There was some welcome history in the United Center Monday, and maybe not just the Bulls nostalgic 128-104 victory over the San Antonio Spurs.
Because with 22 points and 12 rebounds from Nikola Vučević and 21 points and 15 rebounds from Andre Drummond off the bench, the Bulls at least for one night in perhaps staking out new territory that could change their season recalled the power and grace that was once the NBA, of Wilt teaming with Nate Thurmond, Hakeem Olajuwon with Ralph Sampson, David Robinson and Tim Duncan, Juwann Oldham and Mike Smrek.
Perhaps I got carried away with that last one. But in this atavistic combination of the 6-10, 260-pound Vučević and the 6-11, 290-pound Drummond, perhaps the Bulls have stumbled onto something that can elevate their play with a unique pairing that the adamantine small ball/shooting new NBA may have difficulty countering.
“They bring a different skill set to the team,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan pointed out. “Andre is going to do it with a lot of offensive rebounding and hard rolls to the rim; then there are times we find him on lobs. Vooch is doing it with jump shots, floaters; he’ll get some postups. They kind of do it differently. When those two guys are giving us what they gave us tonight that’s a huge boost for our team.”
It proved overwhelming for the young Spurs, who hung with the Bulls for three quarters, trailing 62-59 at halftime after making up a 12-point first half deficit and then trailing 90-85 after three quarters when the Bulls broke from a tie in the last minute with five straight points from DeMar DeRozan.
DeRozan scored 19 points and Zach LaVine had 20.
But it was a group of reserves led by Drummond and Coby White, the latter with 12 points, to open the fourth quarter. They effectively ended the game with an immediate 18-3 blitz, 36-8 through nine minutes of wondering just who were those guys.
“That whole second unit in the (fourth) quarter kind of opened up the game for us,” Donovan acknowledged. “That group did a good job giving us breathing room. We were having a hard time with them (Spurs) coming downhill (driving to the basket; 54-48 points in paint Spurs lead through three quarters) and his (Drummond) ability to move his feet, his rim protection and defensive rebounding and diving to the basket, got on the offensive glass. When he does those things it really changes our team. And we were more active defensively.”
The Spurs committed eight turnovers in their first 10 possessions of the fourth quarter, White and Drummond starting it off each with two steals in the first five San Antonio possessions. Drummond picked off a pair of inbound passes, and then it was dunks and alley oop lobs, Drummond powering through defenders and flexing and the Bulls looking unusually muscular.
Which was a welcome sight raising their record to 26-27 and in their own little crucible a chance to get back to .500 for the first time since early November in Memphis Tuesday.
“That would be huge to finally get to .500,” agreed Vučević. “We've been close this season and a couple of times get one game under and don’t really get that next win.”
Though what was especially huge against the Spurs were the rare sight in the NBA these days of not just one, but two centers dominating and carrying the team to victory.
This, of course, being there era of the adamantine insistence that the center position is obsolete. That you win with the new NBA orthodoxy of so called small ball, switching on defense, speed and transition and shooting. That pounding the ball inside stuff was for the dinosaurs of the NBA, those subversive, hulking T-Rex and Triceratops in basketball shorts
But the Bulls aren’t much able to match that shooting and athletic play game as effectively as some others. So maybe a transmogrifying effect that isn’t actually anything to laugh at.
“It makes it difficult for other teams because they have to adjust every time either one is on the floor,” noted Drummond about his inside power and Vučević’s perimeter and post skills. “So it makes it difficult for them to really set their defense because Vooch is able to pop and roll. They have to prepare for that. For myself, I’m able to get our guards open so they can come downhill at their bigs or hit me in the pocket and I can pass and shoot. It makes it tough for teams to prepare for us.”
It will make this an even more interesting week because the NBA trade deadline is Thursday afternoon. The Bulls play in Brooklyn that night.
Drummond’s name has been mentioned in trade speculation because he was again out of the playing rotation until last week. He’s sat out five of the previous eight games and played a combined 10 minutes in the other three.
Donovan’s philosophy tends to match the NBA trends, so he sounded a bit ambivalent about Drummond’s impact. Donovan said he still sees a need for Derrick Jones Jr. to be at center at times because his presence has been analytically successful. Or perhaps this enhanced playing time is a strategy to increase Drummond’s trade value to help meet other team needs at point guard, perimeter shooting and draft picks. We’ll know Thursday.
“I’m grateful and thankful to play this game,” said Drummond, averaging 14.3 points and 10.3 rebounds in 16.3 minutes the last three games. “You never know when it can be taken from you. I never take this game lightly. I appreciate every moment I’m on that floor. When I get that chance, I try to play as hard as I can and give it all I have.”
The talk of the NBA this week has been history with LeBron James about to surpass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time NBA scoring record. Maybe the Bulls can go back in time to discover their future.
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