The Chicago Bulls pulled off a huge trade by bringing in Nikola Vucevic at the deadline. But since his arrival, the performances of star Zach LaVine dropped considerably. The Bulls lost their first four games since he joined, and even though they won the next three, LaVine’s form was still spotty.

However, tonight, he looks like he has returned to his best and beyond. Facing the Atlanta Hawks, the Bulls had a tough job considering their recent form. So LaVine took it upon himself to get his team a win. Right from tip-off, he came in for the kill.

LaVine attempted 19 shots and made 13 of them. He also went 7-9 from the three-point line, to finish with a mammoth 39 points at halftime. He scored 25 straight points to end his halftime massacre. The Hawks had no answer for him and tried their best to stop him, unsuccessfully.

With this scoring spree, LaVine entered the record books. He joined Kobe Bryant and Klay Thompson with the most halftime points in the last 25 years. His tally of 39 points is also the highest any player has scored in the first half this season. LaVine has developed into a special scorer, so emulating what Kobe and Klay did shows he is on his way to greatness.

Can Zach LaVine take the Bulls to a playoff spot?

With a 22-28 record so far, the Bulls are far from a guaranteed playoff spot. They are currently 10th and that will give them a spot in the play-in tournament. However, entering as the ninth or 10th seed is unfavorable. They need to win two straight games to qualify, whereas the seventh or eighth seed can qualify with just one win and they get two opportunities to qualify.

So, the Bulls will aim to at least finish eighth or they will have to pull off some heroics during the play-in tournament. They haven’t qualified for the playoffs since 2017.

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They will be eager to not make the fourth season in a row without a playoff appearance. The Bulls brought in Vucevic alongside LaVine so he has another All-Star to rely on. If they cannot make the playoffs now, it will be a failure.

A lot of responsibility rests on LaVine’s shoulders now. He is their main scorer and their go-to guy. Currently averaging over 27 points per game, they need him to fire in the big games, as they aim to step out of the lottery.

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