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Gasol on Bulls' struggles at home against bad teams: 'I am upset'

Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Bulls are 26-13, in a three-way tie for second in the Eastern Conference and lamenting the fact that they could have a much better record, save for their inability to beat bad teams.

In losing to the Orlando Magic on Monday, the Bulls moved into a tie with the Phoenix Suns for most losses by a winning team to a losing team, with six. In other words, nearly half of Chicago's losses have come against sub-.500 teams, while they've played well against top competition.

Making matters worse is that the Bulls have dropped five of those six games at home, where they're just 12-8, compared to 14-5 away from the United Center.

"I am upset," Pau Gasol said Monday. "We've given away too many home games against teams that we shouldn't, and that has to stop."

It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, and the players seem at a loss for how to fix the perceived lack of effort against lesser opposition.

"Never," Derrick Rose said when asked if he'd experienced a run like this. "Not with playing under Thibs, or not with this team."

Head coach Tom Thibodeau didn't have much of an answer, either, challenging his team to create their identity and stop these lapses.

"It's gotta be all of us," Thibodeau said. "We gotta decide what we want to be. There are no shortcuts in this. It's a tough league. If you want to do something special, there's a serious price to pay. And there's no getting around the work. It's really that simple."

Taj Gibson echoed those sentiments, suggesting the team doesn't appreciate that, as a top contender, they have a target on them. 

It's unlike a Thibodeau team to play anything but their hardest, and it's strange to see them cough up winnable games, especially since their offense (ninth) and defense (10th) remain solid, if unspectacular.

On the bright side, there may only be one or two sub-.500 teams in the Eastern Conference playoffs, so the Bulls may be able to avoid playing bad teams when the games matter.

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