Chicago Bulls

Chicago Bulls vs. San Antonio Spurs: Takeaways from Christmas Day Loss

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 11:47 p.m. ET

Fansided, Michael Whitlow/FanSided via Pippen Ain't Easy

The Chicago Bulls couldn’t find the win column once again in San Antonio on Christmas Day against the Spurs. Here’s a few takeaways from the Bulls’ third consecutive loss and the ninth in their last 12 games.

The last game that the Chicago Bulls won on the road: Black Friday (Nov. 25) against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Unfortunately for the Bulls, that remains their last win on the road this season after a 119-100 loss on Christmas Day in their second and final meeting of the season against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday evening.

LaMarcus Aldridge made his first 11 shot attempts from the field, Kawhi Leonard scored 25 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and shut down Jimmy Butler once again in their own head-to-head meeting of star wings.

Sunday’s game was a bit of a weird one for the now-14-16 Bulls. They couldn’t have started Christmas Day any worse than they did, followed by winning a second quarter — something that’s been an issue lately — and giving up 64 points in the second half to lose by almost 20.

Where did the Bulls go wrong on Sunday? What did they get right?

We’ll take a look at a few different takeaways, starting with the Bulls losing the superstar battle once again against the Spurs.

Dec 25, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard (2) is fouled by Chicago Bulls small forward Jimmy Butler (21) while driving to the basket during the second half at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

1. Kawhi Leonard outplays Jimmy Butler once more

There’s no denying how good of a player Jimmy Butler has become since the Bulls drafted him over five years ago.

But, there were many reasons why he was taken 30th overall in the 2011 draft and Kawhi Leonard was taken just outside of the lottery.

Simply put, Kawhi Leonard is a better player than Jimmy Butler.

Leonard proved that to be true once again on Sunday night, scoring 25 points on 50 percent shooting (7/14), grabbing 10 rebounds, dishing out four assists and racking up three steals in the win.

But, it was his defense once again on Butler that made a huge difference for the Spurs against the Bulls.

Wow. According 2 @ESPNStatsInfo, J. Butler is 1-9 vs Kawhi Leonard; 7-10 vs all others. As team, Bulls 2-13 w/Leonard as primary defender.

— Michael C. Wright (@mikecwright) December 26, 2016

That pretty much sums up why Leonard has won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award in the last two seasons. He’s the best perimeter defender in the game today and he makes it virtually impossible to score on him.

It took 19 shots for Butler to score 19 points in 36 minutes against Leonard and the Spurs. That’s not going to get the job done, being that the Bulls basically need Butler at his best night in and night out.

Dec 25, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs power forward LaMarcus Aldridge (12) looks to pass the ball before going out of bounds as Chicago Bulls power forward Taj Gibson (22) and Jimmy Butler (21) defend during the first half at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

2. The Bulls had no answer for LaMarcus Aldridge

You’ve heard the story about the Bulls trading LaMarcus Aldridge for Tyrus Thomas on many different occasions since the 2006 draft.

Do you want to take a guess at who Aldridge scores the most points against over his career with the Spurs and the Portland Trail Blazers?

The Bulls started Robin Lopez on Aldridge defensively and it was clear that it wasn’t the right option. Aldridge was walking into bread-and-butter jumpers inside the arc right out of the gate and finished the night with a season-high 33 points on 15-of-20 shooting from the floor.

It was a long day for Lopez.

The Spurs are built around Aldridge and Leonard and on Sunday night, they showed why the organization has such a belief in the both of them carrying them into the future.

(Plus, it helps when you can play the Bulls.)

Dec 25, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; Chicago Bulls power forward Cristiano Felicio (6) brings the ball up the court against the San Antonio Spurs during the first half at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

3. The bench helped the Bulls early, then disappeared like the Bulls’ chances late

Nikola Mirotic was hot early, draining three 3-pointers in five attempts off the bench to help shoot the Bulls back into the contest.

Doug McDermott scored five early points.

And then, nothing.

Both players played over 27 minutes and shot just 6-for-15 from the field. It wasn’t the final shooting percentage as much as it was the amount of shots both players received.

Cristiano Felicio did have a nice 18-minute showing, scoring eight points and grabbing three rebounds while making four of five attempts from the line off the bench.

Pretty sure Felicio was only #Bulls bench player to score in 2nd half. McDermott needs to take more than 5 shots in 27 minutes.

— Mike McGraw (@McGrawDHBulls) December 26, 2016

Mirotic and McDermott aren’t the best player on this roster, but they’re both important players for the Bulls. They’re the best perimeter threats the Bulls have and for them to only get 15 shots combined after helping the Bulls get back into the game early isn’t good enough.

The Bulls got 43 combined points from Butler and Wade, but it wasn’t exactly a pretty 43 with Leonard making life hard for Butler once again.

For the Bulls to snap out of this nine-loss-in-12-game funk they’re in, “the others” of the Bulls have to become more involved in the offense.