With the NBA coming off an unusually short offseason, teams have had less time to adjust to having new coaches and teammates. That includes the Chicago Bulls, who play their first preseason game on Friday against the Houston Rockets. This is less than three months after the hiring of former Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan as their new coach.
For the Bulls’ Zach LaVine, one way to learn about Donovan’s offense was from their team’s past games against the Thunder:
“It's always going to be more to learn coming into a new system,” LaVine said, per Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald. “I played against him over the last couple of years (when he coach Oklahoma City), so they have a lot of motion offense, obviously (with) different pieces. But still the same base of a lot of movement, a lot of cuts, playing fast, getting up and down the floor.”
Chicago held its first full practice on Sunday, as previous workouts were only limited to a few individuals who were socially distanced due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
While LaVine averaged a career-high 25.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.5 steals while shooting 45.0% from the field and 38% from beyond the arc last season for Chicago, he's hoping Donovan's offense will be better for the whole team. Under former coach Jim Boylen, the Bulls recorded the second-worst offensive rating in the NBA last season, better than only the league-worst Golden State Warriors.
Aside from Donovan, who compiled a 243-157 coaching record in five seasons with the Thunder, the Bulls will also welcome new faces No. 4 pick Patrick Williams and veteran swingman Garrett Temple.
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