The Chicago Bulls are coming off a grueling one-point loss to the New York Knicks in their final regular season game. It was a pleasing indication that the Bulls played all their main guys even if the contest had no bearing on their NBA playoffs standing because it showed their hunger to win every game. Zach LaVine, Lonzo Ball, and Patrick Williams are extremely missed for Chicago, but the current crop of individuals has the potential to make some noise, starting against the Atlanta Hawks in the 2024 NBA Play-In Tournament.

With the Bulls having the opportunity to have an extra day of rest, it gives Ayo Dosunmu and Andre Drummond more time to recuperate from their injuries because their contributions will be crucial in their Play-In battle against the Hawks. DeMar DeRozan will need to elevate his numbers once again as he will be the No. 1 option for the Bulls.

As a reliable veteran, DeRozan is known to thrive in the brightest lights through his patented midrange buckets. Moreover, this is the perfect stage for Coby White to prove to the casual NBA fan that he deserves the Most Improved Player plum. Even if that is the case, Chicago must take into account this fatal flaw that may send them home.

The Bulls’ lackluster three-point shooting

Going up against a team led by Trae Young and Bogdan Bogdanovic means there will be a plethora of there-point conversions on the night. Luckily, Vit Krejci will not be suiting up for this contest because Atlanta decided not to convert his two-way contract to a regular NBA one, even though Krejci torched the Bulls with six threes in their last matchup.

Over the past ten games, Chicago has been one of the cellar dwellers in outside shooting, so they must figure out a way to limit the long bombs of Atlanta. Since the Hawks are not known to excel on the defensive end, the Bulls must utilize DeRozan and White as aggressive point-of-attack initiators to continuously put pressure on the Hawks’ perimeter defense.

Since the Hawks’ perimeter defense is not one of their strong suits, their key players will need to exhaust more energy and effort, which can affect their efficiency on the offensive side. Even Dejounte Murray or De’Andre Hunter can rack up successive conversions from rainbow country, so Chicago must consider the capabilities of the rotational guys of Atlanta.

LaVine’s absence is a huge reason why their outside shooting has been mediocre, so someone like Dosunmu or Alex Caruso must be scorching hot in this crucial tilt against the Hawks. The long-range conversions will also open up the driving lane for DeRozan and White, along with the interior opportunities for Nikola Vucevic.

In this day and age, the three-point shooting discrepancy is usually an enormous factor in dictating the outcome of the game. If the Bulls do continue misfiring against the Hawks, it will derail the confidence of their main guys, which will in turn lead to long rebounds and semi-transition chances for their opponent. It is a domino effect that Chicago must avoid because it will wrap up their season in a hurry.

Patrolling the boards and building a massive cushion in the two-point conversions are two essential categories the Bulls must dominate in this winner-take-all NBA Play-In Tournament battle. These two aspects have been their glaring strength, so even if the Hawks can build an advantage on the three-point shooting, the Bulls can rectify their weaknesses in other ways.

This is a 50-50 tilt, so the Bulls must rely on their strengths and hope to advance to the next stage of the Play-In Tournament.