An embarrassment of glitches
Bulls’ lack of effort doesn’t sit well with coach Hoiberg
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — How bad was the game Tuesday for the Bulls?
They gave up 69 points in the first half, were outrebounded 52-33 and were routed 130-105 by the Charlotte Hornets, who earned their first victory of the season.
But maybe the worst indictment was that they played a part in resurrecting ‘‘Linsanity,’’ if only for a night. Hornets backup Jeremy Lin came off the bench to score 15 points in less than 19 minutes and was a plus-21.
‘‘It was a complete domination from the tip, and they just had their way with us,’’ Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. ‘‘We didn’t have any fight, no resolve, didn’t try and go back at them. Just kind of accepted it tonight.
‘‘I mean, you want to compete. There are nights that the ball is not going to go in the basket, [and] you’ve gotta fight. I mean, they scored 30 [or more] every quarter, and that’s disappointing. Everyone seemed like they were on an island. Not only on defense, but offense and defense. Just not a good night.’’
The Hornets’ 130 points were the most they’ve scored against the Bulls and were their most since they scored 130 points against the Los Angeles Clippers in 1997.
Hoiberg said he didn’t see this one coming.
‘‘You could sense it right away, and I’m shocked because we had a great shootaround,’’ Hoiberg said of the Bulls’ lack of energy. ‘‘We were as energetic in shootaround as we’ve been all year. I guess I’ve been around long enough to know that doesn’t always carry over, but I loved our energy and spirit in shootaround. Obviously, that did not carry over into the game.’’
Pick a player to blame. Guard Derrick Rose still was dealing with double vision and was inconsistent in pushing the ball up the court with the pace that Hoiberg wants. Center Pau Gasol had all kinds of trouble with Al Jefferson. And forward Nikola Mirotic shot 2-for-11 from the field and had his defensive liabilities exposed.
There was a reason why those three each played less than 24 minutes.
‘‘We didn’t have an edge,’’ Rose said. ‘‘It’s frustrating. That’s the first time I think we saw that this season. We could talk about it, look at film, [but] it’s all about giving that effort. That’s from the starters all the way down to the bench.
‘‘I wouldn’t say it was embarrassing. It’s frustrating, knowing that we could’ve stopped it in the first quarter. When they were going on their run, we could’ve done something to adjust. But we took too long. I really think it was just the effort and [not] having that competitive edge.’’
The Bulls might want to find that edge quickly. On Thursday, they will welcome the Oklahoma City Thunder to town. If they thought the Hornets could score in bunches . . .
‘‘We’ve got the most powerful offensive team in the league coming in on Thursday,’’ Hoiberg said. ‘‘Yeah, we’ll see what we’re made of.
‘‘We’ve gotta bounce back with a great practice [Wednesday]. You gotta get back there to erase the sting of this one. Just flush it down the toilet and hopefully move on with a better effort Thursday.’’
It couldn’t be any worse.