HOUSTON – Nikola Vucevic doesn’t know how the story is going to end.
What the Bulls big man did make very clear on Saturday, however, was he was all in for the ride – good and bad.
Good during the recent four-game winning streak and the bad in watching it finally end thanks to a 117-114 win by the suddenly surging Rockets.
Not that Vucevic and the new-look Bulls (28-39) didn’t make it interesting, going toe-to-toe with a Houston squad that likes to physical-up games when they can.
The difference was in the details.
Houston executed in the final minute and the Bulls didn’t.
Case in point came with 37.1 seconds left, after Vucevic nailed a clutch three-pointer to pull the Bulls to within two. Houston almost turned the ball over, it found its way to Dillon Brooks, who then shot a three with 16 seconds left.
The Bulls seemingly were back in business when it rimmed out, except one mistake. They didn’t box out Jalen Green, who grabbed the offensive rebound and made the put-back to make it a four-point lead for the home team.
Coby White missed the lay-up to try and cut the lead in half with 6.1 seconds left, leading to an Aaron Holiday rebound and a trip to the free throw line. Holiday split the pair, but it was meaningless at that point.
An opportunity lost.
The Bulls could have finally made a move in the Eastern Conference standings with a win, especially with Miami losing earlier. That left the Bulls still a game back from jumping to No. 9 and hosting a play-in game rather than heading on the road.
It’s that push that had Vucevic all in.
The veteran could have easily checked out when it looked like the organization was moving into tank mode with the Zach LaVine trade back in early February, but it’s not his make-up.
“I’m totally focused on being here and try and help the team make this push,” Vucevic said. “Regardless of what’s going on I try and stay professional. I want to be a teammate that brings it every day, works hard. You don’t want to be the guy where everybody is locked in and you’re not doing what you’re supposed to be doing. Totally locked in. Trying to find my rhythm with the (calf) injury. I think if we get healthy, we have a shot, and we’ll see where that takes us.”
The hope is Vucevic will continue getting his rhythm back, and if Saturday was any indication, he’s almost there.
The big man finished with 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including going 3-of-4 from three-point range.
White led the Bulls with 23 points, as well as grabbing seven rebounds, and while he didn’t love the ending, he continued to praise his teammates for a jump up in the physicality department.
This was the third straight road game against a physical team – Orlando and Miami previously – and White is seeing a change in mentality that’s been long overdue.
“In order for us to compete at a high level against these teams you’ve got to match their physicality,” White said. “I think earlier in the year when we played Houston (a 143-107 loss), they were the way more physical team. For us, we’ve had to bring the physicality up and I think we’ve been doing that since the All-Star Break.
“We look back, look at what things we could have done better. They’re third in a loaded West, so they’re a really good team. You’ve got to give them credit for how they play to their identity night in and night out. We don’t really do the moral victories, but definitely some stuff we can take from this, some positives from this as well.”