The Bulls have 11 games left to play until the NBA trade deadline comes and goes.
Not a whole lot of time to see sustainable improvement from a roster that’s only shown to be consistently inconsistent.
Then again, there might not be much choice.
While outside executives have labeled the Bulls as a team to watch on the trade front, and a disgruntled fan base has suddenly become very interested in seeing the front office become demolition experts, multiple sources have told the Sun-Times that the organization could be very quiet leading up to – and through – Feb. 9.
Maybe that’s why coach Billy Donovan was so adamant that this group not only understand what’s being asked of them on both ends of the floor, but understand that it’s non-negotiable from possession to possession.
That was on full display in the Friday loss to Oklahoma City, as the less talented Thunder simply took a relentless mentality to the floor, while the Bulls continued flashing only glimpses.
“The mentality is there, they are trying,” Donovan said of his team. “But the ability to sustain it over a long period of time is something we’re still trying to work toward.”
Donovan was asked why that message continued to get lost on this group, and responded, “I don’t think it’s necessarily about getting a message as much as it is we’ve got to compete at a much higher level. And we’ve shown signs of doing it really well and looked good while doing it.
“The one thing you have to be careful of is you can be in a situation where you make all these schematic changes and be good at nothing. I believe we can guard the ball better. Are they getting the message? Yes. But there’s a difference between getting the message and going out there and executing it over the course of the game.”
What should concern the Bulls, however, is maybe certain personnel aren’t capable of sustaining and executing game plan.
All the talk leading into the second meeting with Oklahoma City was the Thunder’s aggressiveness in attacking the rim.
Donovan wanted to see some physicality on the ball, not blow-bys. And if a defender did get beat off the dribble, it would be nice if a help defender would slide over, plant his feet in the ground and take a charge.
Guard Alex Caruso did, to go along with five steals. Maybe that’s why Caruso was only a minus-six in plus/minus, while the other four starters were all at least minus-13 or worse.
While it’s easy to dismiss taking charges as gimmicky rah-rah, when a team doesn’t have solid rim protection – much like the Bulls lack – scorers have to be slowed down by all means necessary.
To put it in perspective, Thaddeus Young led the Bulls in charges drawn in the 2020-21 season with 19. In only 41 games played during the 2021-22 campaign, Caruso led the Bulls with seven.
Entering Sunday’s showdown with the Warriors, Caruso was again atop that list with seven, and surprisingly was tied with DeMar DeRozan.
The one backcourt player that needed to pick it up in that department was Zach LaVine, who has only drawn one charge in the last three seasons combined.
LaVine is one of the weaker defenders on the team, but that can change quickly if there’s a refocus on effort, and not effort on every third or fourth possession.
That’s what Donovan has been begging from his team.
“Can we sustain that competitive heightened level for a long period of time?” Donovan said. “That’s our challenge and I have a lot of confidence and belief in the group because of the people they are. But you want to be able to get better at those things.”
Sooner than later, especially before Feb. 9.