Chicago Bulls forward Lauri Markkanen seems to have gotten off on the right foot with newly-hired head coach Billy Donovan. Donovan reached out to the two-year forward to get a feel for Markkanen's preferences on offense.
Lauri Markkanen says he has had one conversation with Billy Donovan. In it, Donovan asked Markkanen where he wants the ball on the floor. Markkanen is quite enthusiastic about Donovan joining #Bulls.
— Cody Westerlund (@CodyWesterlund) September 28, 2020
The Bulls finished this year with a 22-43 record that saw them miss the playoffs for the fourth time in just five years. The performance throughout the season was the final straw for former head coach Jim Boylen. Boylen couldn't achieve much with the Bulls during his tenure, notching only a 31 percent winning record. The Bulls have a young group of players in Markkanen, Zach Lavine, and Coby White who have shown flashes of great potential into developing into future All-Stars.
Now, they enter the 2020-21 season with Donovan, an underrated head coach that took the Oklahoma City Thunder to great lengths this season led by the efforts of ten-time All-Star Chris Paul. The Thunder finished the season with a 44-28 record as the No. 5 seed in a gritty Western Conference.
Given what Donovan was able to do with the Thunder, many would assume his coaching skills will yield a greater reward with the Bulls in a less-challenging Eastern Conference.
Markkanen is coming off a season in which he averaged 14.7 points and 6.3 rebounds, the lowest production of his NBA career. Even with the dip in production, Markkanen will be a highly-sought big heading into next offseason if he's not retained by the Bulls. He also gave his thoughts on his tenure in Chicago as well.
Lauri Markkanen didn't hint much whether he'd like an extension from #Bulls this offseason or if he wants to prove himself with a big season next year and then enter restricted free agency. But he made this clear:
"I do want to stay in Chicago long term," he says.
— Cody Westerlund (@CodyWesterlund) September 28, 2020
Markkanen will more than likely play the waiting game and field his offers in the offseason of 2021.
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