Bulls 96, Cavaliers 83
CLEVELAND -- New Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue said he didn't think his players were having much fun. This isn't going to help.
Center Pau Gasol had 25 points and 10 rebounds and the Chicago Bulls beat the Cavaliers 96-83 on Saturday in the Cavaliers' first game under their new coach.
General manager David Griffin made the surprising decision to fire David Blatt on Friday despite owning the top record in the East. Griffin attributed it to problems in the locker room and a team that was regressing despite piling up victories.
Lue added to that by acknowledging before Saturday's game he didn't believe players were enjoying themselves this season.
The Cavaliers shot 37.2 percent, didn't get any scoring from their bench until late in the third quarter and shot 9 from 22 from the free-throw line as they were booed off the floor following the loss.
LeBron James scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and fell one assist shy of his first triple-double this season. He had 26 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists, but shot 11 for 27.
Kevin Love scored 14 points and Kyrie Irving scored 11. The Cavaliers went scoreless for the final 6:57 of the first quarter and missed their final 16 shots of the first. The offense never really recovered.
Guard Jimmy Butler scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds, Taj Gibson had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Bulls and Nikola Mirotic scored 17 off the bench. It was Chicago's third win in its last nine games.
The loss capped a turbulent 24 hours in Cleveland. James insisted he had no role in Blatt's firing while agreeing with everything Griffin said Friday in explaining the move. Lue said he didn't want to do anything different than how Blatt managed the team, just better. He also wanted to expand the rotation and get more guys involved.
He kept his word. Lue went 10 deep in the first quarter, but it seemed to stall any rhythm the offense could generate. The Cavs shot 17 percent from 3-point range (4 of 24) and never found a groove.
Blatt previously handled the offense while Lue handled the defense. Lue said he'd continue to handle the defense while taking on more offensive responsibilities, although he'll share them with lead assistants Larry Drew and Jim Boylan.
A pair of free throws from Butler extended the Bulls' lead to 77-60 early in the fourth quarter, their largest of the night. When the Cavaliers made a small run to cut the deficit to 10, Gasol countered with consecutive jumpers to keep the Bulls comfortably ahead.
Lue met with the team early Saturday to talk about changing their style, playing the game the right way and playing with more pace offensively. Very little of that appeared in his debut.
"Just by us having a coaching change doesn't mean we're going to be better," Lue said before the game. "We've got to change. You can bring Phil Jackson in or whoever you want to bring in, but if we don't change as players and as a staff and as a unit, we're not going to be any good."
NOTES: New coach Tyronn Lue believes David Blatt should coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars if the Cavaliers remain atop the standings. But if the league won't allow it, Lue will do it. "The rest of our staff deserves it," Lue said. ... Lue said he'd like to extend the Cavaliers' rotation to 10 players and reinsert G Mo Williams into the rotation. ... Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg was in Cleveland on a recruiting visit for Iowa State when Blatt invited him to watch practice the summer he was hired to coach the Cavaliers. "I think the world of David Blatt as a person," Hoiberg said. "He's a hell of a basketball coach." ... Bulls F Taj Gibson is wearing goggles because of a right corneal abrasion he suffered Friday in Boston. ... Bulls G Jimmy Butler is averaging an Eastern Conference-best 26.3 points in January.