After winning the first three games of their first-round series with the Milwaukee Bucks, the Chicago Bulls suddenly find themselves on the ropes. Tom Thibodeau’s team has lost two straight heading into Wednesday’s crucial Game 6 at Milwaukee’s Bradley Center, and is a single possession away from trailing entirely – the Bulls won Game 3 in double overtime.
Fortunately for Chicago, though, Jimmy Butler seems to believe there’s an easy fix for his club’s recent struggles. And unsurprisingly, it involves him shouldering an even bigger two-way load.
Following the Bulls’ 94-88 Game 5 loss, the first-time All-Star said his focus on the offensive side of the ball is negatively influencing his defensive performance. Here’s a frank Butler via Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago:
“I’m supposed to be the prime-time defensive guy, and I haven’t been guarding a soul. I’ve been worried about offense too much, and I need to change that quickly or it’s going to be my fault.”
It’s not the first time this season the 25 year-old has taken blame for Chicago’s relative defensive woes. As the Bulls endured a 5-10 stretch over January and February, Butler said his team’s substandard defense “starts with me.”
But that’s never been the case in 2014-2015, even if his defensive impact hasn’t consistently reached exalted levels of the past two seasons. Butler took on far more offensive burden than ever before in his fourth professional campaign, notching career-highs in usage and points per game. An inevitable byproduct of that additional responsibility was a minor slip on the other end – even the game’s best two-way players can only do so much.
Still, Butler’s harsh criticism of his recent defensive play is hardly warranted. The Bucks are shooting a staggering 10.7 percent worse than average when the reigning All-Defense Second Team honoree is guarding them, and he’s getting 3.2 combined steals and blocks per game. While he’s indeed been prone to an occasional off-ball lapse or been hit flush by a ball-screen, Butler has been something close to his normally awesome self on defense.
And to hear his teammates tell it, Chicago’s labors are far more widespread than a single player anyway. From K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, Taj Gibson says the Bulls have lost their collective edge due to a perceived talent advantage that didn’t exist in the past.
“At times we think we’re a little too good,” Taj Gibson said. “You look at how our team was made up over the last couple of years, we didn’t worry about scoring. We relied on our defense and getting out in transition. Now, we have so many different weapons we kind of think we can just come back.
“We were always a team with an edge, understanding our defense was first. It’s sad to see another team is beating us the same way.”
That seems far a more accurate take than Butler’s honorable account. If such an approach from Chicago’s star wing instills some much-needed fire and intensity in his teammates, though, his guilt will have easily been worth it.
Let’s see which Bulls team shows up on Thursday. If it’s the one we’ve seen the past two games, Milwaukee could very well have the chance to make history in a winner-takes-all Game 7.
