Bulls forward Patrick Williams could come off bench when he returns

Discussions on Patrick Williams and his pending role continued on Thursday morning, according to Billy Donovan.

The Bulls coach expected those talks to remain ongoing as Williams gets closer to returning from wrist surgery.

The debate wasn’t if Williams would have a spot. That’s a no-brainer for the No. 4 overall pick in the 2020 draft. What has to be decided is will Williams be returning to his starting spot or will Javonte Green hold that down, forcing Williams to come off the bench?

“Staff-wise, as players get closer and closer to coming back, I think Javonte [Green] has done a really good job with that group in terms of how he’s fit in, what he’s been able to bring to the table in Patrick’s absence,” Donovan said. “I’m not opposed to bringing Patrick off the bench and I’m not opposed to starting him. I think a lot of it is going to be once he can get back to practice, is there a minutes restriction on him, how many minutes can he play at a time, and what’s the best role for him to help our team?”

The minutes questions might have the biggest influence on Williams’ role, especially when he first returns. It would be easier for Donovan to control his playing time coming off the bench, and then as Williams gets his wind back they can always adjust.

“The decision is going to be based on what’s best for the team and what’s best for the group,” Donovan said. “I know Patrick’s an important piece for our team, he’s a young player, and I think he’s had to deal with a lot his first two years here in the NBA – whether it’s a shortened season last year, Covid, limited practice, no Summer League, no training camp, but I think the decisions we have to make are going to be what’s best for the team.”

The sample size was very small, but in the five games that Williams did start with this group, it wasn’t like he was lights out. In averaging 25 minutes per game, the forward had 6.6 points and 2.2 rebounds per game.

He again looked way too passive on the offensive end and disappeared for too many moments.

On the other hand, Green has steadily found his best way to function with this starting group, giving them 12.4 points and 5.3 rebounds per game this month, as well as being an irritant on the defensive end.

Green is undersized against most forwards he’s guarding, so that would be the argument for starting Williams, but maybe Williams would be better served with that second group. It could possibly get him going offensively, knowing he’s going to be relied on more in that department with the reserves.

What Donovan and his staff have on their side in making that call is time. Williams has started basketball activity, but was not practicing yet.

The rook

If Ayo Dosunmu is hitting that rookie wall, well, that would be news to Donovan. Even with the heavy minutes load the last month (38.6 minutes per game), the coach was still seeing a first-year player looking to compete every night.

“I don’t think a lot of times guys are physically exhausted as much as they are mentally exhausted, and I think what takes a lot out of a young player is the uncertainty of playing teams they haven’t played against before or matchups they haven’t played against,” Donovan said. “That could be draining. Ayo has handled that very well. I don’t get anything from him that he’s at that place.”

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