While their 0-3 start hasn’t generated the sort of angst that the Thunder’s or Lakers’ has, the Bulls expressed some frustration after falling 115-109 to the Mavericks on Monday night. After head coach Fred Hoiberg suggested that “we lost our composure,” Zach LaVine initially disagreed with that idea, assigning the blame elsewhere.
“We gotta run the right sets out there,” LaVine said, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “That was the main thing. If we would have run the right plays, got the ball to the right people, I think we would have been all right.”
Later in his conversation with reporters, LaVine conceded that his head coach might be right about the club losing its composure, adding that he was “not putting [the loss] on Fred,” as K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune details. Still, the fifth-year guard said the Bulls “have to do better” at recognizing who has the hot hand on offense and running plays for those players.
Here’s more from out of Chicago:
- Shaquille Harrison‘s new contract with the Bulls is a two-year, minimum salary deal with $250K guaranteed this season, tweets Malika Andrews of ESPN. According to Andrews, Harrison will get a $175K guarantee for 2019/20 if he’s not waived by August 15 next summer.
- The Bulls are leaning toward using the stretch provision on Omer Asik, Andrews adds. Asik’s contract includes a $3MM partial guarantee for 2019/20, so stretching it across three years would reduce that cap hit to $1MM annually.
- Michael Walton of NBC Sports Chicago explores what the newly-signed Harrison might bring to the Bulls, pointing to the former Sun’s ability as a perimeter defender as something that could help the team right away.
- Cameron Payne, who is in a contract year, is healthy and looking to prove his worth, but with Harrison now on board and Kris Dunn back in the lineup, his opportunities may be limited, as K.C. Johnson writes for The Chicago Tribune.
This Bulls team is poorly built. Lavine and Parker are absolute trash on defense, Hoiberg’s best bet is starting Wendell the rest of the way since he can defend 3-5,
Looking forward to Markkanen being healthy and coming back. He’s literally the only reason I watch the Bulls. Still would of loved to c what would of been if the Wolves didn’t make that horrible Butler trade. Dunn, LaVine, Wiggins, Markkanen and KAT….
That would have been a heck of a lineup, Lavine is a 3rd option. The Bulls are expecting way too much out of him.
im a bulls fan… i like lavine. i just think the team isnt built properlyhave enough talent. i would like to see what lavine/markko do together though.
Cmon, seven 4th qtr turnovers means the coach will bring up composure.
The hot hand and right people Lavine mentions apparently refer to himself.
Weird comments. Maybe one had to be there!