Westerlund: 5 Thoughts After Bulls-Bucks

By Cody Westerlund--

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Bulls extended their winning streak to a season-high five games with a 117-106 win against the Bucks on Tuesday night at the United Center. Here are the notes and observations of the night after Chicago improved to 21-12.

1. This was what the Bulls envisioned when they hired coach Fred Hoiberg last summer – crisp ball movement, space created, an offense centered around Jimmy Butler and Derrick Rose attacking the hoop and sharing the ball, some transition opportunities and a lot of high-percentage looks.

It led to a season-high 55.4 percent shooting night, a 67-point first half and Hoiberg displaying notable enthusiasm for an offense that's scored 100 points in eight consecutive games.

"We're playing unselfish basketball," Hoiberg said. "It's not sticking nearly as much as it was early in the year. The ball's going side to side, which is very important for our team."

Chicago had 27 assists and was 28-of-37 on shots in the paint. Most importantly, their top three players led the way. Butler, Rose and Pau Gasol combined for 74 points on 29-of-52 shooting.

Butler had 32 points. Gasol had 26 points and 11 rebounds, while Rose had 16 points and six assists.

"We got a lot of guys who can score in a multitude of ways," Butler said.

"Everybody has the team's best interests at heart. We get lost in ourselves sometimes. (Now) everybody's put that aside, and everybody's playing for one another. Everybody's smiling and having fun out there. I think that's the most important thing.

2. After Sunday's 42-point performance, Butler kept up his brilliant play. In addition to his scoring, he tied a career-high with 10 assists.

"He's playing the right way," Hoiberg said.

Both Hoiberg and Gasol had a similar refrain in praising Butler for his decision-making, which has been near-flawless of late and improved as a whole on the season.

"He's been very aggressive and very sharp," Gasol said.

"When you have a guy that has it going that way, then the defense has to make adjustments and other guys get open shots and easier shots. So it's great also that he recognizes when to shoot and when to pass, which is one of the hardest decisions in this game."

3. The Bucks were a mess Tuesday, as they've been for much of the season that now sees them at 14-23.

A year ago, the Bucks had a clear identity. They were defensive hellions, with smart, long-limbed defender after smart long-limbed defender wreaking havoc as one, scrambling and recovering, forcing turnovers at an elite rate and making the most of those transition opportunities.

That identity is gone. With Jabari Parker and Greg Monroe starting, the Bucks are slower. Their interior defense is weak, and there are questions galore.

In the micro, the most pertinent trouble Tuesday was why interim coach Joe Prunty tabbed second-year pro Parker with the defensive responsibility on Butler, who's playing the best basketball of his entire career. Parker drew the assignment for the better part of three quarters, a stretch during which Butler scored 28 of his 32 points and had all 10 of his assists. The slower-footed, inexperienced Parker had no chance on Butler as better defenders in Khris Middleton and Giannis Antetokounmpo roamed elsewhere.

In the macro, the Bucks are facing the pressing question of how to build a quality defense with Parker and Monroe being such central figures. It won't be easy, as their league-worst defensive rating of 109.6 entering Tuesday indicates.

Just a year ago when the Bulls vanquished the Bucks in an intense six-game first-round playoff series, it seemed as if a rivalry was burgeoning. Milwaukee has regressed, though. The fire in this matchup was missing Tuesday.

4. It was a fleeting comment but perhaps a telling one in Hoiberg's postgame press conference. In reflecting, Hoiberg noted his favorite moment of the season to date, which came after Butler's record-breaking 40-point second half in a win against the Raptors on Sunday.

"The best part of the season for me was how those guys were out there together on the floor after that Toronto win," Hoiberg said, referencing a group hug. "That was huge – it showed the camaraderie, the togetherness. And if we have that and everybody's out there worried about one thing – winning – we could have a pretty good year."

You could sense Hoiberg was miserable a couple weeks back as the Bulls struggled and the coach dealt with the drama of Butler publicly criticizing him. As always, winning cures almost everything, and Hoiberg was feeling peppy enough to start his press conference with a joke.

"I was a little disappointed in Jimmy coming out of the gate only going for 20 (in the first half)," Hoiberg deadpanned.

5. After missing three games with right hamstring tendonitis, Rose returned and scored his 16 points on 8-of-17 shooting while adding six assists with five turnovers.

"I thought Derrick was good," Hoiberg said. "A little rusty out of the gate, but once he started attacking the basket, really liked the way he was out there playing.

"We weren't running with him great tonight, I didn't think. But he just at times can be a one-man fast break. The big thing is to continue to attack and get himself to the basket."

The mixed returns on Rose's game largely had to do with where he shot from. His jump shot was bad, as he went 0-for-4 on 3-pointers and missed several other mid-range attempts. He did well at finishing at the hoop, a big weakness for him this season, including several acrobatic layups.

Rose half-joked that he felt pressure to perform well because the Bulls went 3-0 in his absence. All in all, he liked where he was at and "felt good."

"It just takes me playing," Rose said. "I know that it's there. It just takes me actually going out there and just playing – like I said before the injury – consistent games."

Hoiberg indicated Rose was 100 percent health-wise after the Bulls took a cautious approach in holding him out Sunday.

With Rose back, fellow guards Aaron Brooks and E'Twaun Moore fell out of the nine-man rotation Hoiberg went with. Kirk Hinrich logged all the backup point guard minutes.

Cody Westerlund is a sports editor for CBSChicago.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.