Getty DeMar DeRozan #11 of the Chicago Bulls.
The Chicago Bulls lost yet another tightly contested game, dropping them to 23-27 on the season and 9-17 in clutch situations defined as games within five points in the final five minutes of action.
Their 108-103 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers also caused them to slip out of the 10-seed and, thus, out of the Play-In Tournament field.
Once again, there was a fair amount of controversy at the end of this one.
The Bulls botched another inbounds sequence – turning the ball over instead of taking advantage of a chance to tie or take a late lead – for the second time in a week. There was also a controversial non-call on what DeMar DeRozan believes was a foul from Clippers guard Reggie Jackson that the former was still hot about after the game ended.
DeMar DeRozan Rips Officials After Bulls Loss
“I got fouled,” DeRozan said via a video tweeted by Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic. “What went wrong is they didn’t call it. Simple as that. You know, I was frustrated being in that situation. I didn’t want to settle for a jump shot. Soon as I spinned, his arm was reaching in and I couldn’t fully spin. I don’t know, it don’t make no sense to me. Try to be aggressive, try to get downhill. Clearly it was a foul. It just sucks that we’ll wake up tomorrow and read the last two-minute report and something else’ll be missed that possibly could have cost us the game, that’s the more frustrating part.”
It is questionable whether or not DeRozan was fouled. But the Bulls have had several games decided by questionable calls late in games with the NBA’s last two-minute report serving little to no consolation for the gaffes.
DeRozan is especially adept at drawing fouls and late-game heroics are his forte.
DeMarvelous.
But the magic was not there in this one with the veteran going 3-for-9 from the field for seven points in the final 12 minutes.
It was a ho-hum night from the floor for the five-time All-Star who went 8-for-19 from the floor en route to 20 points adding five assists, a pair of rebounds, one block, and one steal. DeRozan did get to the line for six free-throw attempts. But it is the ones that he did not get are sure to stick in his craw.
“I always get [that call],” he asserted. “I feel like, if anybody did that, with him reaching in and trying to spin, it’s a foul. It’s clearly a foul. Clearly a foul. I just feel like anybody would have made that move it should have been called a foul.”
Giving The Game Away
DeRozan also had a career-high eight of the Bulls’ 20 turnovers on the night. For that, the typically reliable DeRozan didn’t point the finger at anyone but himself and, for their part, his teammates.
Most notably, teammate Zach LaVine had six of those turnovers while L.A. had eight total.
“I take a lot upon myself,” DeRozan said. “That was too uncharacteristic turning the ball over as much as I did. Just careless. I wouldn’t even give them all that credit…it was just us rushing some stuff. Being careless with the ball, being loose with the ball. You know, that killed us too…We can’t let that happen.”
It was the third time this season the Bulls have turned the ball over at least 20 times, they are 2-1 in those games.
“We had a couple opportunities to take advantage of it,” conceded DeRozan. “Even the one I’m sure I got fouled on when Reggie reached in and I tried to spin. You know, we gave ourself a chance but, you know, things just didn’t go our way as much as we needed them to.”