevin Love with a beautiful alley-oop to LeBron James and "The King" with a nice finish! #Cavs https://t.co/Fup7LZ2cxK
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) October 28, 2015
Hello!
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) October 28, 2015
Mirotic alley-oop to Jimmy Butler for the big slam!#Bulls https://t.co/r4eL6SWedh
Jimmy Butler with the big Block on LeBron James!#Bulls #Cavs https://t.co/6qKjCewvZ8
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) October 28, 2015
MCBUCKETS! https://t.co/3Z4vI2aTtR
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) October 28, 2015
Want To Know How To Beat ICE Defense? Kevin Love Shows You How https://t.co/JeEZYwBwNk
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) October 28, 2015
Love to Mozgov with the beautiful left-handed wraparound pass!#Cavs https://t.co/LkIbXlMCSn
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) October 28, 2015
Derrick Rose gets the hoop and the foul!#Bulls https://t.co/pmoiInEEvY
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) October 28, 2015
Derrick Rose With The Very Difficult Right Foot Jump, Right Hand Shot, Drifting To Left https://t.co/637gzsZuls
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) October 28, 2015
Not Great Defense, But Awesome Pass By Mozgov To Love https://t.co/MXzW9IZoe2
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) October 28, 2015
Pinch Post Action, Off Footed Runner By Delly https://t.co/IG0ASythIh
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) October 28, 2015
Gorgeous Gliding Move By Lebron. Cavs Are Going To Pick On Pau Like A Scab https://t.co/VgvplQ1wuM
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) October 28, 2015
Butler Dunk, Picking On Love In The PnR. https://t.co/8ZfRdrVR3X
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) October 28, 2015
D.Rose with the nice finish over Dellavedova #Bulls https://t.co/L8OkbmURCa
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) October 28, 2015
LeBron Is Really Getting NO SOUP TONIGHT! https://t.co/zXanMLmRVN
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) October 28, 2015
Next Game
The Bulls will be on the road tomorrow night against the Brooklyn Nets.
The Cavaliers will again be on the road tomorrow night as well, going south to take on the Memphis Grizzlies.