[Comey]

April 1989

4.1.89: at Milwaukee (20-51). The key for the Bulls is to fine-tune and get out of the regular season without any major injuries. They also have some payback to give the Bucks. They did just that, dusting Milwaukee 108-79. Jack led with 29-13-10 (9-13 FG), while Josh added 27-8-4. Gayle Cruz had 14 and nine boards, while Josh Whitman added seven points and eight assists. Richie Russell led the Bucks with 15-6-4, but also had four turnovers.
Record: 56-16

4.2.89: vs LA Lakers (31-40). The Lakers have fallen behind in their quest for a playoff bid, but the future may be bright for them (finally). Today was pretty dim, as the Bulls steamrolled them, 126-92. Once again, Jack showed the Lakers what could have been; he posted 39-16-9 with two steals on 16-22 shooting, while Joshua Berry shot 2-11 from the field, for six points, four boards, and four assists. Gregory Escalera had 26-8-4, while Josh added 17, and Cruz 11. Brian Loeffler, a massive breakout star in his second season, led LA with 31 and seven boards. Rudolf McKinnie, once again, came up small against the Bulls. He has averaged 16.5 points and 8.9 boards this year, mirroring the last two years…but here, he had six points (3-3 FG), five boards and two assists in just 18 minutes. He registered four quick fouls.
Record: 57-16

4.6.89: vs New York (44-29). The Knicks have a lot of confidence these days, especially after having come into Chicago Stadium and beaten the Bulls. Jack and Josh wouldn’t let that happen again; Jack’s 41-12-10-3-3, and Josh’s 25-4-3, gave the Bulls a lift as they pulled away from the Knicks, 110-96. It was tight heading into the fourth, with the Bulls leading by four. Jack scored 20 of his 41 in the fourth to gain security. Cruz added 18 and five boards…but the Bulls have to be concerned that they aren’t getting much out of their bench these days. Gervais Caudron, the rookie from Yale, is challenging for the Rookie of the Year award (honestly, this is a really tight race…more on that in a moment). He led the Knicks with 29 points and five boards. David Brenneman added 25 and nine boards, while C Richie Mertens scored 12.
Record: 58-16

Back to that Rookie of the Year race…

The frontrunner: SF Tony Marker, Miami. He’s averaging 21.1 ppg, 6.0 rpg, and 2.4 apg. Add in over a steal per game, and that’s your likely frontrunner.

Contenders:

SG Gervais Caudron, New York. Averaging 19.6, 6.4, 2.9, helping lead the Knicks on a big turnaround.

SF Jimmy Matz, Houston. Putting up 19.2, 3.7, 1.9. The top overall pick has shined in his first year.

SG Russell Davidson, San Antonio. Scoring 17.5 points and getting 3.7 rebounds a game, along with a steal on average.

SF Chance Davis, Seattle. The Sonics’ rebirth is in part due to Davis, who is averaging 15.8 ppg and 4.8 rpg.

C Dewey Teeter, Charlotte. Averagign 13.8 ppg and 8.8 rpg, along with 1.3 blocks.

PG Brett Hatch, LA Clippers: Averaging just 8.8 ppg, but 7.7 apg and 4.2 rpg. Respectable numbers for the rook.

While it’s likely Marker’s to win, this is pretty wide open, and voters have a lot of choices.

4.7.89: at New York (44-30). The Knicks get an immediate chance at redemption, and they get it, by an equal 110-96 outcome. David Brenneman’s 28 (12-16 FG) from the power forward spot, along with his eight boards, four blocks and three assists, were key. Joshua Shriver showed up with 22 on 7-11 shooting, as well as six rebounds and five steals. Gervais Caudron had 21, and Robert Withrow added 16. Joshua Morris, he of lost confidence, scored just two points, but had seven assists from 15 minutes off the bench. Jack posted a 30-8-8, but with five turnovers. Josh had 21-8-5, and Cruz scored 14. Whitman posted 12-5-6, but also had six turnovers. Not the Bulls’ best effort, and some worry that the Knicks are able to match up with them effectively has to creep in.
Record: 58-17

4.10.89: at Atlanta (29-46): Another late-season trip to Atlanta…this one results in a Bulls 113-100 win. Jack led the way with 28-17-10, while Josh had 24. Sheldon Maurer added 13 off the bench, and Eddie Shank contributed 12 with eight rebounds. Bye Felicien had nine on 3-6 shooting. Rex Smith led Atlanta with 21…to me, Rex Smith is the embodiment of TBS in the late 80s. He is WCW wrestling, Braves baseball, and Mama’s Family. Anyway, he added 11 rebounds, four assists, and four steals. Jefferey Adam had an off night, shooting 4-14 and ending with 12 points, four boards, four turnovers, and five fouls. Ronald Brehm, one of the better role players in the league, had 15 off the bench. Maybe I think he’s one of the better role players in the league, because he torches the Bulls a lot. He’s also a power forward. Hmmm…
Record: 59-17

4.11.89: at Washington (43-33). The standings show Washington a game and a half behind Philly for the fifth spot in the East. That might not be a bad thing, as it would set them up against Detroit in the first round, and if they get by that, either Boston or the Knicks in the second. The Bullets showed they aren’t dead yet, though, beating the Bulls, 104-87, in what was just a dreadful effort by Chicago. They were pounded, 27-11, in the second quarter, and 34-20 in the third. In fact, they were down by 31 heading into the fourth. Kelly Williams re-established himself against Chicago, leading the way with 26. Lamont Cioffi, who has always been established with Chicago, had 21. Ahmed Robson, one of the feel-good stories in the league, had 15-7-11. For the Bulls…Jack had 27-6-5, and that was IT. Josh had just eight points and four turnovers. Bye Felicien played 19 minutes (8 points, 1 rebound). Jesus Brawner got into the mix (3-5 in 10 minutes, 6 points, two assists). It was that kind of game.
Record: 59-18

4.13.89: vs Miami (17-60). The Bulls, on their face, look like they destroyed the Heat. But the boxscore tells a difference story. The Heat played them almost even in the 1st and 3rd (31-30 each), and the Bulls won the 2nd, 31-19. A 26-13 4th quarter arrives us at our destination of 27. The Heat had no response for Jack, as few do: he had 37-12-11. Cruz had 19-4-4, while Whitman had 16 and six assists. Escalera (15) and Josh (12-7-6) also contributed. Rookie of the Year frontrunner, Tony Marker, led Miami with 21-6-4, while Gary Cavallo added 18-5-5. Danny Smythe is winding down his 17th season with very littl slow down…he’s averaging 15.9 ppg, this is just down from the 16.4 he had last year. He scored 16 in this one, with six boards.
Record: 60-18

4.15.89: vs Ne York (48-30). Boy, the Bulls are getting awfully chummy with the Knicks this month. For the second time this season, the Knicks walked into Chicago Stadium and beat the Bulls. David Brenneman’s 37 and nine boards (despite fouling out) led the Knicks to the 112-104 win, prompting every columist in America to cite Brenneman as The Matador. Evil Harris Connors would like to butt in there for a moment. Gervais Caudron scored 29, with nine boards and four assists, while Joshua Shriver added 16-5-4 for the Knicks, who are young and naïve and may buy their own hype. Jack’s 29-13-10-5-2 led Chicago, while Jones had 32 and eight boards, and a costly tehcnical foul. Whitman had 11 and 10 assists.
Record: 60-19

4.17.89: vs Portland (42-37). Wow. Utterly wow. Portland waltzed into Chicago and destroyed the Bulls, 115-92. What happened to the Bulls? They may be the most hapless sixty-win team in recent memory. Robert Ritz led the Trailblazers with 24, while Eddie Avina scored 20. Saul Jones had 17 points, 11 assists, and five steals. Frank Padgett added 18-12-6 from the power forward spot. Jack’s 29-10-8 led Chicago, while Escalera (14), Cruz (14) and Josh (13) did little of note. Whitman added 10 points and six assists.
Record: 60-20

4.19.89: at Philadelphia (47-33). The Bulls were crushed again, this time 103-89 by the Sixers. All-Star center Woodrow Taber led the Sixers with 32-7-4, while David Lawson had 19-4-6, and John Barnum 15-7-5. Jack’s 43-20-8 with three blocks, and Josh’s 16-8-6 were the only real contributors to Chicago, who is searching for answers and supplemental support at the worst time of the year.
Record: 60-21

4.20.89: vs Philadelphia. The two teams head to Chicago to wrap up the regular season. This time, the Bulls got the win, 111-96. This one was interesting, and maybe shows a different side of Jack. He was actually tossed from this game for taunting technicals. Amazing. Simply amazing. Is Jack believing HIS own hype? He’s always been humble…gotta wonder if the wrong voices are getting into his ear. Despite the early dismissal, with five minutes left, he had 25-15-15 (11-15 FG). Cruz added 21, and Josh 19 points and 15 rebounds. Whitman had 10-4-8. David Lawson led Philadelphia with 22, and Woodrow Tabler had 19, as the Sixers finish 48-34.
Record: 61-21

Synopsis: Well, two things.

1) Chicago gets Indiana in the first round. Bad news; Indiana has proven it can beat Chicago consistently.
2) The Knicks are a potential second-round opponent.

This is not the best setup for the Bulls. Truthfully, they deserve it. They’ve been an absolute horror to watch this season, especially late. They were 39-9 at one point. They were 22-12 the rest of the way, and actually 55-15 at one point.

This is a very fractured team. Even Jack feels broken at this point.