Chicago Sports

With yet another defeat on Sunday, an end to the Chicago Bulls’ struggle for dominance is not in sight, even as the season progresses.

Before the start of this year’s regular season, the Chicago Bulls were hit with the unfortunate news that Lonzo Ball would miss at least a few months following his off-season knee surgery. Inspite of that, fans remained optimistic about the team’s chances heading into the season.

However, the optimism in Chicago is turning to skepticism from fans who are worried that last year’s return to the playoffs was not a return to relevance but an apparition instead.

The team is one game under .500 after 14 games and has not shown the defensive intensity or offensive consistency that helped them end a five-year playoff drought last season. The team’s three best players, DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Nikola Vucevic, are all putting up solid numbers, but it has not translated into consistent winning.

But the good news is the season is still young, and there is still time for the team to turn the season around. Let’s take a closer look at the areas the franchise need improve upon to return to their winning ways

Score More Points

Currently, the Bulls are averaging 111.4 points per game. That is the 18th-highest average in the NBA. There are only 16 teams that officially qualify for the postseason, so the fact that they are flirting with being on the outside of the playoff picture should come as no surprise.

On the surface, it would seem that Chicago doesn’t struggle to put points on the board. They currently have five players averaging double digits per game. In addition to their well-known “Big 3,” Ayo Dosunmu and Goran Dragić are averaging more than 10 points per game as well. However, a closer look at the team’s shooting splits sheds light on their offensive problems.

Chicago has three of the most reliable offensive weapons in the league:DeRozan, LaVine, and Vučević. The fact that the team is in the bottom half of shooting percentages in the NBA means that they are not creating easy opportunities for their best players.

The Big 3 will always lead the team in shot attempts, as they rightfully should, but if the team created easy scoring opportunities for them, it would force defenses to collapse, create open shots out of double teams, and increase the overall percentage of made shots.

Rebound the Ball

Chicago are 20th in the NBA in rebounds per game with 43.6 boards per contest. There’s an old adage in basketball that the team that wins the battle of the boards will most likely win the game.

In Chicago Bulls’ case, this is proving to be true. It is no coincidence that the team averaging a league-best 51.1 rebounds per game, the Milwaukee Bucks, also has the best record in the league with ten wins and one loss. This trend has plagued the team all season. On Wednesday, the team lost a very close game at home to the upstart New Orleans Pelicans.

While Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson deserve the bulk of the credit for handing the Bulls a loss, Chicago should also reevaluate their commitment to the boards; they were outpaced 50 to 35 in overall rebounds that night. A 15-rebound deficit has a direct correlation to a four-point loss in front of the hometown fans. If the Bulls want to be a playoff team, they cannot continue to be grossly outperformed on the glass on a nightly basis.

Ball Movement and SpacingTo say that the Chicago Bulls rely too heavily on isolation basketball would be an understatement. While DeRozan and LaVine are both elite scorers, they are not as effective as they could be without a facilitator on the court with them. This is where the team misses Lonzo Ball’s presence the most.

Ball is a pass-first player who could make sure his teammates got the ball in scoring position while staying within the flow of the offense. The Bulls are still looking for a player who will fill this void.

Ayo Dosunmu has been receiving Ball’s minutes, and while he certainly has a bright future in the NBA, he is not a true point guard. The Bulls’ top two leaders in assists are currently DeMar DeRozan at 4.2 assists per game and Zach LaVine at 4.1. As a team, they are averaging 24.2 assists per contest, which ranks 18th in the league.

The Chicago Bulls must find a facilitator within the organization or make a trade for a pass-first point guard before the trade deadline. Otherwise, their chances of making the playoffs will decrease, and the odds of them advancing past the first round will be slim to none.

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The Chicago Bears changed a player’s position

The Chicago Bears are trying out a lot of new things this year. The Bears overhauled their defense in the offseason. The offense has progressed rapidly from a conservative, bland scheme to one of the most explosive units in the NFL in the past month. Recently, the Bears made a former basketball player turned NFL tight end into a defensive player.

Sammis Reyes played basketball in college. The Chilean athlete transitioned to learning the tight-end position as he took part in the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program. Reyes played with the Washington Football Team last season. He played in 11 games with Washington. Reyes joined the Bears practice squad in October.

According to a report by Brad Biggs with the Chicago Tribune, Reyes is transitioning once again as an athlete. The Bears are trying him out on the defensive line.

He was signed to the developmental squad Oct. 18 and spent the first three weeks at tight end before switching to defense and playing end last week…

At 6-foot-5, 260 pounds, he certainly has the frame to be an edge rusher, but except for a week during preseason practice in high school, he never has played defense.

“We’ll take this week to see how everything goes,” Reyes said. “We’ll have a conversation next week. I’m having fun with it. I’m enjoying it. I am trusting Coach (Matt Eberflus). He knows what he’s doing. I’m putting my head down and working — whatever they want me to do.

“I’ve played it for a couple days, but defensive end feels like me.”

The Chicago Bears need help on the defensive line

It’ll be interesting to see how Reyes can progress at the defensive line position with the Bears. The defensive line has been a major complaint for most of the season. The unit has failed to get much pressure on opposing quarterbacks.

They could also do better filling gaps in run defense. Reyes should get a shot to play this season, as the Chicago Bears’ playoff hopes are practically over before Week 11. It couldn’t hurt to elevate him for a few weeks to see what he can do on the defensive line. At the very least, Reyes can contribute to special teams.

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Six people were killed and 21 others were wounded in shootings across Chicago over the weekend.

o A robber and a clerk who tried to stop him were both killed Friday night inside a South Shore neighborhood grocery store. Police say Nicholas Williams walked into the El Barakah Supermarket near 73rd Street and Coles Avenue shortly after 6:20 p.m. and showed a handgun. Williams, 24, shot Ali Hasan, a 63-year-old worker at the store, in the chest and back, authorities said. Hasan — who had a firearm owner’s identification card and a concealed carry license — pulled a gun from his waistband and fired back, hitting Williams in the chest. The younger man, who lived in the neighborhood, ran from the store but collapsed about a block away and died, authorities said. Hasan, a Palestinian immigrant who lived in Berwyn, was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

On Saturday, a man died after being shot in Chicago Lawn. The man, believed to be in his 40s, was dropped off about 9 p.m. at Holy Cross Hospital with a gunshot wound to his neck and died a short time later, police said. The shooting occurred in the 6300 block of South Fairfield Avenue. Early Sunday, a man was fatally shot on the Near West Side. Officers in the 2200 block of West Walnut Street heard gunshots about 2:40 a.m and saw someone fire at a man, then get into a gray car and drive off, police said. The man, who was shot in the back, was taken to Stroger Hospital where he was pronounced dead. A man was shot to death Sunday afternoon in Archer Heights on the Southwest Side. The man, 29, was shot in his arms about 4:15 p.m. in the 4800 block of South Tripp Avenue, police said. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said. Sunday night, a man was fatally shot while driving on the Near West Side. The 49-year-old was traveling west about 10:50 p.m. in the 1900 block of West Fulton Avenue when people in two cars opened gunfire, striking him in the left armpit, police said. He crashed his car into a bus stop. He was taken in critical condition to Stroger Hospital, where he died.Less than two hours later, a person was fatally shot in a South Austin drive-by on the West Side. He was on the sidewalk in the 200 block of South Laramie Avenue when he was shot in the face and leg about 6 p.m., police said. He was taken to Stroger Hospital where he was pronounced dead, police said.Two men were wounded around 2:10 a.m. Saturday while standing in the 2300 block of South Damen Avenue on the Lower West Side, police said. One man, 19, was hit in the leg and hip; the other man, 22, was grazed in the hip. Both were taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where they were listed in good condition.Sunday morning, a 12-year-old girl was shot in the neck while walking in Calumet Heights. The girl was in the 8900 block of South Chicago Avenue when someone in a dark-colored car fired at her. She was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital in critical condition.A 17-year-old boy was shot Saturday evening in the Austin neighborhood on the West Side. The teen was walking in the 5300 block of West Harrison Street when he was approached by someone who fired shots about 6:30 p.m., police said. He was struck in the groin and taken to West Suburban Medical Center in Oak Park, where he was listed in good condition.A 15-year-old boy was wounded in a shooting Sunday evening in Greater Grand Crossing on the South Side. The teen was in an alley in the 4900 block of South Indiana Avenue when he was shot in the right leg about 6 p.m., police said. He was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital, where he was listed in good condition, police said.

At least 16 other people were wounded in gun violence across Chicago between 5 p.m. Friday and 5 a.m. Monday.

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North Carolina and Gonzaga remain 1-2 in the first regular-season men’s college basketball poll from The Associated Press.

The top-ranked Tar Heels (2-0) earned 44 of 63 first-place votes in the AP Top 25 while the second-ranked Bulldogs (2-0) picked up 14 after the opening week of the regular season. Third-ranked Houston and fourth-ranked Kentucky picked up the remaining votes in a poll that featured only slight changes from the preseason poll released Oct. 17.

Baylor and Kansas were tied for fifth previously. This time, Baylor is alone at No. 5, followed by Kansas and Duke. UCLA, Arkansas and Creighton round out the top 10.

Tennessee (1-1) took the biggest tumble, falling 11 spots to No. 22 after losing to Colorado in its home state. And Villanova went from 16th to unranked for the first time since February 2019 after a loss to Temple in its second game under Kyle Neptune, who took over in the spring after the retirement of Hall of Fame coach Jay Wright.

Illinois (2-0) had the biggest jump, climbing four spots to No. 19 after two easy home wins.

No. 24 Texas A&M and No. 25 Connecticut are the week’s new additions, while Oregon joined Villanova as the two teams to fall out from the preseason poll.

The Top 25

1. North Carolina (44 first-place votes) 2-0

2. Gonzaga (14) 2-0

3. Houston (2) 2-0

4. Kentucky (3) 2-0

5. Baylor 2-0

6. Kansas 2-0

7. Duke 2-0

8. UCLA 2-0

9. Arkansas 2-0

10. Creighton 2-0

11. Texas 2-0

12. Indiana 2-0

13. Auburn 2-0

14. Arizona 2-0

15. TCU 2-0

16. Virginia 2-0

17. San Diego St. 2-0

18. Alabama 2-0

19. Illinois 2-0

20. Michigan 2-0

21. Dayton 2-0

22. Tennessee 1-1

23. Texas Tech 2-0

24. Texas A&M 2-0

25. UConn 2-0

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South Carolina passed its first test of the season and now the top-ranked Gamecocks have a tougher challenge: a visit to No. 2 Stanford on Sunday.

South Carolina remained the unanimous choice as the top team in first regular-season Top 25 women’s basketball poll from The Associated Press. Texas, Iowa and UConn round out the first five in the poll released Monday.

The Gamecocks (3-0) beat then-No. 17 Maryland 81-56 last week, setting up the showdown with Stanford.

It will be the 63rd meeting between the top two teams in the women’s AP Top 25 and the seventh time it has happened in November. The last 1-2 matchup was also South Carolina-Stanford with the Gamecocks beating the Cardinal by four points last Dec. 21, rallying from an 18-point deficit. The No. 1 team holds a 39-23 advantage in the meetings.

“I call it a win-win. Because no matter what happens in the game, you’re gonna learn more about your team, people have to do the right thing,” Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer said. “It’s sort of like a tournament game, I mean, 1-2 matchup, it’s awesome.”

Before Sunday’s game, Dawn Staley’s squad will play at Clemson on Thursday. Stanford hosts Cal Poly on Wednesday night.

Ohio State made the biggest leap in the new poll, climbing six spots to No. 8 after upending then-No. 5 Tennessee in its season-opener last week. The Lady Vols fell to 11th.

Louisville and Iowa State were sixth and seventh while North Carolina State and Notre Dame round out the top 10.

Villanova entered the rankings for the first time since 2018 at No. 24 after knocking off then-No. 24 Princeton. The Tigers fell out of the poll. Utah came in at No. 25, replacing 23rd-ranked South Dakota State, which lost to Creighton.

CROSSING THE CENTURY MARK

LSU has scored over 100 points in each of its first three games. The 343 points combined is the most in the first three games of a season by any team in the past 20 years.

“The non-conference schedule was done before we knew we had Angel Reese and all these transfers coming in here,” LSU coach Kim Mulkey said. “The good thing about right now is we’re building confidence. Making mistakes in a game that can be corrected when the SEC does come around.”

It’s the second time the school has had three straight 100-point games matching the mark set during the 1995-96 season. The Tigers have a chance to break that on Wednesday when they host Houston Christian in a matinee game.

RARE LOSS

Tennessee’s loss to Ohio State was the first time since 2008 that a top-five team was beaten in its first game by either an unranked team or a team outside the first five in the poll since No. 3 Maryland lost to unranked TCU, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The top five teams had gone 69-0 in those games until last week.

THE TOP 25

1. South Carolina (30 first-place votes) 2-0

2. Stanford 4-0

3. Texas 1-0

4. Iowa 3-0

5. UConn 1-0

6. Louisville 3-0

7. Iowa St. 2-0

8. Ohio St. 2-0

9. Notre Dame 2-0

10. NC State 3-0

11. Tennessee 1-1

12. Indiana 2-0

13. North Carolina 2-0

14. Virginia Tech 2-0

15. LSU 3-0

16. Oklahoma 2-0

17. Baylor 2-0

18. Arizona 2-0

19. Maryland 2-1

20. Creighton 2-0

21. Oregon 2-0

22. Nebraska 2-0

23. Michigan 2-0

24. Villanova 2-0

25. Utah 3-0

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The best and worst of the Chicago Bears in Week 10

The Chicago Bears surrendered their third game in a row this season. The loss came against the Detroit Lions in Week 10. The Lions, who were at the bottom of the division two weeks ago, have won two games in a row against their divisional rivals, the Green Bay Packers and Bears.

The Bears dominated most of the game but let the Lions come back in the fourth quarter. Penalties and turnovers cost the Bears a chance to win their fourth game of the season. Pro Football Focus has released their grades for the Bears-Lions game. We’ll look at the top and bottom three players on offense and defense and Justin Fields’ grade in Week 10.

Bears offense

Top performers

Trevon Wesco: 87.8Cole Kmet: 80.6Khalil Herbert 76.4

The Bears had solid production from their tight ends against the Lions in Week 10. Wesco received a high grade for his run-blocking abilities on his limited 15 snaps. (He was brought in primarily to run block, as ten of his snaps came in the rushing attack. Wesco only had one passing target on the day.) Kmet was tremendous in everything except run blocking. He added two touchdown catches to his steadily improving resume. Herbert averaged 5.7 yards per rush against the Lions.

Bottom performers

Ryan Griffin: 47.2Sam Mustipher: 53.4Byron Pringle: 57.5

Griffin was the lone Bears tight end with an off day in Week 10. He was graded poorly for run blocking and received an okay score, 68.1, for his pass protection. A holding penalty that erased Herbert’s 19-yard effort didn’t help Griffin’s overall score. Mustipher was dinged for his run-blocking against the Lions. He had a decent score for his pass blocking and didn’t allow a pressure Sunday.

Coming back from injured reserve against the Lions, Pringle only caught one pass for 12 yards. He earned a low 49.0 score for his run blocking–something he’s supposed to be good at. Why he was getting playing time in the red zone over Chase Claypool is curious after Pringles’ performance.

Bears defense

Top performers

Dominique Robinson: 69.0Eddie Jackson: 68.8Jack Sanborn: 65.5

Robinson had a solid performance for the Bears, relatively speaking. The fact the Bears best graded defensive player is in the 60s says quite a bit about where the unit is in Week 10. He finished with five tackles, a hurry, and one-stop. Jackson made five tackles as well. He was targeted once in pass coverage and did not give up the reception. Sanborn had a great game in everything except pass coverage. He was credited with two sacks and five stops. However, the undrafted rookie free agent surrendered four receptions of the five passes he was targeted on.

Bottom performers

Jaylon Johnson: 28.4Lamar Jackson: 31.9DeAndre Houston-Carson/Nicholas Morrow: 45.0

Like most of the Bears’ secondary, Johnson had a forgettable game against the Lions. His two stupid penalties allowed the Lions back in the game. (One can argue the merits of the second call.) Johnson had a missed tackle, no stops and gave up three of his four targets. His run defense received a 27.4 rating. Houston-Carson missed a tackle. Morrow was decent in tackling, but he gave up three of his four targets. The Lions should have played pass-heavy against the Bears all day. If they had, the Lions could have dominated the game instead of needing a comeback.

Bears QB Play Week 10: Justin Fields

Fields was given a 67.8 overall rating for his play against the Lions in Week 10. He was great in the Bears’ run game, as he ran for 147 yards. However, Fields needs to improve his passing game. He finished 12-20 (60-percent completion rate) with 167 yards passing and two touchdowns. Fields’ poor decision on a fourth-quarter throw resulted in a pick-six. PFF gave him a 56.9 grade for his passing game against the Lions.

We all know Fields can run and has a great arm to throw deep balls. Fields is best on his intermediate passes. What’s concerning about his play in the passing game right now are his short throws. Here’s his chart on NFL Next Gen Stats for the 2022 season:

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The Chicago Cubs are among the several teams that have engaged in trade talks with the Tampa Bay Rays.

Hot Stove season is here and the Chicago Cubs have been active early, already had conversations with Scott Boras about Carlos Correa and Xander Bogaerts, discussed bringing some veteran help in Martin Perez and Josh Bell, and now they are among the five teams discussing a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Chicago Cubs have been involved and could be looking at some bullpen help in Ryan Yarbrough, Yonny Chirinos and Shawn Armstrong. The other possibility is going for a bigger deal and getting outfield help in Randy Arozarena or a potential big starter in Tyler Glasnow.

The three bullpen arms would be experimental as all three arms’ numbers don’t exactly scream success, but relievers have proven that a change of scenery could work wonders.

The big tickets here that could be available but there has yet to be any indication that are available are Glasnow and Arozarena. Glasnow, 29, is coming off Tommy John surgery and had a few starts at the end of the year, including one in the playoffs. The upside there is a big one as Glasnow has posted numbers that would show he’s an ace caliber pitcher but the other side of the coin is that started more than 15 games in a season.

Arozarena, 27, could solve one of the outfield spots for the Cubs along with Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki. A young dynamic player with playoff experience is exactly the kind of player the Cubs are looking for. Posting a 6.9 WAR and hitting 40 homers in the last two years could translate well at Wrigley.

The Rays are known for trading the superstar players while the value is high. Lets see if this in fact taht sort of situation and see the Cubs will pull the trigger on a big deal.

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Colin McGrath was resting on his friend’s shoulder on the St. Ignatius College Prep hockey team’s bus Saturday evening after a tournament in Indiana.

“All of a sudden I hear a crash, bang, and I blacked out,” said McGrath, a player on the school’s junior varsity Wolfpack team.

A semitruck had plowed into their bus as the team returned to a hotel from dinner in Warsaw, about 50 miles south of South Bend.

McGrath woke up on top of his friend, shattered glass was strewn everywhere.

“I picked up my friend and some pedestrian came and opened the emergency door for us,” he said. “After that it was just walking, freaking out, just getting out and figuring out what was happening and getting everyone safe.”

McGrath was seated in the rear of the bus, near where the truck struck it.

“If I was one row back, it would’ve been a lot worse,” he said.

Sixteen students were hurt and three of them were taken in “very critical” condition to Fort Wayne Lutheran Hospital, police said.

McGrath suffered a dislocated shoulder and swollen jaw, he said. His left arm was in a sling as he returned to class Monday morning, wearing his Wolfpack hockey jersey.

The crash happened around 8 p.m. Saturday. The school’s junior varsity hockey team had competed in a tournament at Culver Military Academy.

Felony DUI charges were pending against a semi driver who police say ran a red light and crashed into a bus carrying 23 students and two hockey coaches.

One of the seriously injured students was discharged from a hospital Sunday evening, school spokeswoman Kristyn Hartman said Monday. Two other students were expected to remain hospitalized for three to five more days, she said.

Ten others on the bus were uninjured, police said. All were taken by another school bus to Lutheran Kosciusko Hospital, where officers notified relatives, police said. The students are 14 to 17 years old.

The seriously injured players will require more surgery for internal injuries, McGrath said.

McGrath was eager to leave the hospital and reunite with his team.

“I didn’t want to be there because I wanted to be with my teammates. We all stayed together and prayed,” he said.

Members of the team have been visiting the hospitalized players, he said. The whole team plans to visit them again sometime this week, McGrath said.

The students were returning from dinner when the crash happened, according to school officials. The bus driver was turning left off U.S. 30 when the semi driver went through a red light and struck the rear of the bus, flipping the bus on its side, police said.

The semi driver continued west and was stopped less than a mile away after driving off the road and into a ditch, police said. Police officers on the scene “detected a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage on his person and in the cab of the semi,” according to police.

Police said they already were responding to calls reporting a semi driver “swerving into other lanes and driving at excessive speed” before being alerted that the driver had crashed into the school bus.

The driver, 58, from Brooklyn, New York, was in custody and facing charges of driving while intoxicated and causing great bodily harm.

In an email to parents Sunday, the school said it was “happy to share that coaches were able to speak with all three students who remain in the hospital. They say they were heartened to hear the young men ask about their brothers on the team.”

Hockey director and varsity head coach Spencer Montgomery thanked the police and emergency crews who responded. “They were timely, organized and put the health of our boys at the forefront,” he said.

A Mass for the team will be held at the Church of the Holy Family at 3:30 p.m. Monday. The school said students will also be provided with counseling.

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MIAMI — Caroline O’Connor didn’t know what her ceiling was when she entered the sports business world, simply because there were so few examples of women who traveled her path.

Turns out, she had no limit.

The Miami Marlins promoted O’Connor to president of business operations on Monday, making them the first U.S. major sports franchise to have women serving simultaneously as president and general manager. The Marlins made history by hiring Kim Ng as GM in November 2020; two years later, they’ve made another significant move.

“When I talk to young girls, I really like them to see me in my role because I didn’t feel like I had that role model,” O’Connor said. “And I want people to see themselves when they see me and know that it is a possibility.”

O’Connor is just the second woman to serve as president of a Major League Baseball team; Seattle’s Catie Griggs is the other. She was brought to the Marlins by then-CEO Derek Jeter in 2017 as a senior vice president and chief of staff, then became the team’s chief operating officer in 2019.

Ng handles the on-field business, O’Connor runs the off-field business.

“We are fortunate to have someone with Caroline’s business acumen and vision leading our day-to-day business operations,” Marlins chairman and principal owner Bruce Sherman said. “Her passion and drive for success is unmatched in our game and the South Florida market. Her leadership will continue to guide the Marlins organization toward our goal of sustained success while strategizing additional new ventures to grow our business and enhance our brand recognition.”

O’Connor’s path to this spot was, in some ways, unintentional. She was a high school athlete in New Jersey — playing basketball, tennis, soccer and softball — and went to college at Rutgers and New York University, first studying computers, then finance.

She worked for some powerful places: IBM, UBS Investment Bank, Morgan Stanley. She wasn’t thinking about a career in sports.

And then Jeter called.

“A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” O’Connor said.

She’s been with the Marlins ever since.

Miami has been trying to turn things around, on the field and off, for the better part of the last two decades. Jeter was part of the ownership group that took over in 2017; he’s gone, but two of his more significant hires — Ng and O’Connor — are now tasked with finishing the job.

O’Connor has seen progress. Attendance this past season was up 12% over 2019, the last time there was a full season of baseball without pandemic interruptions or major restrictions — though there is still a long way to go before Miami gets the crowds it is seeking.

O’Connor has overseen growth in season-ticket sales. With the 2023 World Baseball Classic coming to Miami for all three rounds in March, including the championship game, the Marlins know big crowds are coming. O’Connor is fixated on how to get those people to come back as Marlins customers.

“I think it’s a really special place,” she said. “And I would say if we didn’t feel so strongly about this market and the opportunity that is here, that would not make us so excited to come in every day. I think we have so many people in this market that love entertainment, love sports, love baseball, love getting together and going out. It’s just trying to create an experience that attracts everyone.”

The growing role of women in baseball leadership isn’t lost on O’Connor. Griggs leads the Mariners; Laura Day is Minnesota’s executive vice president and chief business officer; Kellie Fischer has a similar role in Texas, as the Rangers’ EVP and chief financial officer.

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate in that I’ve had a lot of support from a lot of different people, regardless of gender, my entire career,” Griggs said earlier this year on a panel at Seattle University. “With that being said, I haven’t been able to see a lot of people who look like me doing the stuff that I do. … I don’t have a lot of role models.”

O’Connor feels the same way. She doesn’t mind the “trailblazer” description. She just goes about all the details of her job — including sitting down with community groups and civic organizations, even having lunch last month with the Consul General of Japan at his Miami residence — knowing that her success now might make it easier for women to follow.

“It’s taken a real community to get behind me,” O’Connor said. “The team that I work with today, the team that supports me every day, I feel like this is a reflection on all of them and what we’ve produced together. I might have the title, but of course I think about all the people that help me get it.”

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The Bulls had two days of practice under their belt entering their game Sunday against the Nuggets, but there was no indication of it in their play in a 126-103 loss at the United Center.

They scored only 20 points in the first quarter and allowed the Nuggets to score 32 on 60% shooting from the field and 50% from three-point range.

Things got worse from there. Michael Porter Jr. scored at will, and Aaron Gordon and Nikola Jokic got easy points in the post. Simply put, the Bulls looked like a team sleepwalking their way through a game for which they should have been fresh.

The time they had to prepare because of the break in their schedule called the loss further into question, and coach Billy Donovan had no answers except to say it was an energy issue.

”We had three days in terms of no games, so we should have been an extremely fresh basketball team,” Donovan said. ”’There’s always some form of adversity that hits the game, and we have to be better at thriving in that.”

Nuggets coach Mike Malone was focused on three stats entering the game. In their four losses, the Nuggets are allowing teams to score an average of 128 points and to shoot 44% from three-point range and are giving up an average of 25 second-chance points.

His team kept the Bulls well below 128 points, held them to 27.3% shooting from three-point range and allowed only eight second-chance points.

The loss dropped the Bulls to 6-8, but it was only the second time they had been beaten by 10 or more points. The first was in their home opener by the Cavaliers.

The Bulls are 0-6 in ”clutch” time, which is defined by the league as games separated by five points or fewer with five minutes or less to play. Unfortunately for them, the game Sunday didn’t qualify. The Nuggets led by 21 points to start the fourth quarter and extended their edge to as many as 28.

The Bulls tried to get back into the game in the third quarter. They cut an 18-point deficit to 11 before the Nuggets responded by pushing their lead to 20. The Bulls never trailed by fewer than 17 the rest of the night, and fans started heading for the exits with about five minutes left.

”I believe energy is a choice,” Donovan said. ”You can’t play off of feelings because feelings come and go. You have to choose to do things. We have a choice in what kind of energy we play with.”

Porter picked the Bulls’ defense apart. He finished with 31 points on 11-for-16 shooting from the field, including 6-for-9 from three-point range. Jamal Murray added 23 points, and Jokic had eight points and 14 assists.

”Some of the shots Porter made, he just rose up and shot over us,” Donovan said. ”You have to be able to not get so dejected.”

Offensively, the Bulls struggled to establish any kind of rhythm and gave up 19 points off 21 turnovers. Zach LaVine scored a team-high 21 points, and DeMar DeRozan added 16. Alex Caruso was held scoreless, taking only one shot in 21 minutes.

Reserve big man Andre Drummond had 13 points and 11 rebounds, becoming the 32nd center in league history to score 10,000 career points and the eighth who has worn a Bulls jersey.

LaVine and DeRozan are the players the Bulls turn to for direction after losses such as the one Sunday. At this point, however, there’s nothing more to be said.

”It’s all about action after that,” LaVine said. ”Sometimes we just have to shut up and go out there and play our game.”

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