After an 11-month absence, Zach LaVine made his Bulls debut Saturday night. Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago writes that the solid showing serves as an excellent first step for the player who remains the centerpiece of the Jimmy Butler trade.
LaVine put up what seemed like an effortless 14 points in just 19 minutes of action in his first game of the year, but it’s his general playing style that will make Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg‘s life easier as the young team looks to develop into a winner.
“He’s such a smooth player and has a lot of confidence,” Hoiberg said. “To get out there back on the floor and with his teammates, I thought he played very effective and efficient. He played within himself.”
There’s more out of the Central Division tonight:
- In the same NBC Sports Chicago feature, Goodwill writes that the 22-year-old LaVine has and wants to be considered “the guy.” “I always thought of myself on being able to be ‘the guy.’ And being able to go out there, put the team on your back, city on your back, and I want to work to be that guy,” LaVine said.
- Although the team has thrived since his return, Nikola Mirotic remains intent on leaving the Bulls via trade, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. There is a sense that Mirotic and the team have reached an impasse when it comes to repairing the tension between him and Bobby Portis.
- The return of Zach LaVine has bumped Denzel Valentine to the second-unit. K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune notes that the 24-year-old handled the move professionally. Head coach Fred Hoiberg opted to push Valentine to the second unit, instead of Justin Holiday, because he has fared better with the team’s bench players and can be featured more as a playmaker alongside them.
Free Nikola, send him to the Jazz so Snyder can unleash him as a two way monster.
Hahahahahaha!!!!
The Mirotic-Portis feud has been over for well over a month. You can see on the court they play and get along just fine together. If the Bulls trade him, it has nothing to do with Portis. It will be because the Bulls don’t see him as a long term piece.
yeah i agree. i also think it has to do w. how well we have played since hes been back
Denzel needs to go. He just hasn’t panned out as a reliable player.
Also, same applies for Nikola. As much as I like the player he has been for the past month, or so, his career indicates that he’s a streaky and inconsistent player. And he also has a knack for clubhouse drama.
Wait what?! Have you not watched Bulls games? Valentine has played well this year. He’s shooting 40% from 3P, averaging just under 10 ppg while being a 5th option scoring wise, played at least decent defense, and he’s taken care of the ball pretty well. He’s not going to be blow by defenders or be a star but he’s been a solid player in his 2nd year.
Correct, Valentine has made some BIG strides this season. Everyone was so enamored with calling him a bust last year, it’s like they refuse to believe he’s gotten a lot better!! I can easily see Valentine turning into the Bulls’ version of Evan Turner or Otto Porter…A guy that’s capable of running the second unit’s offense. One that isn’t very athletic, but he’s fundamentally sound. A solid passer, good 3-point shooter, and one that doesn’t play one on one defense very well, but he plays well within the team’s defensive scheme..
The Bulls are slowly but surely identifying a group of young core players from which to build upon. LaVine, Markkanen, and Dunn are proving to be their main core guys, while they’ve been able to identify several key role players moving forward like, Portis, Valentine, Nwaba, and at times, even Grant has improved his play this season, while playing solid defense.
Slowly but surely the Bulls are getting better and better..By all means, if they don’t think they can lock up LaVine, Dunn, AND Mirotic, then they should trade Mirotic while his value is peaking. Utah’s 1st could be an excellent talent in next year’s very deep class.
While definitely the talent available is very high for the top 6, there are about another 6-10 players after that top tier that can definitely contribute and be good players at the NBA level…Utah’s pick should fall somewhere around #16, give or take a few picks…They can either use it to draft another talented rookie, or they can package it with their own first rounder to move up, if they aren’t in range of the guy they really want…
Ayton could be a beast for the Bulls, and MPJ, even though he’s injured, he’d fit in with this Bulls team perfectly!! As long as the Bulls are able to grab one of Ayton, Bagley, MPJ, Doncic, Young, or even Bamba they should walk away with a significant piece moving forward…