Chicago is gearing up for a play-in tournament.
The Chicago Bulls are set to face off against the Toronto Raptors in the 2022-2023 play-in tournament held at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on the 13th (Korean time).
Chicago is a team that built a big 3 made up of Jack Lavin, Dermar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic. They succeeded in going directly to the playoffs as the 6th seed in the Eastern Conference last season with their unique basketball skills.
This season has been different. The players suffered severe ups and downs and showed performances that fell short of expectations. In the process, rumors of discord between Chicago’s head coach Billy Donovan and the players emerged. The trade rumors of the Chicago Big 3 also continued.
But there was no change. Chicago has decided to finish the season by trusting its players and coach Donovan. As a result, Chicago finished the regular season with a record of 39-42 and 10th place in the Eastern Conference. The ranking is 10th. Although they failed to go straight to the playoffs, they took the opportunity of a play-in tournament.메이저사이트
Chicago’s first opponent in the play-in tournament is ninth-ranked Toronto. Losing this game will end Chicago’s journey this season.
Chicago has gone 1-2 against Toronto this season and fell into a slump. In addition, since it is an away game, a special strategy is needed to win. Coach Donovan was wary of the physical condition of Toronto players.
In an interview after the last game of the regular season on the 8th, coach Donovan said, “The outstanding physical condition of Toronto players is the most difficult thing for us. It’s. We all have to play the game with attention to the rebound.”
Toronto has a strong defensive center, Jacob Puddle. The big forward line composed of Pascal Siakam, Scotty Barnes, and OG Anunobi also shows off a distinct presence.
On the other hand, there is no player in Chicago who shows strength in rebounding except for Vucevic and Andre Drummond. The starting power forward, Patrick Williams, also averaged only 4.0 rebounds this season.
Attention is focusing on whether Chicago, which is in an unfavorable environment in many ways, will be able to seize the opportunity and head to the playoff stage again.