FINAL: Bulls 104, Indiana 89 : Bulls (2-2), Pacers (2-2)
LEADING SCORERS: Bulls: Holiday and LaVine each with 22. Indiana: Young: 16
LEADING REBOUNDERS: Bulls: Parker, Payne, Portis each with 6. Indiana: Young: 10
LEADING ASSISTS: Bulls: Dunn: 7 Indiana: Collison 5.
CCI RECAP: The Bulls changed up their starting lineup going with rookie Wendell Carter Jr. at the five and Bobby Portis at the four. Robin Lopez and Jabari Parker came off the bench as the Bulls took it to Indiana from the opening tipoff. Portis responded with a 20-6 game while Carter got in early foul trouble. Meantime, Parker scored 11 first half points and crashed the glass collecting 6 rebounds. The Bulls defense was outstanding.
CCI STAT OF THE NIGHT: 17 - 1st quarter points by the Pacers as the Bulls doubled the score setting the tone for the game.
CCI GAME BALL: Zach LaVine. I'm giving the game ball to Zach for his defense on Victor Oladipo, who went 4 of 15 from the floor. LaVine shut him down.
CCI QUOTE OF THE NIGHT: Fred Hoiberg on Bobby Portis: "Bobby set the tone with his voice, defensively. People in the top row could hear him. It got guys communicating out there."
UP NEXT: Home with Denver Friday.
STATEMENT FROM CHICAGO BULLS ON THE PASSING OF TEX WINTER:
The following statement is from John Paxson, the Chicago Bulls Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, on behalf of the Bulls:
"Tex Winter was a basketball legend and perhaps the finest fundamental teacher in the history of our game. He was an innovator who had high standards for how basketball should be played and approached everyday. Those of us who were lucky enough to play for him will always respect his devotion to the game of basketball. His contributions to the Bulls organization will always be remembered."
Statement from Bill Wennington: "When I came to the Bulls in 1993, I was a seasoned veteran in the NBA. I had been on good teams and bad. In my mind, the Bulls offense was brilliant. Tex Winter had devised an offensive system that made each player on the court more valued, because each was given the ability to score in the unselfishness of the triangle offense. Tex also cared about you as a man and wanted the best for you on and off the court. The basketball world has lost a great basketball mind, mentor, coach and friend in Tex Winter."
CCI REMEMBERS WINTER: I first met Tex as a kid growing up in Seattle. At that time, Tex was the head coach at the University of Washington and spoke at a coaching clinic in the Bellevue, Washington area. I attended with my next door neighbor who was a high school coach. I tagged along and was captivated with his knowledge and ability to break down the game. Keep in mind, I was, and still am, a gym rat. And from that moment on, I followed his career that led him to the San Diego/Houston Rockets-back to college at Northwestern, Long Beach State, LSU then the Bulls and Lakers. Credit the late Bulls GM Jerry Krause. He believed in Tex from day one. I had many conversations with Tex throughout the years about his time in Seattle and his life as a coach. He was truly one of a kind.
CCI 24 SECONDS - NBA NEWS and NOTES:
Jimmy Butler with a Minnesota meltdown and I'll leave it at that.
Orlando 102, Memphis 86. Orlando's Mo Bamba sat this one out with a right wrist injury. Jonathan Isaac had a 15-8 game for the Magic.
Atlanta 130, Spurs 127. Pau Gasol had a double-double of 14-10. Rudy Gay still ballin with 28. Atlanta's Trae Young 22 points 7 assists. He drained a 30 footer to win it for the Hawks. Both teams shot over 50%.
Toronto 118, Nets 91. Kyle Lowry was ejected from the game after being called for a foul. Kawhi Leonard was a +21 with 11 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals and 1 block.
Washington 102, Pistons 97. Oh my, John Wall: 32 points in 32 minutes AND... 5 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals and a block. Andre Drummond with 17 points and 20 rebounds. Save some of the gravy for the main course next week.
Miami 140, New Orleans 128. Shades of the old ABA. Miami's Bam Adebayo 26 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks and 5 steals. Think he's sending a message to the Heat about hearing his name in trade rumors?
Portland 116, Phoenix 83. Jake Layman can fill it up. 5 threes for the veteran out of Maryland as he scored 28 lifting the Blazers.
Lakers 123, Warriors 113. LeBron in 18 minutes with a rock solid 15-10-5 game. Lonzo Ball played for the first time since last March (knee surgery), scoring 7 points in 23 minutes.
Boston's Gordon Hayward says he's dealing with back soreness and that it is getting "progressively worse." The Celtics open up the regular season next week hosting the 76ers.
Caught up with ESPN/ABC's Doris Burke last night, and as always, it was great reconnecting. Doris is excellent at her craft and a great, great person. She is a great role model for women AND men.
Thanks for reading CCI. Always a pleasure. Reach me at cswirsky@bulls.com or Twitter: @ctsbulls