SACRAMENTO, Calif. — For much of this Chicago Bulls season, fans have been pressing on one question: When will Coby White be given the reins in the fourth quarter?
Monday’s win in Sacramento answered that question: now.
White didn’t take the last shot for the Bulls. And he didn’t score the most points in the fourth quarter. Instead, the Bulls followed a familiar pattern as they marched back from a 22-point deficit to steal a 113-109 win from the Kings.
DeMar DeRozan found the weak points in the Kings defense, lowered his head and led the charge. The rest of the offense followed as DeRozan scored 19 of his 33 points in the final quarter.
But a career-high scoring night from White — 37 points, including 5-for-9 shooting behind the 3-point arc — also highlighted the fifth-year guard’s elevated position in crunch time.
“His poise is there and he wants those moments even more,” DeRozan said. “Once you have that poise and want it more, outcomes like he has tonight happen more often.”
DeMar DeRozan on how Coby White has changed as a clutch contributor throughout this season: “His poise. His poise is there and he want those moments even more.” pic.twitter.com/bqf5zzvh2T
— Julia Poe (@byjuliapoe) March 5, 2024
At a certain point in the fourth quarter, the Kings gave up on guarding DeRozan like a regular player. They threw traps at him relentlessly the moment he crossed half-court, forcing the ball out of his hands before he could reach the arc.
That strategy has stymied the Bulls in the past — what do you do if DeRozan gets shut down late? But this time they had a simple answer in White.
Despite taking only one 3-pointer in the fourth quarter, White used a hot start behind the arc to his advantage, slashing past defenders in the final minute for the tying and go-ahead layups. His eight points and three assists were the offsetting weight the Bulls have been seeking to balance DeRozan’s fourth-quarter efficiency.
Here are four other takeaways from the win.
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1. Alex Caruso delivered defense despite an absent shot.
Monday’s win was a tale of two halves for Caruso — not on the scoreboard, but on the court itself.
He delivered a crucial defensive performance, snagging four steals to disrupt the Kings offense. Outside of steals, Caruso continued to perform his duty as a one-man wrecking ball despite not being 100% heading into the game, according to coach Billy Donovan. He helped contain Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox and kept Domantas Sabonis uncomfortable in the post.
But on the other end of the court, Caruso couldn’t get the ball to fall. He went 0-for-6 behind the 3-point line in the first half before giving up completely on his deep shot in the second, finishing 1-for-10 from the field.
Caruso’s shooting struggles highlighted a low-volume night behind the arc for the Bulls, who went 11-for-32 on 3s.
2. The Bulls got a leg up in transition
Pace of play is always a primary focus against the Kings, who average 24.4 points per game off transition — the fifth-most in the league. Donovan emphasized the importance of slowing the Kings, noting Sacramento “killed” the Bulls in transition in their previous meeting Feb. 3 at the United Center.
The Bulls flipped the script this time around, outscoring the Kings in transition (12-8) and off turnovers (24-12). And it was the Kings’ ball security — or lack thereof — that ultimately sealed the game.
The Kings coughed up six turnovers in the fourth quarter alone, which the Bulls converted into 11 points. Three of those turnovers occurred in the last 100 seconds of play, allowing the Bulls to tie the game and then take a four-point lead.
3. Ayo Dosunmu delivered a crucial start and finish.
Dosunmu was the only Bull who could consistently locate his shot early. He scored nine points in the first quarter, beating Kings defenders consistently on downhill drives to the rim, while the rest of his teammates managed only 13 points.
Although his scoring gave way to White and DeRozan in the second half, Dosunmu sank a corner 3, cutting the deficit to four with 4:36 left.
Dosunmu finished 2-for-5 from 3-point range and tallied 20 points as the Bulls’ third-highest scorer.
4. Silent night from the bench.
The Bulls were lifted by three strong offensive performances from White, DeRozan and Dosunmu, who combined for 90 of their 113 points. The rest of the team scrapped together only 23 points — and the bench scored only 11.Rookie Julian Phillips scored six points in the fourth quarter for the largest contribution off the bench. But up until that small scoring flurry, the bench had contributed only four points.
This is an incredibly shallow roster with Patrick Williams and Zach LaVine out for the season and Torrey Craig still returning from a knee sprain. But the pace of the game also limited Andre Drummond at center and forced the Bulls to lean entirely on their starters for offense.
Even with White and DeRozan leading the way, this is an unsustainable pattern for the Bulls as they near the postseason.