This was the Chicago Bulls' big chance to prove their legitimacy.Playing in front of a packed United Center eager to cheer their team on to victory against former head coach Tom Thibodeauand a national television audiencethey had the chance to move to 14-10 against a weak opponent. The Minnesota Timberwolves are young and brimming over with upside, but their porous defense and unpolished offense have made winning a difficult proposition.The 99-94 Bulls loss had the opposite effect, especially because they blew a 21-point lead in the first half and allowed the 'Wolves to complete the NBA's largest comeback of 2016-17, per ESPN's broadcast. Yes, the squad that has spent the opening salvo of this campaign falling apart in the third quarter used that period as a springboard to success against a veteran-laden outfit.This could be the beginning of a surge for the Timberpups. Karl-Anthony Towns (16 points, 12 rebounds, two assists) rebounded from a rough start by playing aggressively in the second half, while Andrew Wiggins (23 points, nine rebounds) had an efficient offensive night and Zach LaVine (24 points on 10-of-18 shooting, six rebounds, six assists) flat-out feasted.But they're the secondary story. We can't just overlook Chicago falling apart and failing to muster up any offense during a 38-point second half.Offense can typically be summarized by looking at a quartet of factorsthe aptly named Four Factors. And Chicago thrived in two of them by recording 13 offensive rebounds and turning the ball over just nine times in an uptempo game. Its ability to make free throws wasn't a huge problem, but its shooting during live action was.Though going 38-of-87 from the field (43.7 percent) isn't a glaring issue, it's troubling when that performance is coupled with inaccuracy from downtown. Making triples is vital in the modern NBA, but the Bulls' limited cadre of shooters could muster up only four makes in 15 attempts (26.7 percent).This isn't anything new.Before tonight, Chicago ranked last in three-pointers made per game, knocking down 1.2 fewer than anyone else. That would be more palatable if they weren't also connecting on just 30.8 percent of their attemptseasily the league's worst mark. It's not hard to see how much of an outlier they've become:Hint: They're in the bottom left.Offensive rebounding has helped the offense remain competent, and the Bulls have remained a top-10 defense (though only barely). But as NBA Math pointed out, shooting is far more correlated with offensive rating than creating second-chance opportunities:That, in a nutshell, is why the Bulls have been falling down the leaderboard for offensive rating. And Tuesday night's trouble scoring the ball against a lackluster defense was only the latest example of the troubles, indicating the decline might not yet stop.It's concerning when Jimmy Butler has to work his butt off to generate a contested two-pointer, even if he did happen to hit this attempt against Wiggins' tight defense:Don't analyze based purely on the results; the process is more important. That's not a good shot for anyone, and the Bulls have been forced to rely on similar attempts far too frequently.After this loss, Chicago is still 13-11. It's right in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race, even if more contenders are starting to emerge for those final spots.But these developments still have to be troublesome.Against Minnesota, everything was going right for Chicago after 12 minutes. It had won the opening quarter by 16 points and exposed the opposing offense as a unit that lacked coherence. It also had something to prove against Thibodeau and was proving it, thriving while Butler and Dwyane Wade looked to create rather than score.Then, everything fell apart. The Bulls couldn't come up with any counters after Thibodeau successfully pushed his troops to stop the primary action and turned the guards back into score-first contributors. When initial cuts didn't result in open opportunities, they had to force up contested attempts one possession after another.That's simply not sustainable offense. And without quality offense, the Bulls' desires of emerging as contenders for a top spot in the East will fade away.Memphis Grizzlies Have HeartBut they don't have LeBron James.Without Marc Gasol (rest), Mike Conley (back) or Kyrie Irving (rest) on the court, it was tough to get a true gauge of team quality in the Cleveland Cavaliers' 103-86 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. But we do know the Cavs have significantly more talent even without their starting point guard.That was clear in the first half, as Cleveland stormed out to a 15-point advantage at halftime.James, in particular, was fantastic, controlling the proceedings for a team without a true 1-guard and picking apart a Memphis defense that entered the night with the league's top defensive rating (granted, this isn't the same stingy unit with the stars missing).When James is surrounded by shooters, he verges on unfair.That was evident when he bullied Andrew Harrison on his way to the hoop for an easy bucket. Memphis' troops were unable to collapse around him, but had they, James would've found their open assignment for an uncontested three-point attempt:But to the Grizzlies' credit, they didn't give up while James recorded 23 points, six rebounds, eight assists and three steals. They played the Cavs even during the third quarter and lost the fourth by a meager two points to keep the final margin respectable and reassert themselves as a defensive juggernaut.If there's such a thing as a good loss in the NBA, this might count as one after such an ugly start.Where Did the Atlanta Hawks' Defense Go'Prior to Tuesday night, the Orlando Magic had scored at least 100 points in just seven of their 25 outings. But when Bismack Biyombo knocked down a 12-footer off an Elfrid Payton assist, they made it 8-of-26.That would've been fine for the Atlanta Hawks if Biyombo's jumper hadn't come with 11:27 remaining in the fourth quarter.Heading into the game, Orlando ranked No. 29 in offensive rating, while the Hawks trailed just the Grizzlies in the defensive counterpart.This should've been a night in which the home team kept the Magic in check.Instead, Atlanta allowed its foe to score a season-high 131 points and emerge from Philips Arena with an 11-point win, thanks to explosions from so many different players.Serge Ibaka went for 29 points on 11-of-18 shooting and knocked down four triples. Jodie Meeks came off the bench to torch Atlanta from the perimeter and put up a 20-spot. Elfrid Payton was the star of the night, recording 26 points and 14 assistsboth career highs. Even more impressively, the point guard turned the ball over just twice while shooting 9-of-12 from the field and connecting on all three of his treys.As a whole, the Magic turned the ball over once in the first half while hitting nearly 60 percent of their field-goal attempts. And as Jaryd Wilson, Atlanta's digital content manager, explained, it was just about a perfect half of offensive basketball:They didn't slow down during the second half, either.Maybe this was a turning point for the anemic Orlando offense. Maybe it wasn't.Either way, it was an embarrassing performance for a Hawks squad that now sits below .500.Anthony Davis in the MVP Race'The New Orleans Pelicans' 113-109 loss to the Golden State Warriors should serve as the perfect small-scale representation of Anthony Davis' MVP candidacy.Even though the victors featured Draymond Green (12 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists, four steals, two blocks), Kevin Durant (27 points on 19 shots) and Stephen Curry (30 points, four rebounds, seven assists), it was often the NOLA big who looked like the best player on the court. He put together a passionate and inspired performance against constant defensive attention, but he couldn't lug his limited teammates to the top of the mountain.Despite the fact the numbers came in a losing effort, how can you sniff at 28 points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and five blocks on 10-of-14 shooting from the field' With the exception of his turnover troubles, Davis was nearly perfect and still found time to record some highlight-reel defensive plays: "We played well... We played together, moved the ball," Davis said after the game, perNBA.com's Jim Eichenhofer. "We've got to take some of what we did in this game."He's being a generous teammate.Though some players fared wellwe're looking at you, Tim Frazier, Langston Galloway and Terrence Jonesthe Pelicans wouldn't have been in this game without Davis. And that's a story that's rung true throughout the season, per NBA Math:If you believe the MVP can come from a lottery team, you'll be willing to accept Davis as a legitimate candidate. He's putting up monstrous numbers, and the Pelicans play like they belong in the postseason when he's on the floor.When he's not...they don't.It might not be enough to win an awardin fact, we can safely say it won't be if the Pelicans don't surge into playoff contentionbut it's taking the definition of "valuable player" quite literally. That much is beyond dispute.Unicorn SightingSince 1983-84, only13 playershave knocked down at least four triples without missing from beyond the arc and also recorded no fewer than three rejections in the same game. Now, Kristaps Porzingis makes it 14.Except the Latvian 7-footer is even more special.He also recorded eight rebounds (only Rashard Lewis, Vince Carter, Robert Horry and Walter McCarty matched that) and three steals (just Horry did so). Better still, he turned the ball over only twice and shot 12-of-23 from the field en route to 34 points.He has every skill in the book. And while it's unfortunate his standout showing came in a 113-111 overtime loss to the Phoenix Sunswhich could be a sign of this team regressing to the meanit's yet another example of his overwhelming and unique versatility. Cue Basketball Insiders' Tommy Beer:Yep.Unicorn.Thunder ExposedIf Russell Westbrook's ridiculous triple-double streak was distracting you from the unfortunate reality surrounding the Oklahoma City Thunder, Tuesday's 114-95 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers should make you painfully aware of the flaws.Defensively, the Thunder were incapable of stopping Rip City, which had six different players score in double figures:Mason Plumlee: 18 points on 7-of-9 shootingDamian Lillard: 17 points on 7-of-13 shootingC.J. McCollum: 15 points on 6-of-13shootingMaurice Harkless: 15 points on 5-of-10 shootingEvan Turner: 14 points on 6-of-8 shootingAllen Crabbe: 11 points on 4-of-8 shootingNone of the high scorers were inefficient, and the team as a whole knocked down 53.8 percent of its looks from the field against a hapless OKC defense. And that wasn't even the biggest problem for the visitors.As CNHI Oklahoma's Fred Katz pointed out, the Thunder couldn't generate any spacing:Without Westbrook (20 points, six rebounds, six assists) going nuts, the onus was on his teammates to provide the necessary help. And they couldn't do so, failing to capitalize on the looks their point guard generated before kicking the ball right back to him and asking him to force up shots.Even though the MVP candidate coughed the ball up just three times, the Thunder recorded 20 turnovers. Even more dishearteningly, they shot 37.9 percent from the field and made only eight of their 27 deep attempts. It was an all-around display of offensive ugliness against a Portland squad that entered the night ranked last in defensive rating.Any more questions about whether Westbrook's gargantuan numbers are hindering the success of the team' When he's not producing at a historic pace, it's obvious this isn't a competitive bunch.Friday's Final ScoresCleveland Cavaliers 103, Memphis Grizzlies 86Orlando Magic 131, Atlanta Hawks 120Golden State Warriors 113, New Orleans Pelicans 109Minnesota Timberwolves 99, Chicago Bulls 94Phoenix Suns 113, New York Knicks 111 (overtime)Portland Trail Blazers 114, Oklahoma City Thunder 95Adam Fromal covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter:@fromal09.Unless otherwise indicated, all stats fromBasketball-Reference.com,NBA.comorNBA Mathand accurate heading into games on Dec. 13.
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