CLEVELAND -- Nikola Mirotic has always been honest about his game and his mindset. So when it was brought to his attention that he has been asked repeatedly about finding some consistency in his game over the past two weeks, he offered a blunt assessment.

"I would say over the last two years, probably," Mirotic said.

In Wednesday night's 106-94 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, however, Mirotic, 25, showed glimpses of the promise that Chicago Bulls executives are still clinging to in the final year of his three-year contract.

Mirotic scored 11 of his 16 points in the first half, helping the Bulls climb out of a 13-point deficit against a Cavs team playing without Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving. That Mirotic did this alongside Doug McDermott, another young player struggling to be consistent, will make Bulls general manager Gar Forman sleep a little easier. The pair combined for 33 points and 10 rebounds Wednesday and were a combined 6-for-11 from beyond the arc. It was exactly the type of performance the Bulls have hoped to see from them.

"We knew that those guys need us," Mirotic said. "We need to start making those shots. We need to be more consistent. That's what we are trying [to do].

"I think this team needs Doug, needs me; we need to be like that, playing with more confidence. Like we say to each other, 'Stay hot,' because at least we know how to shoot that ball. Sometimes we are not making [shots], but we know that we are shooters. So I think the last couple weeks now ... I've been feeling much better, much more consistent. Sometimes missing the shot, but feeling well."

What's noticeable in watching Mirotic and McDermott recently isn't just that each seems to be playing with more confidence. It's that their ability to take -- and make -- some jumpers has taken an enormous amount of pressure off their teammates' shoulders.

After Mirotic drained a couple of early shots, it was McDermott who really got rolling, knocking down all six of his attempts in the first half.

"I was in the zone," McDermott said. "I came off the bench ready to be aggressive. I was excited for this game. Playing against the Cavs and LeBron [James] is always great. Having him guard me and hit those shots is a pretty cool feeling."

The way this season has gone, being able to get any win is a cool feeling for many within this organization. As usual, if Mirotic and McDermott can find that elusive consistency, the Bulls' outlook suddenly looks much brighter.

"Jimmy [Butler] and Coach [Fred Hoiberg] and everyone was telling everybody to get us the ball," McDermott said. "And then the second half, [defenders] were pretty much glued to us, and it opened up all the room for Jimmy. The main thing for me and Niko, we just got to be more consistent. Continue to hit shots and put pressure on the defense. Because when we play well, we're a tough team to beat."

While it was McDermott and Mirotic who set the table early, it was Butler who closed the door. Butler used the open lanes created by the shooting of Mirotic and McDermott to nail down the game. Butler scored 14 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter and once again showed he has become one of the game's elite players. He played with no fear in the final 12 minutes, even after shooting 1-for-9 in the first half.

"The guy that wears No. 3 on this team [Dwyane Wade] came to me and was like, 'Win the game,'" Butler said.

Butler took Wade's advice, as he has throughout the season, and ended the game by making play after play. One of the biggest stages in Butler's personal development has been that he doesn't allow slow starts to hover over him all night, something Mirotic and McDermott would be wise to follow.

"That's my job, to be aggressive," Butler said. "I knew I was going to have to do that in the fourth anyway. Him telling me that -- I can't let D-Wade down. D-Wade's done it for years, so I think it was my time to step up."

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As well as Butler played down the stretch, the real story on this night for the Bulls was the showing from Mirotic and McDermott. If they both play well, the Bulls become a much more dangerous team, and everyone in the locker room knows it. It's up to both young players to find the consistency that has eluded them.

"Their confidence has to stay high," Butler said. "Whether they're making, missing shots, I think that's your job to take and make shots. If you miss, oh well, come down and you shoot the same shot over and over again if it's the right one. We tell that to them every day. In this league, nobody feels sorry for you. You can't get down on yourself, because you're all you have. We're all you've got. And if we're telling you, 'Good shot, keep going,' you got to do just that."