CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Zach LaVine’s offensive rhythm will return. Give it time. It always does. Missing more than a month with a sore right foot is going to lead to some stagnant moments, and Bulls coach Billy Donovan wasn’t overly concerned with his All-Star guard’s nine points off the bench Monday.
In fact, he was impressed — with LaVine’s defense. Yes, both of his games back have been against the lowly Hornets (8-26), including a 119-112 overtime victory Monday, but LaVine’s performance speaks volumes about where he is physically and mentally.
NBA players who have checked out while awaiting a trade sometimes let go of the rope on defense. LaVine hasn’t.
“I thought he defended really well,” Donovan said. “That was really encouraging. The biggest thing that stood out to me was his defense.”
Does that give Donovan a sense that LaVine, whose representation made it clear in November that he’s open to being moved, might now want to remain a Bull?
“Yeah,” Donovan said. “In my conversations with Zach — and again he’s never really talked about his future, his feelings toward the organization and the team, never anything like that — everything he’s talked about is: How does he help the group? And it’s always been really positive, constructive conversations with him.
“I know there is a lot of reporting and things that were out there about what potentially may or may not happen, but my conversations with him leading into his return was he needed to come in and help the group any way he could.”
The market seemingly also wants LaVine to stay a Bull, as evidenced by the silence for his services so far. The Bulls might have to start preparing for a scenario in which he stays with the team through the end of the season and they revisit a trade this summer.
“Arturas [Karnisovas, executive vice president of basketball operations] has never told me for sure [LaVine’s] going to be gone,” Donovan said. “He’s never said that to me, and we do talk all the time. I know I sound like a broken record here, but he generally comes to me when there’s stuff that’s important as far as the decisions being made.
“For me, I’ve always taken the approach that this is our team for the rest of the year until something changes. . . . As a coach, if you sit around and say, ‘Well, this guy can be moved, this guy can be moved,’ then you’re looking at, ‘Who are we getting back?’ To me, it would be just a waste of energy.”
LaVine showed plenty of energy Monday. Despite his nine points on eight shots, he had five assists, and his defense included a lockdown number on Hornets guard Terry Rozier (game-high 39 points) at the end of regulation when Rozier was going for the game-winner.
“Missing 17, 18 games, I don’t want to come in and force anything,” LaVine said after the victory. “If I come in with the mindset to shoot open shots, push in transition, try and make a play for someone else — obviously I’ve got a track record for knowing how to put the ball in the hoop, [and] that will come eventually. But [I can] make an impact defensively.”
Coby White led the Bulls (17-21) with 27 points. But what LaVine really liked was that they allowed just five points in overtime, handcuffing a Hornets offense that gave them issues most of the night.
“Just trying to take the challenge [on defense],” LaVine said. “I think that’s where we can take another step, and I can, too.”
