Taj Gibson becoming 4th-quarter key for Bulls
Taj Gibson is getting a lot of love lately.
As the NBA's regular season finishes up and the focus turns to end-of-season awards, Gibson's name has deservedly come up in a few different conversations. If he were a starter, they say, he would be a Defensive Player of the Year candidate. Since he's not, he's a solid Sixth Man of the Year candidate.
ESPN's new Real Plus-Minus statistic, which has gotten a lot of attention this week, whether it's efficacious or not (our take: it is, but as with anything, it's just one piece of information), ranked Gibson as the league's 30th-most valuable player and number 24 on the defensive end of the floor.
On Friday night, Gibson was in the spotlight even for those who aren't discussing awards or exploring new statistics, scoring 11 points in the fourth quarter to help his Chicago Bulls complete a comeback win against the Detroit Pistons. He also added two key blocks in a five-possession span, later grabbing a pair of key offensive rebounds.
“When you make effort plays like that, and those were big-time, multiple-effort plays -- block shots, offensive rebounding in traffic, finishing -- that does nothing but inspire your team,” Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. “That sort of ignited us.”
This isn't really new, though. Gibson comes off the bench behind Carlos Boozer, but it's almost always Gibson finishing games.
While his season averages of 13.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 28.7 minutes are impressive, they are modest compared to some other forwards around the league. In fourth quarters, though, Gibson ranks second in the NBA in minutes, behind only teammate Joakim Noah. He also averages 4.6 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.5 blocks in the final frame.
His fourth-quarter performance underlines an unselfishness about Gibson, as many players with this large an impact would push for a starter's role.
“Taj is somebody who sacrifices a lot for this team,” Noah agreed.
Gibson clearly understands his role, and that he'll be on the floor when it matters most. He's a big reason why the Bulls are the league's ninth-best fourth-quarter outfit, outscoring opponents by 3.7 points per 100 possessions in fourth quarters (that mark is just two points per 100 possessions overall).
Come playoff time, though, Thibodeau may need to call on Gibson earlier and more often - the Bulls are far better with Gibson on the floor than with Boozer, per NBA.com/Stats lineup data.