NBA’s last two minute report strikes Bulls, again

If you think you’re tired of hearing about the NBA’s last two minute report, talk to Bulls coach Billy Donovan.

“We’ve come up on the short end of the stick on a lot of this,” Donovan said ahead of the Bulls Wednesday game against the Nets. “It goes back to DeMar’s shot in Washington the second game of the year he got fouled. Then obviously the foul [on DeMar] in the Cleveland game [in Chicago.]”

The latest were two calls inside the final 12 seconds of Monday night’s overtime loss to the Cavaliers on the road.

One was a missed traveling call on Jarrett Allen and the other was a lane violation by Donovan Mitchell that led to his game-tying putback in regulation. The real issue for the Bulls is the game shouldn’t have fallen into the hands of the officials to begin with. Because before Mitchell ever had an opportunity to tie the game in the final four seconds, the Bulls gave up 21-point lead, throwing away one of their best first half performances of the season.

“It happened but we still had five minutes to play in overtime,” Donovan said. “Sometimes on those calls you can get locked in on what somebody else didn’t do. We have to look at what we can do.”

One thing the Bulls can do? Rebound better.

Second-chance looks

In the last week the Bulls have given up a league worst 20.8 points off of second-chance looks, dropping three games in the process.

The latest of the bunch against the Cavs after Mitchell put up a record 71 points, two of which came off a putback on his own missed free throw. We know about the league’s last two minute report. We also know that Patrick Williams allowed him to get the rebound. As a team the Cavs poured in 24 points Monday night on 13 second chance looks.

“Differently?” Williams asked in response to being asked what he could have done on that play. “Get the rebound.”

Donovan acknowledged the totality of his team’s rebounding as an issue Wedneday night and Nikola Vucevic addressed the issues after shoot around. Their issues have them 24th in the league in rebounding percentage this season. Both attributed the team’s rebounding woes, in part, to missed defensive rebounds on three-point looks.

The remedy is physicality and effort, both of which come down to willpower more than talent.

“A lot of it is using speed to our advantage and being more physical with their big man when they’re trying to take advantage of our small guys,” Vucevic said. “But we have to get into the right spots and be willing to put in that extra effort.”

What’s up, doc?

After seeing team doctors in Chicago on Tuesday Javonte Green was put on a treatment plan for the inflammation in his right knee. Wednesday was the 10th game the wing has missed due to the nagging knee soreness. Donovan didn’t have a timeline on when he expects Green to be back in the lineup just that he will go through treatment over the next few days and the team will reassess from there.

“We would be hopeful that the treatments would go really well and we could get him back relatively soon,” Donovan said. “But we’ll have to see how that goes.”

Derrick Jones Jr. was available against the Nets after being listed as questionable following a knock to the eye he took in the Bulls overtime loss to the Cavs Monday night.

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