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You can not watch the Bulls' Celtic victory at United Center, pointing out what happened last time the teams met here.
Especially when the revenge took place on a Saturday night and during the second part in a row after a win.
On 8 December, the Bulls followed a stirring home victory over the Thunder, losing a record 56 points against the Celtics in Jim Boylen's third game after succeeding sacked Fred Hoiberg.
What happened next drew even more national attention than a 56-point loss.
Boylen called for a rare practice after a series of consecutive games. This decision comes shortly after an emotionally charged week in which players discussed Hoiberg's loss, hardness and conditioning, were publicly blamed by Boylen.
A chaotic Sunday, December 9 started with one or two players suggesting Boylen's boycott during a group text exchange and ended with two hours of intense team meetings. All parties – Boylen, management, disgruntled players and non-dissatisfied players – all declared when they left these meetings in a better place.
Asked to rehearse Saturday, Boylen agreed.
"There is a lot to be done to remedy this situation," Boylen said. "I was led to influence the change. It was a moment when I thought we had changed the most. Even if it was not nice, it was necessary. And I feel in my heart that we see the benefits of this situation now. "
Are the players?
"We are starting to have a bit of a rhythm," said Zach LaVine. "We are starting to have a little fun too. That day was not about the practice or the game. These are the collective emotions after and the way we lost and just the whole week. Jim and I are on the same page. The team is on the same page. "
That showed with a dominant performance in which LaVine scored a career-high 42 points and Lauri Markkanen added a career-high 35 points with 15 rebounds. This is the first time two Bulls have scored 35 points or more in the same game since Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen on November 20, 1996.
Markkanen also scored his sixth game with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in his last seven games.
The Bulls did all this with Otto Porter Jr. aimlessly and without playing after halftime with a sprain in his left leg.
A solid effort on the bench led by Ryan Arcidiacono, who played the whole quarter against Kris Dunn, and Cristiano Felicio helped the Bulls to open the second quarter with an 18-3 run and the Bulls led by 25 players at most. at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but Markkanen responded with a 3-pointer and a traditional three-point game on consecutive possessions.
Boylen pointed out that he not only felt no repression at the moment, but that he had not even experienced it in this tumultuous time.
"Everyone knows what they need in their hearts and souls," he said. "I felt that I knew what the team needed at that time. I do not feel any resistance from these guys. They did everything I asked them to do. Even that week, when we had difficult practices and we ran longer than usual and practiced longer, I did not take a step back.
"We played an emotional match on Friday night against OKC. We played our butts. We won. We did not play as well the next night. The reason we did not play well was what bothered me. Maybe we were tired because of the week. Maybe we did not have the habit of having a new coach. Maybe change is difficult for people. But the idea is to grow, learn and move forward. A little adversity, a little difficult time, a little discomfort are not the end of the world.
"My job is to prepare the child for the road, not for the road for the child. These guys are men. I'm trying to prepare them for the road. It's my job and what I asked to do. "
Boylen seemed perplexed when asked if he thought he had a "hard" coaching style.
"God, I do not know, man," he said. "If a hard style is straightforward and honest and pushes guys to a place where they can not take themselves without being combative, then I guess I'm a tough guy.
"I do not know where it comes from. I just want us to play the right way, I want us to represent Bulls on our chest and that means more than the name on the back. This is sometimes missing at this level, and I do not think it helps the essence of the team. "
Twitter @kcjhoop
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