Bench boosts Bulls heading into matchup with Hornets
Looking to stamp a winning homestand, the Chicago Bulls host the reeling Charlotte Hornets on the second night of a back-to-back for both teams on Saturday.
Chicago beat the Orlando Magic 121-114 on Friday to improve to 3-2 on its weeklong stretch of home games. A third straight win on Saturday would push the Bulls over the .500 mark for the first time since late November.
The Bulls had three reserves contribute heavily vs. Orlando. Kevin Huerter's 20 points, Ayo Dosunmu's 17 and Patrick Williams' 15 paced a Chicago group built on balance.
"I thought the bench was great (on Friday)," Chicago coach Billy Donovan said. "I thought Patrick gave us some really good minutes. I think someone had mentioned to me that it's now 13 straight games that our bench has scored over 30 points, and I think our bench is like third or fourth in the league in scoring. We need everybody, and I've tried to preach that to our guys."
The Bulls' need for more hands on deck has been magnified by Josh Giddey's left hamstring strain, which will leave the 23-year-old out for an extended period of time.
Giddey is tied with Coby White -- who is out because of right calf tightness -- for the team lead in points per game (19.2). Giddey also is tied with Nikola Vucevic's team-high 8.9 rebounds per contest, and he paces the Bulls (and ranks third in the NBA) with 9.0 assists per game.
In addition to Giddey and White, Chicago forward Zach Collins won't play on Saturday due to a sprained right toe.
The Bulls and Hornets will meet for the third time this season after the teams split a pair in Charlotte. The Hornets won 123-116 on Nov. 28, and Chicago posted a 129-126 victory on Dec. 12.
Charlotte has dropped its past three games, including a heartbreaking 122-121 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday.
Rookie Kon Knueppel's 26 points and Miles Bridges' 25 were nearly enough to lead the Hornets to just their fifth road win of the season, but Giannis Antetokounmpo's dunk with 4.7 seconds left extended Charlotte's losing streak. Brandon Miller misfired on a drive to the basket at the buzzer.
"I thought our guys competed their tails off," Hornets coach Charles Lee said. "I thought there were some stretches where we could have taken complete control of the game. But credit to our players for their competitive spirit."
In what's shaping up to be Charlotte's fourth straight losing season, the franchise has found a star in Knueppel. The 20-year-old former Duke standout leads all first-year players with an average of 19.5 points per game, and he has scored in double figures in each of his past 15 games.
Hornets center PJ Hall earned his first career start in the loss at Milwaukee, and he finished with four points and a team-high eight rebounds in 19 minutes. After brief stints with the Denver Nuggets and Memphis Grizzlies, the 23-year-old Clemson product is catching Lee's eye on the youth-filled roster.
"I think PJ coming into this environment really early in his career shows how good of a player he is," Lee said. "He leaves an impact on the game on both sides of the floor. I'm glad about his ability to step into the starting lineup and give us a good boost."