Bulls roll over Cavs in 1st game of Tyronn Lue era

Tyronn Lue's coaching tenure with the Cleveland Cavaliers got off to a listless start Saturday night, as the team came out flat in a 96-83 loss to the Chicago Bulls.

A day after their coach, David Blatt, was abruptly fired, the Cavs looked out of sorts almost from the get-go, despite playing at home against a Bulls team that was on the second night of a back-to-back. Cleveland jumped out to a 14-8 lead in the first five minutes of the game, and then, amazingly, didn't score for the rest of the first quarter. The Bulls ended the frame on a 13-0 run, and never trailed again.

Chicago played tight, disciplined defense, but the Cavs' offensive sets mostly lacked purpose and shape. Their floor balance looked off and possessions devolved into late-clock isolations. When they did get clean looks, they frequently missed them. On a few occasions, they were booed by their own fans.

Cleveland shot just 37.2 percent from the field, 16.7 percent from 3-point range, and, most bafflingly, 40.9 percent from the stripe. The 13 free throws they missed were the difference in the game.

The Bulls, meanwhile, responded well after taking two bad losses (by a combined 40 points) and six in their previous eight games. Pau Gasol torched whichever big man the Cavs opted to stick on him, pouring in 25 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists while posting a game-high plus-22 rating. Jimmy Butler chipped in with a workmanlike 20 points and nine boards in a game-high 42 minutes, while Nikola Mirotic scored 17 on just nine shots off the bench.

LeBron James did his damnedest to drag his team back, and he was the only reason the Bulls didn't run away with the game, but in the end he could only do so much. The man several reporters have alleged was responsible for Blatt's firing finished with 26 points, 13 rebounds, and nine assists. Butler made him work for it, though, as those 26 points came on 27 shots.

The Bulls have gotten up for their games against the team that knocked them out of the postseason last year, winning each of the first two matchups.