Andre Drummond has historic night with loss of Nikola Vučević to groin injury

Andre Drummond has historic night with loss of Nikola Vučević to groin injury

Hi everybody welcome into the Bulls Talk podcast brought to you by Toyota Let’s go places I am Kevin Anderson joined by our Bulls Insider for NBC Sports Chicago NBC Sports chicago.com Casey Johnson uh Casey let’s hop into the vuich injury situation what can you tell us and then

What do you know yeah I mean obviously a significant blow um given how well he’s been playing of late um obviously Andre Drummond uh we can get into in a little bit but he was ready for his opportunity um you know it started with the shw stunk and um you could see him

Kind of double over then when he got need in the groin um on the shw stunk last Saturday he played through it I was told it worsened in the two-day break the Bulls had Christmas Eve and Christmas Day completely off it’s spent with their families and I was told it

Worsened over that time so he had the MRI MRI done uh on game day um Tuesday and um it confirmed a growing strain you know there’s no definitive timetable um one time table that’s been floated out there that I said on our pregame show and and the athletic also is reported as

Seven to 10 days um but that’s a that’s a loose timeline for now they’re going to see how he responds to the treatment I’d be shocked um he’s he’s he’s almost certainly going to miss all the home games the rest of this home stand and then you’ll see how he progresses from there

But um you know there’s more optimism that it’s going to be a day thing not a week’s thing I mean grinds can be really tricky they can be sometimes s on you for two to four weeks so the Bulls are hopeful that they dodge a bullet but nobody really definitively knows yet um

But I would probably project initially in that seven to 10 day range it’s interesting to me because when Zack LaVine went out guys stepped up like we we talked about certainly the play of Patrick Williams play of Kobe white even I dumo and and when there is a void

There it’s got to be filled by somebody it’s not always filled in the way you want to but in that case it’s was filled um by those players in in a great way you then had Tory Craig go out and then you’ve got guys having to fill his

Minutes like dalen Terry and now you’ve got vuich out so you’re essentially your second starter and your third rotation player is now missing time certainly vui’s timetable is much less than what we originally had on LaVine and much much less than what we’re looking at with h Tory Craig but you’re looking at

At least for the next week or so those players are going to be out and you’ve got now minutes heavy minutes going to backup players um let’s start with Andre Drummond who got significant minutes this first starting nod of uh of his Bulls tenure um and and did a incredible

Job I mean I think anybody watched the game he dominated really on both ends of the floor uh 20 24 points 25 rebounds uh just an incredible num stats performance uh you were at the game of the UC see what can you tell us about what you saw from drummed uh getting those

Significant minutes and just how he played against the Hawks team yeah three steals two blocks too I mean he had that early block on capella that to me kind of set the tone uh defensively uh you know he he had a couple times where he missed defensive assignments he he is

Prone to some lapses at times and foul trouble but he avoided that completely last night that’s the big thing to me is I mean he played 38 minutes and he’s used to playing 13 to 14 so number one his wind needed to be okay and number two his turnover and foul issues that

Can sometimes creep into his game needed to be minimized and they both were so all credit goes to him you know I’ve been saying this for a while I I’ve written about Andre as much as anybody because I check in with him every once

In a while and I mean he always tells me I believe I’m an NBA NBA starter in this league and uh I talked to him in Philadelphia on this last road trip and he told me that he tries to do a double double even when he plays 13 minutes so

If you give him 38 minutes I said on the pre uh right before tip off I said if he can stay out of foul trouble he has an opportunity to go way past a double double and he did he he doubled his double double with 24 and 25 so just an

Amazing game um you know I don’t think you should expect that every night but it certainly bodess well for the stretch of centers they’re about to face um you know Miles Turner is a legit Center although he takes you on the perimeter a little bit more um obviously embiid um

There’s a chance embiid may sit out the home game because he has not been playing back Tob backs and that’s the second game of a back toback but then the Bulls go out to Philly next week and with vvi almost certainly still out um you know Drummond’s gonna have a huge

Opportunity here I didn’t love the the backup look uh and that’s not a knock on Terry Taylor more so that I would like to see Patrick Williams get a chance at the small ball five and I think you might because I thought the Terry Taylor minutes were pretty uh nondescript um

And he’s very undersized so we’ll see how Billy plays that moving forward but um huge opportunity here for Drummond you know kind of quietly here the Bulls you know largely were so healthy last season the injury bug is pretty significant right now I mean when you’re talking two your best three players are

Out and out you know for decent time that that’s that’s a significant thing and we’ll see how the Bulls weather that storm yeah the um bench minutes now become a significant issue um and that’s something that they were very healthy last year uh and it’s certainly I think

A lot of people in the preseason didn’t expect the Bulls to match their win total from last season which was 40 uh because of staying healthy it’s very difficult to stay have your main key players stay healthy for the bulk of uh your 82 games two seasons in a row and

And we’re seeing that now uh with this team um is there any update you can give us on Zack LaVine we you know we’re now getting towards the end of that initial timetable uh but as Billy said about a week ago it’s not like that three to

Four weeks is g to end and he’s got to get back in the lineup he’s got to ramp up his conditioning ramp up his contact and practice um what do we know about where Zach is right now yeah so tomorrow we’re taping this on Wednesday so

Thursday is three weeks uh he did start some very very light cutting he’s passed the Straight Ahead running portion of his uh rehab um and so he’s graduated to the the light cutting um and uh Tuesday game day uh again game day was the first um

Day of that so you know we’re taping this before I go to practice on Wednesday so I don’t know how he came out of that but it assuming he continues to PR agress on that then the next step would be more advanced cutting and running um and then if that if he passes

That he’d be moving into contact situation but Billy’s made it clear he’s going to need either practice time against his own teammates or against the Player Development coaches until he’s able to play in a game so we’re still probably you know if assuming everything there’s no speed bumps or roadblocks

We’re still weak two weeks away from him probably getting clear to playing a game the loss to the Cavs on Saturday was the first game of this stretch in which Zach’s been out that I felt like the Bulls would have won had Zach played um you know they they needed that scoring

Certainly in the the fourth quarter uh Kobe’s obviously struggled uh scoring Wise from the perimeter the last couple games and so like that was the first game to me I was like they really could have used Zach in this game um in even less or so last night against the Hawks

I felt like they could have used his boost to scoring and we’re seeing now with these other guys getting increased minutes uh like Taylor uh like Terry that it just you’re putting guys in positions getting significant more minutes than they’re used to getting and and some guys thrive on that and step up

To that challenge other guys aren’t quite ready for that Spotlight um regarding Kobe uh you kind of wrote about him a little bit in your observations uh after the game against Atlanta but he is still contributing in multip ways in this team it’s not just about like well he’s not hitting his

Three-point shots this isn’t like rookie year Kobe white in which if he wasn’t hitting those threes if he wasn’t scoring he wasn’t contributing um he’s still making major contributions on the floor yeah I mean he’s also playing with a wrist injury that he’s kept quiet

About but he he tapes it every game you can see him and sometimes he’s even wincing during the game he he’s not using it as an excuse obviously he had the same situation when he was red hot from three point range but that’s not going to go away I mean when you have

Something like that during the season that just kind of lingers um so he tapes that right wrist but 0 for 15 the last two games from three that’s a big ouch um but you know that’s the thing I mean over for 15 two years ago Kobe’s a complete non-factor borderline

Unplayable um that’s not the case anymore I mean he was making big plays down the stretch with his passing his defense just as overall floor presence his his gravity against the defense I mean opposing defenses have to know where that guy is at all times so um he

Is making contributions still had a stat line of 155 and five even though he is obviously in a extreme cold slump from three-point range um and again that just speaks to his growth as a player in maturation as a player uh getting back to Drummond a little bit um we don’t

Expect him to put up 20 20 every single game but he he does yeah he does that’s that he’s got the confidence um are we going to see him play 35 Plus minutes every single night um they don’t have a lot of other options right now I was surprised his

His wind actually held up that much because there are times um when he’s even playing the 13 or 14 minutes there’s that game recently where he had that good second quarter stretch against the Spurs and Billy extended his rotational run and he was gassed by the

End of that I think that was a 9 Minute stretch um so we’ll see how he comes out of that 38 minutes but they don’t really have a lot of other options um you know Patrick Williams to me had five is another one I think you’ll see because

They didn’t really try that last night uh but if he can stay out of foul trouble he’s going to get a significant opportunity particularly with the centers that are upcoming that I already mentioned so we’ll see how that plays out uh there was a a moment right after

The game ended um in which the broadcast cameras caught Demar D rozan and Billy Donovan having kind of like a genuine uh I don’t want to say emotional because there were certain wasn’t tears but like a kind of like happy hug animated conversation as they’re walking

Off the court um and you asked uh and you talked to both Donovan uh and D rozan about that moment what did they share about like that just that kind of like genuine Joy they were feeling in in that moment yeah that was that was great uh Cody westerland from 670 score asked

Billy about it postgame then I asked Tomar about it um but it was awesome our our NBC Sports Chicago cameras caught that um you know it was just Billy kind of recognizing how uh Elite of a level that Demar is playing at in the sense that he is you know obviously short-handed

Without Zach out there and what he’s doing more often than not is he’s incorporating other players into the game giving them confidence generating shots for them getting their confidence up you know sacrificing his scoring early and then still having the talent in the year 15 to take over games late

And the Atlanta game was a perfect blueprint of that I mean he was 0 for four um at at halftime or one for five yeah he missed his first four he one for five at halftime um hadn’t scored much hadn’t taken many shots but had four assists at halftime and then you know

Just third quarter 10 points fourth quarter 11 points um and the way he closed down the stretch with those three straight hoops and the Poise and he made a great point when I asked him um so Billy was just acknowledging just how incredible that is and how appreciative

He is of the way dear is is playing it you it was a genuine moment but when I asked dear about it he had an incredible quote I mean he first of all he said he appreciated Billy saying that to him but he also said you know um guys look to me

At the end to close and I don’t want to let them down and when they look at me um I get that look I know it’s my time and but he made it clear it’s not always just about taking shots it’s about generating shots or making the right

Play or making the right read and giving up the ball so you can close without scoring and by you’re closing by you know demanding defensive attention and getting off the ball and leading it to an open shot so he really is playing obviously at a very elite level and in

This nine and4 stretch more often than not he’s let other people dictate the pace offensively early and then he’s taken over how much does dear Embrace that leadership role on the team because it seems like he is genuinely respected by teammates and opponents he’s low-key

About it um but yeah I mean we talked recently in a pod about just how respected he is throughout the league other coaches uh players they all look up to him because he’s just he’s a low-key guy as we said I said the other time he’s drama free he’s low

Maintenance he’s just uh you know but i’ that’s why all the reporting all along throughout uh the situation with Zach is that Demar standing within the organization is just unassailable I mean they just not only respect what he does on the court but also off the court I mean he takes the

Young players under his wing in the off seasons and you know the way he tries to play um impacts their confidence so um a lot of lot of lot of love within the organization for Demar d rozan uh let’s get into one of the um things that involves d rozan and that’s

Uh a new thing that the team is doing they’ve got this Hammer award that they are now unveiling and a lot of teams do something like this whether it’s a turnover chain or you know um various the the U belts things like that uh what can you tell us about the new Hammer

That the team is giving out to the players and how does how does a player earn the hammer yeah I see on the Nugget social media Michael Malone’s always passing out chains for defensive player of the game or something I don’t even know what theirs is called so this is

Pretty WID spread throughout the league a little schaly but still kind of fun to write about and talk about in the in the dog days of December beat coverage uh but no we we noticed that shooter rday nobody asked about it because Caruso was talking more generally about stuff and

Then it was sitting by dear’s Locker it’s just large like uh cast iron Hammer looks like a Thor hammer and so Sam Smith asked dear about a postgame and you know dear’s not even sure the formula it’s used to determine but it is for a defensive player of the week the

First winner was Alex Caruso we joke that Caruso is gonna you know keep it in his locker the rest of the season because how are you gonna out defend that guy um Tory Craig was the second winner before his injury and now demarus the the third um winner it might be over

The last five games I I don’t know if it’s of the week I gotta look that up but what it is it’s some uh it’s some unknown formula of like deflections probably contests charges taken you know little uh little analytic uh defensive metrics that were used to determine a

Player’s defensive worth probably a little arbitrary uh and uh um you know unobjective added into that as well but it is going to be passed around it the funniest part about it was Kobe and Pat are we had them on our on this very podcast last year and I think people who

Heard that episode know that they could have their own comedy show they are absolutely hysterical and they sit next to each other locker and they’re about 10 feet away from dear and we’re talking to Dear about it and Patrick in the background you could hear him he was

Fake doing it under his breath but he kind of he said it out loud he goes you couldn’t wait to tell people about that could you because uh you know he was giving it back to him you know like dear was bragging about being a good defensive

Player um but no this kind of stuff is good it breeds healthy internal competition and it’s a byproduct of winning you know this the hammer wasn’t out there when they were five and 14 you know so the Pistons don’t have a hammer exactly exactly so this is all this is

All a byproduct winning and this kind of stuff like I said can uh break up the monotony of a the long ride of an NBA season and it seems like the players are at least having fun with it and buying in because these kind of things can be a

Little bit cringe if the team isn’t on board with it and the players aren on board with it but they seem fully kind of like embracing this if if he’s got Thor’s hammer uh M there next to him in the locker he’s he’s kind of on board

With it then yeah our longtime camera guy Jeff corbetts was even shooting b-roll of it so we got we got b-roll of the hammer now so uh no I actually just you know because there’s not much else going on today although does he might give us something more definitive on

Vich I might ask Billy about it see what he maybe get a little more of the origin story because dear was pretty fuzzy on the details but like I said we noticed it it shooting around yesterday and then uh it was by dear’s proudly by dear’s

Locker uh yesterday yeah I mean I think uh Andre Drummond might be getting the next five game stretch of that hammer I wonder how much rebounds are taken to account for that is part of Defense so yes it is so are Steals and blocks so uh

Yeah we’ll see we’ll see if uh he’s going to get that Hammer as well um case see the Christmas day uh Milestone on the NBA calendar is is very often looked at around uh people around the league that as a big milestone of this is who

We are you hit the Christmas Day stretch and teams for Better or For Worse know who they have on their roster know what they’re capable of and know who we are this season uh who are the Bulls to you now that we’ve hit Christmas Day this

Year or is this a incomplete because of just how why wildly different they’ve been through different stretches of this season no because you know they’re not 500 yet but they’re you know they have a chance to get there they keep playing this way and that to me is kind of what

They were this is this is to me is what the Bulls you know thought they were going to be is a team competing competing for a playin or playoff spot um and it’s clear Management’s goal is to be a relevant competitive team so you know the Zack LaVine situation has been

Introduced into the equation that would be on the back burner if it hadn’t been brought to public Consciousness but um you know I’ve said all along that the focus at least for now is to try to resolve the Zack LaVine situations see what they have with the roster after

That trade if it’s made and then make further determinations um but I can tell you that Management’s made clear that they want to be competing for a playoff spot and relevant so I’d be surprised if more significant changes are coming unless a lot of losing happens between now in February

8th they have been playing like the team I think most of us thought they would be um in the preseason at least during this last 12 game stretch um to me the Bulls are a play and contending team right now uh certainly the whatever happens if anything happens with Zack LaVine is

Going to reshape the roster in a pretty significant way um whether it’s one or two high priced high dollar players they get in return that then are inserted in the rotation whether it’s starting or coming off the bench um or if they get three or four players in return for Zack

LaVine and and whether those couple of those guys are waved or bought out remains to be seen um but there is still going to be a lot of reshaping of this roster yet to come to your point and even if the move move is no move and

Zack LaVine then is inserted back into the starting lineup and whether that’s in early or mid January um there’s going to be a significant kind of like that that moment that may come uh with this roster when Zach LaVine plays again it’s going to be a pretty significant moment

For this team um especially if they are continuing to play at the current level they are offensively and and certainly winning wise it’s going to be a lot of pressure on Zach to kind of form uh to who they are in that game in moving

Forward so I mean that to me is a a kind of big thing I’m looking at on the horizon right now is if Zack plays for the Bulls again and if he does when he does what that’s going to look like in the lineup and you know to the point I

Just made earlier is I thought they would have beaten Cleveland had Zack been in the lineup and played um but they can also revert back to the style of play that they had uh in early November when Zack was was healthy and the team was relatively healthy and they

Were uh in a very losing way we don’t need a five and 14 stretch uh again with this team um looking around the league casy um who right now whether it’s in the east or west are your true contenders who do you go you know what like whether it’s a team like Minnesota

Who to this point is over achieved expectations what most people thought they’d be um who around the league do you consider true contender ERS in each conference right now well I I still think it’s Boston and Milwaukee in the East um Philadelphia with an outside shot um yeah I would probably put

Philadelphia in there uh they got a great coach they’ve got a good bench uh but I I think Boston Milwaukee are clearly the the two best in the East with Philadelphia having an outside shot and then I still think the nuggets are the team to beat in in the west uh you

Know they they know that they know what it takes to treat the regular season seriously but also be playing for June so the fact that they’re not leading the conference right now doesn’t mean that much to me um I think Minnesota is legit as far as a regular season team it’s

Just so hard to take that jump from you know where they were last year to being a a conference Champion not to say it can’t be done but um I think they’ll be a tough out in the playoffs uh and then I think Oklahoma City is similar you know great regular

Season story but probably not ready for prime time in terms of deep playoff run yet I’ve never been sold on the Clippers um they’re just you know to me a bunch of talent thrown out there but when it comes to half court execution slow down

Games that kind of stuff I I don’t see them as being legit you know the Lakers even though they’re down at Ninth and having some issues um they’ve still got two of the best players in the game and that’s what playoff basketball often comes down to um I would not be

Surprised to see them make a deep playoff run so I would probably have the West rank Denver to me clearly the favorite like Far and Away with um Lakers Minnesota and Clippers um out there too Dallas is intriguing but um you know obviously Luc is playing at MVP level but uh they’re

They’re very deep as well um but I don’t I don’t see them coming out of the West to me it’s going to be Denver against either Milwaukee or Boston how’s that for an early NBA Finals Prediction I like that I mean Dallas is intriguing I want to see what Luca and Kyrie look

Like together on the floor um you know certainly um Luca has had a history of just incredible games you Kyrie’s got obviously a ton of playoff experience in his career uh I am intrigued by what they could do if healthy and they kind of develop because they haven’t really

To me had a chance to develop significant chemistry on the court together um since Kyrie’s you know been in Dallas uh the Lakers are intriguing to me because the ability of Anthony Davis and and what he can do on certain nights just dominate on both ends of the

Floor we all know what LeBron is capable of and still capable of when he’s about to turn 39 uh this weekend uh they’re the Lakers are to me a little incomplete because I think they’re going to make a move uh a significant move before uh February 8th uh whether that’s for Zack

LaVine or Deonte Mory you know I’m not sure but um they they could be primed for a deep playoff run in the west uh depending on what they do before the trade deadline and what pieces they give up uh certainly if they’ve got to include Reeves in any potential move I

Think that maybe kind of hurts them um in in the short term uh with that but if they can somehow keep Reeves they’ll obviously keep uh ad and LeBron uh but if they can keep that Trio together and then add you know another High Caliber starter and they’re gonna they’re gonna

Be real dangerous just because of the playoff experience I’m with you on both Minnesota and Oklahoma City I think those two teams are extremely intriguing they’re playing at a high level uh sgaa is absolutely incredible I I don’t think people realize how good a Defender he is um and certainly Oklahoma City Oklahoma

City um has got some really intriguing pieces around him and are are having they’re they’re a a top end League Pass team this year uh Minnesota clearly is is playing great great basketball uh right now but when you talk about both teams in the playoffs teams generally

Don’t go from where those two teams were the past couple years to right NBA Finals there just there is such a significant leap that has to be made in playoff experience honestly earned uh before teams are ready to make that you know next step um you know certainly we

You know go back in this city um not only the the Jordan years and having to kind of learn to get past Detroit uh in that time before they could truly become a Dynasty uh but even in the Rose years they had to um you know get some

Experience in their belt against the the Celtics before they could then make deeper playoffs runs um against the Heat um so yeah I’m I’m with you I think in the west those are the teams that you know are Denver to me is still clear number one I don’t care what the records

Going to be come early April um they they are the favorites to me because of the ability of Murray and Joker together uh their playoff experience their coaching experience like they they have it all what you want in a playoff run in the East I I would definitely include

Philly uh along with Milwaukee um and Boston in terms of teams that are true contenders in that conference uh a healthy Joel and beid in the playoffs in which there are no back-to-backs in the way Maxi is playing um I I might put Philly actually first

In that group um just the way they’ve played is just really impressed me and they are another one of the teams that could be making a move before February 8th to kind of like bolster that roster I don’t think it’ll be of a um move as significant as getting Zack LaVine I

Know he’s been rumored the Sixers would love to have him um but I think they’ll probably add to the roster they’ll be buyers at the deadline if they make the right move um I think they’ve got the potential to to finally make the NBA Finals with Joel embid and um a lot of

It’s GNA you know they they have so much playoff experience a lot of it not so great of course um but I think this may be the year that if healthy with with the way Maxi is playing with the way ID is playing which to me is is your really

True early MVP um leader right now um I think Philly’s got that everything together to be part of that certainly that Contender status um in the East um last thing for you casc as we get into um the next few weeks just kind of like I want to peek behind the

Curtain for a beat Rider during trade deadline time what is your life like as you get into late January and early February especially in a team that could be buying or selling at the deadline I mean you your your process is kind of the same obviously it’s a little

Bit more heightened this year because you have a higher profile player and more uh direct scenario presenting yourself in the sense that both sides are motivated to try to find Zack living a new home but you just make calls around the league the people you know I

Mean I’ve always said like you you learn to work within the con drucks of your own beat um you know so the Bulls are a notoriously tight lipped organization so what I’ve learned to do is talk to people from the outside and work it back

In um and uh you talk to you know people around the league and just uh you’re on alert and obviously know that uh the main news Breakers are uh W and Shams So you you’re G to be checking their Twitter or have it on blast or whatever

Um and then you know just be prepared but you know obviously I’ve got the the relationships within the organization that I can run PE sub by people and um just kind of monitor it that way but I’ve always said like in this situation it’s pretty clear both sides are while

Being very professional would be happier if you they they were able to probably strike a deal for for Zack LaVine so that heightens it and you’re kind of on alert a little bit more but I’ve all along maintain this will probably last January 15th at minimum and more likely

Closer to the deadline I mean that can change with one phone call but I’m I’m not going to be surprised and this goes down to closer to the deadline and I’m sure you were pretty happy to have a Christmas Eve um uninterrupted by breaking news from the organization so

Which we have had in the past in that time uh holidays can be a little tricky in the in the Bulls beat I uh I am sure um but it was good to that we got a a quiet um Christmas Eve even in Christmas day though I think most Bulls fans would

Love to be at the point in which the Bulls are playing on Christmas you know we we had that uh notable Bulls Lakers game on Christmas Day when Derrick Rose had the gamewinner that I think is kind of very much lingers uh in fans Minds because when you play on Christmas it is

An honor it is special they they clearly schedule those games uh at the start of the the season um but it’s it’s a certainly a mark of a a great team or certainly team with high expectations that they’re playing on Christmas day I think we all want to be at the point in

Which you know we wouldn’t mind a Christmas here and there that the Bulls are playing on Christmas because that means they are uh you know likely we in the playoffs the prior year they’ve got some some star power and uh that’s where we like to be how many is there a most

Notable Christmas Day game that you uh recall is there a moment from whether it’s that Rose Bulls Lakers game or something from the Jordan years um that you recall as your favorite Christmas Day memory well the I don’t know if it’s favorite but it’s my most dominant memory definitely the rose one because

What people forget it’s also that was a season opener that was after the lockout so it wasn’t just a Christmas Day game it was oh that’s right yes I had forgotten that yeah so you’re talking about Christmas Day season opener buzzer beating gamewinner uh and I don’t know if it was

Buzzer beater it was late shot and also depressing Christmas Eve spent in Southern California without my family so that one that one kind of dominates the uh the memory bank uh but yeah I you know I have fond memories of earlier in my career obviously the Jordan teams

Were always on Christmas Day and oftentimes they would have kind of the later in the day game so it’s kind of fun because you’d celebrate Christmas eve and have Christmas morning at home with your family and then go to the United Center for a you know evening is

Tip off at the Christmas Day game and Jordan and Company would usually dominate so those are fun memories too but the rose one is clear the biggest memory because of the circumstances Christmas Day season opener and Rose gamewinner by far I had di totally forgotten that that was the

Uh lockout here and that’s uh yeah opening day um yeah that was it was definitely a last like 10-c shot um yeah but just great memory of that and that was that was also a like kind of like big moment for Rose in his career you

Know on the national stage at that point yeah they’re coming off the conf finalist from the year before I mean there was still a lot of you know can they do this again and it was a statement game too so um you know that was a huge one on many levels all right

So let’s hope uh that you know next Christmas the year after we got a Kobe white uh gamewinner with Patrick Williams giving him the assist and and uh that happens again certainly it’s thing everything’s better in the fandom when your team is playing on Christmas it’s uh it means your team’s doing well

And we we certainly like that for the Bulls um so this has been the Bulls Talk podcast brought to you by Toyota Let’s Go Places uh you can check out Casey Johnson’s work on Twitter xccj hoop of course uh check out his work at NBC Sports chicago.com and the NBC Sports

Chicago app for the latest on anything going on with the Chicago Bulls Casey is an absolutely must read I’m Kevin Anderson for everybody behind the scenes here at NBC Sports Chicago thank you for listening we appreciate every time you watch or view or listen to the Bulls

Talk podcast uh like And subscribe we certainly appreciate that too so for everybody here uh we’ll be back on Friday morning uh for another edition of the Bulls Talk podcast so look for that later this week we hope you have a great Christmas week in which you are not

Working you’re un able to enjoy it with your family and home for the holidays um so for KC I am Kevin have a great week everybody and go BS

On this episode of the Bulls Talk Podcast, K.C. Johnson and Kevin Anderson discuss the latest news surrounding the Chicago Bulls, starting with Nikola Vučević’s groin injury (00:19). They discuss Andre Drummond’s big night vs the Hawks on Tuesday (2:43). How much of an impact will he have with Vučević out of the lineup? Later, K.C. shares an update on Zach LaVine’s injury and when fans can expect him to return to the lineup (6:07). Then, they talk about DeMar DeRozan’s impact on the team since LaVine has been out (10:45) and their new hammer award (14:24). Finally, with the season almost halfway over, they discuss who the true championship contenders are (22:40) and when fans can expect to see the Bulls start making moves (29:43).

#ChicagoBulls #AndreDrummond #NikolaVucevic

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The official YouTube page of NBC Sports Chicago. Home of the Chicago Bulls, Chicago White Sox and Chicago Blackhawks. We connect fans with the teams they love. NBC Sports Chicago’s coverage includes NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, Chicago Cubs and the Chicago Bears. NBC Sports Chicago’s original programs include Football Aftershow, Football Night in Chicago, Under Center Podcast, Blackhawks Talk Podcast, Bulls Talk Podcast, Cubs Talk Podcast and White Sox Talks Podcast. Visit https://NBCSportsChicago.com for the latest live streams, scores, post-games and more—all in one place.

Andre Drummond has historic night with loss of Nikola Vučević to groin injuryhttps://www.youtube.com/NBCSportsChicago