last year's playoffs opponents met again, Bulls defeated Bucks at home 119-113 in overtime.
In this game, DeRozan played perhaps the best personal performance of the season. played for 44 minutes, made 15 of 25 shots, 12 of 14 free throws, 0 three-pointers, 42 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, and also had 2 steals and 2 blocks .
The Bulls were behind almost the entire second half of the game. Until 2 and a half minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Bulls were 11 points behind the Bucks 93-104. But in this short period of less than 3 minutes, the Bulls successfully played a 13-2 wave, dragging the game into overtime.
In the last two attacks of regular time, DeRozan dominated the game:
- With 13.8 seconds left, the Bulls were 102-106 behind by 4 points. DeRozan received a pass from LaVine and faced Antetokounmpo under the basket for a layup, chasing the point difference to 2 points;
——With 7.6 seconds left, the Bucks sent a sideline ball. DeRozan stole Antetokounmpo and assisted Dosunmu for a dunk to tie the game;
In overtime, it had to be DeRozan. The Bulls team scored 13 points, and DeRozan scored 10 of them, including the key mid-range shot before half a minute left. It is worth mentioning that the Bulls' other three points came from DeRozan's assist. In other words, the Bulls' entire overtime score was related to DeRozan.
As a comparison, Antetokounmpo scored 45 points, 22 rebounds and 7 assists in this game, but he made 17 of 39 shots from the field. He also made 1 of 8 shots in overtime and only scored 2 points. - This is not to say that Antetokounmpo is not outstanding, but in terms of this magical fight, DeRozan is obviously the better one.
So far this season, DeRozan's performance is still at a superstar level.
Currently he has played in 34 games, averaging 26.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game, with a shooting percentage of 51.2%, a free throw percentage of 88.7%, and a true shooting percentage of 60.4%.
For comparison, last season was the best season of DeRozan's career. At that time, his per game averages were 27.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.9 assists, with a shooting percentage of 50.4% and a true shooting percentage of 59.0%.
Compared with last season, DeRozan's points have decreased, mainly because his ball rights have decreased. His round share has dropped from 30.8% to 28.3% this season, and his shots have also dropped from 20.2 to 18.3., but his efficiency has improved. His true shooting rate of 60.4% is DeRozan's career high.
In addition, DeRozan's turnovers have also decreased. Last season, he averaged 4.9 assists and 2.4 turnovers per game. This season, he averaged 5.0 assists and 1.9 turnovers. The number of turnovers is a personal low since 2013. His assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.58 is the second highest in his career.
DeRozan is still a player who can't shoot three-pointers. He has made 14 of 47 three-pointers this season, with a shooting percentage of less than 30%. In this game, he scored 42 points with 0 three-pointers, but DeRozan's mid-range is really crazy:
- 10-14 feet, 56 of 111, shooting 50.5%
——15-19 feet, 79 of 180, shooting rate 43.9%
——20 feet away, 31 of 58, shooting rate 53.4%
Long-distance two-pointers are considered to be inefficient in this era. DeRozan took more shots than three-pointers at this position, and he actually shot more than 50% of the field goal percentage. , he is the first person to go against the times.
It is worth mentioning that DeRozan is still the most trustworthy key player in the league. At the critical moment of this season (within 5 points in the last 5 minutes), DeRozan made 27 of 58 shots, averaging 5.4 points per game, with a total score of 91 points. , he ranked first in the league in total goals, average points per game, and total points.
This year NBA has set up a new award, the Key Player of the Year. Judging from the games that have ended, this award almost belongs to DeRozan - Alexander of Thunder may be a rival, but Alexander's total points, average points per game, field goals, assists, rebounds, and field goal percentage at critical moments are not as high as DeRozan's.
If this award is really given to DeRozan, it will definitely be a testament to his performance at critical moments in the past two years. But now, what DeRozan needs more is to win - The Bulls have only 15 wins and 19 losses this season, ranking tenth in the Eastern Conference. In the same period last year, they were 26 wins and 10 losses, ranking first in the Eastern Conference. This gap is really too big. Fortunately, they have won 4 of the past 5 games, and they hope to get back on the road to winning.
