Billy Donovan says the Chicago Bulls need to do a better job of relying on their defense

What coach Donovan has to say about the Bulls and their need for a better defensive game.

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Whatever momentum the Chicago Bulls had gained during their recent four-game winning streak has all but dissipated after the team’s two-game slide. After losing to the Milwaukee Bucks and the Denver Nuggets, Bulls coach Billy Donovan asserted his team needs to focus more on stopping people if they are to have any chance of being successful on their next stretch of games.

Rely on their defense

The Bulls were an elite defensive unit last season, finishing the season fifth in defensive rating. This season has been a different story as the Bulls rank in the bottom 10 of the aforementioned metric, making it no surprise the team only has nine wins a quarter into the season. The Bulls’ last two games saw Chicago falter in defending the paint and rim, forcing Donovan to remind his wards of what they needed to do.

“The one thing we’ve got to do a better job of is relying on our defense. We didn’t protect the rim well enough,” Donovan said.

Additionally, Donovan said the Bulls have been giving up too many fouls. In their last game versus the Denver Nuggets, Chicago fouled 22 times, leading to 23 free-throw attempts for their opponents.

“The other part was we fouled too much and we have to clean that up,” Donovan added.

Didn't have the juice pic.twitter.com/lzY3r60Bkc

— Bulls Talk (@NBCSBulls) December 13, 2023

Have to regroup

Playing in back-to-back games takes a lot out of the team, and the Bulls will have to regroup quickly before they take on the Miami Heat on Thursday.

“I think we’ve got to regroup here,” said Donovan.

“Getting back physically. I think the last two games has taken a lot out of us physically. So we’ve got to get it back.”

Catch a flight, change the weather 🛫 pic.twitter.com/RJLEUP9Qdd

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) December 13, 2023

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