AP Photo/Paul Beaty
The 1,000th game of DeMar DeRozan’s NBA profession was a memorable one.
The five-time All-Star led his Chicago Bulls to a 111-100 victory over the Atlanta Hawks in Monday’s potential Eastern Conference play-in tournament preview on the United Center. Chicago remains to be just 22-24 on the season, nevertheless it has won three in a row and is beginning to seem like a threat to the center of the East standings.
Atlanta dropped to 24-24 with a second consecutive loss.
DeRozan finished with a game-high 26 points and took over for a stretch within the fourth quarter when the sport was on the road, which led to loads of praise on social media:
Bulls Talk @NBCSBulls
Wanna see DeRozan from midrange? pic.twitter.com/RLNkVyPxol
Bleacher Nation Bulls @BN_Bulls
That is my nightly tweet about DeMar DeRozan being among the best scorers within the NBA.
That look DeMar gave as he headed to the bench after his filthy crossover pull-up.
Yeah. He knows how good he’s, lol.
Peachtree Hoops @peachtreehoops
The Bulls are shooting roughly 101% on long twos against Atlanta within the fourth quarter this season.
DeMar going to work in traffic 😮💨
Head to NBA TV NOW to catch the ultimate moments of Hawks-Bulls 🍿 pic.twitter.com/Vr30uaqjL8
1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ games!
Congrats to DeMar DeRozan on reaching 1000 profession games played 👏@MoetChandon | #MoetMoment pic.twitter.com/pFmQ32Zw0h
DeMar DeRozan had Clint Capela IN HELL 😭😭
DeMar DeRozan is one in every of the purest hoopers who ever played the sport. His consistency is remarkable. In his 1,000th game destroys the Hawks defense. He balled out once more. #BullsNation
Demar Derozan mid range is toughhhhh
Michael Cerami @Michael_Cerami
I do know this (or the last) Bulls season hasn’t quite gone in line with plan, but I’m really completely happy to have DeMar DeRozan. Dude’s a beast. https://t.co/ONEiqYA1Lq
It wasn’t a solo effort for the USC product, as six Bulls finished in double figures. Zach LaVine added 20 points, while Nikola Vučević (14 points and 17 rebounds) and Patrick Williams (18 points and 10 rebounds) controlled the boards with double-doubles.
Chicago’s defense was also solid and held Trae Young to 0-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc while forcing 18 Atlanta turnovers.
Yet it was DeRozan who put the sport away with a three-pointer, drive to the basket and vintage mid-range jumper during a span where he scored seven straight points for the Bulls within the later stages of the fourth quarter when the Hawks were attempting to shut the gap.
It was enough to take the drama out of the ending stretch and help Chicago extend its winning streak.
It’s going to go for a fourth straight Tuesday with a road game against the Indiana Pacers.
