Bulls drop NBA Cup opener to perfect Cavaliers, who improve to 14-0
CLEVELAND — The phones came out instantly as the Bulls began filing into the visitors’ locker room Wednesday at Madison Square Garden.
They weren’t checking text messages, either.
‘‘Did the Cavs win?’’ guard Zach LaVine asked, minutes after the Bulls beat the Knicks.
There was excitement with each ‘‘yes’’ thrown his way.
That meant the Cavaliers still were chasing perfection in this young NBA season. It also meant the Bulls would have a chance to derail them.
Be careful what you wish for.
Thanks to 37 points from Donovan Mitchell, including 18 in the fourth quarter, the Cavs improved to 14-0 with a 144-126 victory Friday in the Bulls’ pool-play opener in the NBA In-Season Cup.
An interesting aspect of the loss was guard Josh Giddey being benched to start the second half and finishing a minus-27 in 15 minutes of action.
Afterward, coach Billy Donovan explained the benching was the result of wanting to stay away from having Giddey and guard Coby White on the court with three fouls at the same time. But the fact that the Cavs searched out Giddey on defense and had success going at him— well, even Giddey admitted that the fouls weren’t the major issue.
‘‘It was horrible from start to finish,’’ Giddey said, pulling no punches about his showing. ‘‘I think defensively it was just — and I’m talking about me — it was a mess from the jump. They put me in action, I have to be way better, whether it’s coverage or sitting down and guarding somebody.
‘‘I don’t even blame it on the fouls. It was part of it, but everything else was just as bad. I wouldn’t have played myself if I was Billy. I was bad on both sides of the ball.’’
It was particularly disappointing for Giddey, given that he has said since the preseason that he wanted to make a big jump defensively this season.
‘‘It pisses me off to be on that side of the ball and be like that,’’ Giddey said. ‘‘I thought I was making steps in the right direction. To have a night like I did tonight kind of kills your confidence.
‘‘Giving up 140, you’re never going to win games. That’s the reality of it. They’re a talented team, haven’t lost yet, and we just didn’t guard well enough. [I put] myself right on top of that list, probably one, two and three on that list.’’
So much for derailing the Cavs. The only thing that appeared to get derailed in the first quarter was the Bulls’ confiecne.
By the time Caris LeVert made a three-pointer off a fast break, the Cavs were up 17 with 3:51 left in the first and well on their way to a 49-point quarter.
By the end of the first, the Cavs had shot 86.4% from the field (19-for-22), including 7-for-10 from three-point range, outscored the Bulls 20-6 in the paint and doubled the Bulls in rebounds (10-5). They flexed their dominance in every way possible.
The Bulls answered in the second quarter and made it a game in the third. But there’s a price to pay when facing a superstar such as Mitchell and making matters worse with turnover problems in the fourth.
Of the Bulls’ 17 turnovers, 13 came in the second half.
‘‘Sometimes we’re trying to play to the identity of playing fast, and sometimes we try to play too fast — myself included,’’ said White, who led the Bulls with 29 points. ‘‘And we get overwhelmed trying to play too fast. Sometimes the game doesn’t call for you to go 100 mph.’’