Pamela Smith/AP
NEW YORK — The numbers are the numbers.
That is, until they’re not.
Bulls coach Billy Donovan and his players know that all too well.
Even with a shaky showing against the Nets on Friday, the Bulls entered Saturday ninth in the NBA in defensive efficiency — a ranking that wasn’t necessarily fake news, but it was a bit of a fib.
Donovan realizes it because he has film and eyes. So while stat nerds might want to tell him one thing, he knows what he has seen: too many defensive breakdowns, too many easy baskets.