CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – FEBRUARY 11: Nicolas Beaudin #74 of the Chicago Blackhawks celebrates his first goal with Patrick Kane #88 during the second period against the Columbus Blue Jackets at the United Center on February 11, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
The Chicago Blackhawks had an okay season. It started off really well but they proved to be overachieving. In the latter part of the year, things started to go off the rails. It makes sense because, after the trade deadline, they took a bad roster and made it even worse.
There were, however, some players who exceeded all expectations going into the year. After the way that they played, you can be certain they are going to be ready to go in 2021-22. These are the three most notable players who exceeded expectations:
Alex DeBrincat was a complete superstar for the 2020-21 Chicago Blackhawks.
At this point, it is not a stretch to say that Alex DeBrincat is an elite player. He was on pace for 51 goals this season which would have been near the top. He ended with 32 goals and 24 assists for 56 points in 51 games played. That is a lot of goals for a short season. He is looking like one of the best players to come out of his draft and he was taken in the second round. In fact, he is looking like one of the best pure goal scorers in the National Hockey League.
Why are we saying he exceeded expectations when we knew how talented he was? Well, he wasn’t as good in 2019-20. He was looking like a legit star in his first two seasons but fell off a little bit last year. He had 18 goals which isn’t a bad total but it certainly came short of his 41 in the year prior. Sometimes, expectations are everything. We expect DeBrincat to be a top goal scorer so when he wasn’t, it was disappointing.
Now, he is all the way back. Going into next year, we believe that he is going to be a guy who can get anywhere from 40-50 goals. It will depend a lot on who his linemates are and all of that but you can bet he will be a shooting machine. He deserved to have this huge year, it is just a shame that his team let him down.
WIU’s Dennis Houston was the team’s leading receiver this spring and earned first-team all-conference honors for the Leathernecks. (Photo by GoLeathernecks.com)
The Western Illinois offense was an enigma over the past few months – a wildly successful passing game with veteran players coupled with a sluggish running game made up of new faces that ranked third-worst among 97 FCS teams that played football this spring.
Behind senior quarterback Connor Sampson and three impressive talents at wide receiver – Dennis Houston, Tony Tate and Dallas Daniels — the Leathernecks threw for nearly 294 yards a game, 12th-highest in FCS.
While playing six games before opting out, WIU (1-5) managed only a leading rusher with 23.2 yards a game.
That ground game is the biggest issue facing Western as it looks ahead to the fall campaign, which kicks off Sept. 2 at FBS Ball State.
Here are five burning questions that Prairie State Pigskin has about WIU as the fall approaches:
Can Western find a running game?
Two freshmen – Canadian Ludovick Choquette and Hawaiian Iosefa Pua’auli – carried the ball most for the Leathernecks and produced 223 yards combined. Both showed the ability to be physical, while Choquette also contributed in the pass game with 13 catches.
A player from Alabama, however, could be the wild card in the fall. Auburn transfer JaTarvious Whitlow, who rushed for more than 1,500 yards in two seasons in the FBS Southeastern Conference, was a gem that was unearthed as a transfer. However, Whitlow did not appear in any spring games.
His contributions are desperately needed for a ground attack that did have four of its five starting O-linemen start in all six games.
2. Will the defense turn things around?
Why did the Leathernecks give up nearly 33 points a game? Well, one reason was that they seemed to constantly be on the field. Their 36 minutes, 13 seconds per game was the longest of any FCS team this season, according to NCAASports.com.
Run defense was a thorn in the Leathernecks’ side, as opponents piled up nearly 1,500 yards in only six games, an average of 217.7 a game. Certainly some of that was because defenses were able to wear WIU down.
The Leathernecks have to find a way to get opponents off the field. Those teams converted at a high rate on third down, with a 45% conversion rate.
3. How can the offense fix its third-down struggles?
The offense managed less than 25% conversions on third down. Without a reliable running attack, defenses teed off on Sampson and disrupted the Leatherneck attack. During a loss at Illinois State, Western didn’t convert a third down until midway through the third quarter.
Keeping defenses at bay on third down will be critical for the Leathernecks’ success in the fall. An improved running game and better protection up front could help Western makes defenses pay.
4. Is Michael Lawson the next great Leatherneck defender?
In a program that has produced former NFL standout defensive back Rodney Harrison and current Kansas City Chiefs defensive lineman Khalen Saunders, the Leathernecks may have another star in free safety Michael Lawson. The senior had a team-leading 54 tackles to go with 3.5 tackles for loss, a sack and two interceptions.
One of the most memorable plays of Western’s season came against Illinois State when Lawson drove on a pass play and made a diving interception of a pass from ISU quarterback Bryce Jefferson. It was a glimpse into just how impactful Lawson, a transfer from Lamar University, can be for Western.
5. Can Western make noise against a rugged fall schedule?
The Missouri Valley Football Conference offers games against playoff participants South Dakota State, North Dakota and Southern Illinois. The non-conference schedule includes the FBS game at Ball State, a trip to FCS heavyweight Montana and a visit to Macomb from powerhouse Eastern Washington.
According to FBSchedules.com, Western will miss playoff participants North Dakota State and Missouri State. However, one oddity that could be a challenge is that WIU starts the season with 10 consecutive games before a bye week in November.
Blog co-authors Barry Bottino and Dan Verdun bring years of experience covering collegiate athletics. Barry has covered college athletes for more than two decades in his “On Campus” column, which is published weekly by Shaw Media. Dan has written four books about the state’s football programs–“NIU Huskies Football” (released in 2013), “EIU Panthers Football (2014), “ISU Redbirds” (2016) and “SIU Salukis Football” (2017).
There will never be another business trip to China.
I’m not saying we’ll never go back to normal. Or that Covid will never go away. No, what I’m referring to is a true business trip. Like the ones my dad went on back in the ’90s.
Back then, “We’re doing business in China,” meant literally in China. There was no Zoom. No email. No Slack. In the 90s, business was a road game and the buyer controlled the “in.” So you’d hear things like, “We do business in China.” “In Japan.” There was no, “We do business with.” The buyers didn’t deal with the jetlag.
I picture my dad getting on the airplane with very few luxuries. The pilot makes the announcement:
“Good evening everyone, our expected flight time will be 16 hours. We’ll be coming around with a community bowl of peanuts at 4 in the morning, and we’ll be showing Al Pacino’s “Scent of a Woman” on repeat. You can view the movie by squinting at the one 14” TV at the front of the plane. So, sit back, relax, and try not to think about how alone you feel right now.”
Download movies from Netflix? Nope. Create a Spotify playlist? Not a thing. I guess you could bring a portable CD player and if you could sit perfectly still and hold your breath, your music wouldn’t skip. No AirPods or Bose headphones either. Headphones in the 90s were always a tangled mess and the earmuffs were made from kitchen sponges. The only people with noise-canceling headphones were astronauts and that one guy with the $45,000 massage chair from Sharper Image.
Plane lands, time to find the hotel. When you land in Europe, you can’t read the signs but at least the letters make sense. It’s like when you see Crocs for the first time, the brain still registers, “Alright, well, it at least that seems like a shoe.” But when you’re looking at Chinese characters? There has to be this moment of, “I think if I closed my eyes and walked forward, I’d have just as good of a chance.”
My dad was a guy alone on the streets of China, trying to find his hotel room. GPS on your phone? Nope. Ask someone for help? Good luck. The line between a 15th century explorer and a ’90s Dad was incredibly thin.
Gets to the hotel room, lays down, breathes a huge sigh of relief. Time to call home. Mom picks up. Me and my brother running around.
Say hi to Dad. Hey Dad, I’ve got a blah blah blah. Dad, I did a blah blah blah. Hey, Dad. Dad. Hey, my turn. My turn! Don’t hit your brother. WAAAH. Tom. He started it. Chris. Mom. Dad. Sorry. I love you. I love you too. How was the flight?
Phone call ends. There’s no post-call texting or a mindless Facebook scroll. Brush your teeth. Turn out the lights. Look up at the ceiling and finally think to yourself, “Welp, I’m completely alone right now.”
Mom’s side of those business trips was no picnic either. These were two-weeks of survival mode with two boys on a steady diet of PopTarts, Fruity Pebbles, and chicken nuggets. The 90s kid was essentially running around on cocaine and there was no emergency iPad to throw to the wolves.
To add insult to injury, it’s not like my Dad conducted his meetings while leisurely strolling alongside the Great Wall. This wasn’t a sight-seeing trip to post on Instagram. No, he was in a conference room. You flew to the other side of the world to sit in an office. And if the deal wasn’t finished, well, come back home, fly over again.
I can still remember the sound of the garage door opening. My brother and I turned from wolves into puppies. Tails wagging. Dad’s home! Dad’s home! We’d sprint after him the second he opened the door. Wrap his legs in a bearhug. Mom had the Pizza Hut boxes staying warm in the oven.
I don’t know if there’s a happier look on a dad’s face than after he’s hugged his kids, kissed his wife, sipped from a Diet Coke and taken that first bite of Pizza Hut pan pizza (supreme, no mushrooms).
Home. I’m finally home.
There were two voices in the head of a 90s dad. The first is the one of the worker. The climber. The one who is determined to feed his family, keep a roof over their heads. This voice provided the courage to get on a flight to China.
But there was also a second voice, the one that speaks up during that first bite of homecoming pizza. Wait, why would I ever go back to China? Everything’s right here.
One says, “Why do all of this?” The other says, “This is why I do all this.” Which sets up the delicate dance; if the 90s dad gave the first voice too much air time, he doubled down on work. If I do four or five more China trips each year, I can advance faster, make more money. Long-term it’ll pay off for my family.
But give the second voice too much air time, the one that just wants to relax and eat pizza, and the kids start to ask, “Hey Mom, I don’t think Dad’s showered in three weeks…”
Unlike the Macarena, my Dad mastered this 90s dance and by the 2000s, those long business trips to China were few and far between. But he and thousands of others spent the 90s erring on the side of sacrifice. As a result, we had opportunities on the individual level and, on the national level, our economy grew, our technology advanced. Our moms and dads endured a deep personal fatigue so we could one day experience… Zoom fatigue.
So every time a Zoom meeting launches, one that involves wifi instead of airplanes, we should all take a moment to raise a glass of Diet Coke and a slice of Pizza Hut pizza out of gratitude to the 90s Dad.
Hope you enjoyed this piece and thank you for stopping by the Medium Rare blog. If you’d like to subscribe, please feel free to send me an email at [email protected] and I’ll get you setup. You can also check out some of my longer writings on Long Overdue Books. Plan is to have a new Medium Rare post up on Wednesday, May 26th.
I was born and raised in Midland, Michigan and moved here to Chicago a couple years ago after graduating from Hope College. I live in the city with my beautiful wife Ashley.
A little bit about me – I go to bed early, I enjoy greasy food and would wear sweatpants everyday if I were allowed to. I just signed up for a year-long Divvy membership, but could very well be the slowest bicyclist in Chicago.
I write the Medium Rare blog and will have a new post up every Monday.
Seven people were shot, two fatally, Tuesday in Chicago including a male who fatally shot in Lawndale on the West Side.
The male, whose age is unknown, was walking about 7:40 p.m. in the 3400 block of West 18th Street, when multiple people exited a vehicle and began shooting at him, Chicago police said. He was struck in the head and chest and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
A 29-year-old man was fatally shot in West Rogers Park on the North Side. The man was sitting in the passenger seat of a parked vehicle about 6:50 p.m. in the 6000 block of North California Avenue, when a male approached on foot and fired shots, police said. He was struck in the neck and taken to Saint Francis Hospital in Evanston where he was pronounced dead.
In non-fatal shootings, a man was shot in West Garfield Park on the West Side. The 25-year-old was walking about 9:30 p.m. in the 4000 block of West Wilcox Street, when someone shot him in the head and hip, police said. He was taken to Stroger Hospital in fair condition, police said.
A 29-year-old man was critically wounded in a shooting in Chatham on the South Side. About 5:15 p.m., he was riding as a passenger in a vehicle in the 8700 block of South State Street, when he heard shots and felt pain, police said. He was struck in the neck and brought to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition.
Chicago police officers arrested a gunman after seeing him standing over a shooting victim in Austin on the West Side. The gunman had shot a 30-year-old man at 9:40 a.m. in the 900 block of North Lawler Avenue, police said. Officers had been called over by a witness and found the victim lying in the middle of the street gasping for air. An officer applied pressure to the wound and called for an ambulance. The man was shot in his lower abdomen and lower back and was taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition. The suspect gunman was arrested nearby.
A 59-year-old man was wounded in a drive-by in Roseland on the Far South Side. About 2:15 a.m., he was standing in the 10700 block of South Edbrooke Avenue, when someone inside a passing gray sedan fired shots, police said. He was struck in the hand and brought to Roseland Hospital in fair condition.
Minutes prior, a 22-year-old man was shot in Kenwood on the South Side. About 1:50 a.m., he brought himself to the University of Chicago Medical Center with gunshot wounds to his lower backside and leg, police said. He told officers he was in the 4600 block of South Ellis Avenue, when he was shot. Details of the shooting remain unknown because the man was uncooperative with police.
A man was fatally shot May 11, 2021 in West Rogers Park. | Sun-Times file photo
The man was sitting in the passenger seat of a parked vehicle in the 6000 block of North California Avenue when a male approached on foot and fired shots, Chicago police said.
A 29-year-old man was fatally shot Monday night in West Rogers Park on the North Side, police say.
The man was sitting in the passenger seat of a parked vehicle about 6:50 p.m. in the 6000 block of North California Avenue when a male approached on foot and fired shots, Chicago police said.
He was struck in the neck and taken to Saint Francis Hospital in Evanston where he was pronounced dead, police said.
The Cook County medical examiner’s office has not yet identified him.
No one is in custody, police said.
Area Three detectives are investigating the shooting.
White Sox starting pitchers have fed off each other – encouraging, poking, pushing and motivating – during the first five weeks of a season that saw them evolve into the best rotation in the game.
That rotation that owns a major league best 2.74 ERA after Dylan Cease allowed three runs over five innings in the Sox’ 9-3 win against the defending AL Central champion Twins Tuesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field is also listening to each other. One behind the scenes thing at play is the newest member of the rotation, Lance Lynn, who turns 34 Wednesday, pouring wisdom into the 25-year-old Cease.
Cease, who walked two, hit two batters and allowed five hits including a homer to Jorge Polanco in the Twins’ three-run second, struck out seven Twins and got 20 swings and misses, a career high. After a bumpy second inning, Cease responded with three scoreless innings.
“The first place the game was won was Dylan Cease because he held that game, got himself back together and competed his butt off,” manager Tony La Russa said.
“He’s developing the kind of command that makes a starting pitcher special. And he’s showing some competitive toughness.”
Cease’s high ceiling was demonstrated in his two consecutive scoreless starts leading to Tuesday’s outing, a 13-inning block of work with 20 strikeouts and four singles and three walks allowed.
Catcher Yasmani Grandal, who preceded Jose Abreu’s two-run go-ahead homer in the sixth with a tying three-run homer against Kenta Maeda in the second, boldly said in February that Cease can be a Cy Young winner. Former All-Star Lance Lynn sees the ability, too.
“He’s got such great stuff and everyone wants to tell him, ‘Do this, this and this and throw strikes, right?” Lynn said. “And I think he’s got so much stuff going on in his head.”
Cease can get consumed by his delivery and mechanics. Lynn told him to think less and just throw the baseball.
In other words, keep it simple.
“I talked to him, ‘Hey what are you thinking? What’s your process? Where are you at?’ ’’ Lynn said. “And then the only thing that matters is the end product and end results and then you back track from there.”
Release points and staying closed should be dealt with between starts, Lynn told Cease.
“But when you are pitching, the only thing that matters is making the pitch and attacking hitters,” Lynn said. “Hit the spot, don’t think about anything else and say, ‘Here it is, hit it.’ ’’
Cease (2.80 ERA) said Tuesday’s outing was “kind of a grind and it got away from me a little bit. A little erratic there but finished strong and kept them at three.”
After Abreu’s homer, the Sox tacked on with an RBI single by Tim Anderson and RBI double by Adam Eaton in the seventh and RBI singles by Leury Garcia and Nick Madrigal in the eighth.
Garrett Crochet pitched out of a jam and got his first major league win, one of five pitchers to combine on four innings of scoreless relief.
The Sox (20-13) won their fourth straight, taking down the struggling Twins (12-21) in the teams’ first matchup of the season.
Meanwhile, the starters continue to be front and center.
“We are starting to get to know each other as the season goes on,” Lynn said. “So everybody is starting to shoot things off each other, starters or relievers. Anything I can do to help, especially help the team win, that’s what I’m all about and why I’m here. I enjoy it.”
The rotation owns a 2.44 ERA over its last 26 games. Michael Kopech, who might get another spot start in a doubleheader Friday against the Royals, has a hand in that with two starts.
“This is what we envisioned,” Keuchel said. “Even last year hoping Rodon and Cease taking that step forward. They have been nothing short of spectacular. You’re only as good as your next day’s starter.”
Watch Berkowitz and Martin on Illinois’ large city, fiscally insane pension messes, Pritzker’s disaster at LaSalle vet home & Speaker Madigan may go down for the count.
Watch Berkowitz & Martin re Wirepoints giving almost 60% of IL’s largest cities a Failing grade for screwing up police, fire & Muni pensions; the alleged gross negligence of the people Gov Pritzker put in charge of the LaSalle vet home- which may have resulted in 25% of the Home’s residents dying from Covid; and the potential, upcoming Fed indictment of Speaker Mike Madigan.
Tonight’s episode of Public Affairs airs at 8:30 pm in 25 N and NW suburbs: It airs at 8:30 pm on:
–Comcast Cable Ch. 19 inBuffalo Grove, Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, parts of Inverness, Lincolnwood, Morton Grove, Niles, Northfield, Palatine, Rolling Meadows and Wilmette and on
–Comcast Cable Ch. 35 in Arlington Heights, Bartlett, Glenview, Golf, Des Plaines, Hanover Park, Mt. Prospect, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Prospect Heights, Schaumburg, Skokie, Streamwood and Wheeling.
The show also airs tonight in Chicago at 9:20 pm on Cable Ch 21 (CAN TV)
Alzolay allowed three runs over six innings, striking out six. It was his first start of the season without a walk.
CLEVELAND – It looks like right-hander Adbert Alzolay is getting comfortable pitching in the big leagues and the results are starting to back that up.
There were going to be some ups and downs for Alzolay in his first full season in the Majors, but so far, he’s been able to improve on each of his outings this season
Alzolay has had to come with his best as he’s been matched up with some of baseball’s best arms recently and after facing Walker Buehler in his previous start, he took the mound against reigning AL Cy Young winner Shane Bieber.
Getting those opportunities to face some of the game’s best isn’t something the Cubs’ young right-hander takes for granted.
“It’s been really fun. I’m looking forward to more matchups like this one,” Alzolay said after Tuesday’s 3-2 loss. “I think that’s the good part right now is that I’ve been matching really good pitchers lately, and I do like that.
The Cubs’ young right-hander went pitch for pitch with Bieber and looked better than his counterpart for most of the night.
Like his last start against the Dodgers, Alzolay got off to a fast start with the strikeout, striking out four of the first five hitters he faced. He induced 18 swings-and-misses in the game, including 15 coming off his slider.
“He’s getting more and more comfortable out there,” said Eric Sogard, who homered in the game. He has a great sense of all his pitches. When he’s getting ahead and using his defense behind him, it’s fun to watch.”
Alzolay was in cruise control and had Cleveland hitters off-balance, but it was the long ball that came back to hurt Alzolay, who surrendered a pair of homers in the fourth and fifth inning.
Jose Ramirez’s fourth-inning solo shot tied the game at 1 before Cesar Hernandez’s go-ahead, two-run blast in the fifth gave Cleveland a 3-2 lead. Both homers came on 3-2 counts.
“I thought Adbert threw the ball pretty well,” manager David Ross said. “I thought he made some big pitches, and didn’t give up a whole lot of hits. They had a little bit of damage there with Ramirez, trying to sneak a 3-2 fastball by him. Then to Hernandez, [he threw] a nice slider on 3-1, just didn’t get it there on 3-2. But yeah, I thought he threw the ball extremely well.”
Alzolay pitched well enough to win despite the homers and picked up his second quality start of the season. He allowed three runs on five hits over six innings, striking out six. It was also the fifth consecutive start he’s allowed three runs or less in a start and his first where he didn’t issue a walk.
“I definitely feel my body is getting more in rhythm to get deep into the game,” he said. “Today was a good day in the beginning, just missing two pitches in 3-2 counts [for home runs]. That happens when you’re in the big leagues and you miss your location against good hitters.”
The growth from the Cubs’ young starter from start to start has been impressive to start the season and he has slowly become one of the rotation’s most reliable options. If he can continue that upward trajectory, it’s clear he can get to another level this season.
“He’s been making the adjustments he needs to make each start,” catcher Willson Contreras said. “Today, he showed me that he will be capable of going more than six innings. I talk to him a lot about not rushing with two strikes. Whenever he gets to two strikes, he gets so excited.
“He probably misses the location the most on two strikes. I think that the next step for him is maintaining the same rhythm that he has before two strikes and then try to execute on two strikes.”
A girl, 12, was killed in a shooting May 8, 2021, in Hazel Crest. | Adobe Stock Photo
The family of Erica Gibson, a 12-year-old girl who died as the result of a shooting in Hazel Crest, want the gun owner to be held responsible.
Dozens of loved ones gathered Tuesday evening on the Near North Side to remember Erica Gibson, a 12-year-old girl who was the victim of a fatal shooting Saturday in south suburban Hazel Crest.
Attendees released blue and purple balloons in front of the Cambridge Street row houses where much of the family still lives.
“She’s a dancing doll, and we’re going to continue to dance for her,” Erica’s aunt, Samyra McDonald, said Tuesday.
Erica’s closest cousin, Tykeena McDonald, 14, said the two were always dancing together and had been preparing for an upcoming competition.
“We both couldn’t wait,” Tykeena said. “Now I’m going to have to dance the competition without her, and I wish she could be there with me, just sitting on the bus with me. Hopefully, we win it for her.”
Tykeena and many of Erica’s family members expressed frustration about the shooting that led to her death.
“She didn’t have to go like that,” Tykeena said. “We could have still been here at my house or at her house just dancing and having fun together — now that’s all taken away because of a tragic accident.”
Family members said Erica was staying at a friend’s house when the incident occurred Saturday night and believe the gun’s owner needs to be held responsible.
Prosecutors and police released conflicting statements Tuesday about whether there will be any charges in the fatal weekend shooting.
After days of silence on the shooting, Police Chief Mitchell Davis issued a statement Tuesday morning calling the death of Erica Gibson a “tragic accident” involving children playing with a gun.
“A legal review by the Cook County state’s attorney’s office determined no criminal charges will be filed against the juvenile involved,” Davis said. “The investigation shows this to be another case of young people having access to an unsecured weapon in a home that had a tragic accident.”
But less than three hours later, a spokesperson for the Cook County state’s attorney office said the details of the shooting had not been “formally presented” to the office on whether charges should be filed.
“We are currently reviewing the case to determine if the evidence supports any charges,” the statement said. “We cannot further comment on an ongoing investigation.”
The office would not elaborate and there was no further comment from the police chief.
Officers responded to a call of a reported gunshot victim in the 17600 block of Arlington Lane in Hazel Crest around 10 p.m. Saturday, according to police.
Erica, who was from the Gresham neighborhood in Chicago, had been shot in the head and was taken to South Suburban Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 10:53 p.m., police said.
An autopsy ruled her death a homicide, according to the medical examiner’s office.
Erica had a passion for dancing. Prior to being a lead dancer on the Lil’ Ladies of Virtue junior team, she was the captain of the peewee squad for four years, according to her coach, Kamile Beal.
ProvidedErica Gibson poses for a photo.
“Watching her dance brought excitement, I screamed her name and cheered her on,” Beal wrote in a message to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Beal described Erica as “silly” and “goofy” and said she was always laughing and joking with those around her.
“She will always be remembered for her excellent dance, energy and face,” Beal said. “She was so cheerful.”
This is at least the second accidental shooting by a minor in the last week.
The boy was hit in the chest inside a home in the 3500 block of South Rhodes shortly before 7 p.m., Chicago police said. He was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital in critical condition, according to police and fire officials.
Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic have only played 14 games together, but he guard has called the process seamless and sees big things moving forward.
Thanks to a few bumps and bruises, as well as a stint in quarantine for Zach LaVine, the on-the-court time for the Bulls guard and fellow All-Star Nikola Vucevic is just 14 games after Tuesday’s contest against the Nets.
Yet, LaVine feels the gelling for the two has been fairly seamless ever since the former Orlando big man was acquired at the trade deadline.
“Whenever I’ve had the chance to get with him and talk with him and then when I play with him in the game, it’s been good,’’ LaVine said. “Even from the beginning, I think it’s been good. I think the part we had to get down was how we were going to assert ourselves with the lineup and rest of team, and what’s the correct lineup to go out there with us and the correct spacing in offense or what pace we’re going to play at.’’
According to LaVine, it’s the make-up of Vucevic that makes things so easy, specifically his laid-back, low-maintenance demeanor.
“A lot of his response with me is, ‘Whatever you want to do and I’ll figure it out,’ ‘’ LaVine said. “It’s pretty easy.’’
The best part of the relationship? The time it will have to continue to grow. Unless executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas has a major trade planned this summer, Vucevic is signed for two more seasons, while LaVine is signed for one more season, but could see an extension offered this summer.
“We’re two guys who know how to play the game and we play pretty good off each other already,’’ LaVine said. “It will just keep getting better with time. And obviously going forward, they’re going to need both of us.’’
Ankle weight
Troy Brown Jr. missed his 12th-straight game, still dealing with a left ankle sprain that has been tougher to get over than initially thought.
According to Donovan, he remained close and was actually cleared to play, but it’s about getting his conditioning back before just tossing him out there in must-win games.
“He’s had two days of contact,’’ Donovan said. “The biggest issue we’re having with him right now just from a medical side, from Troy’s side, is there enough of a ramp up time for him to compete? You know with the limited amount of practice and trying to create situations for him with player development guys where he can have some contact and play some five-on-five and three-on-three; he’s done that. But I do think he needs a little bit more time.’’
Brown was really the only significant injury, with Daniel Theis back in the lineup after missing the game with Detroit because of a sore hip.
Patriot game
LaVine said he is still interested in playing for Team USA in the Summer Olympics this offseason, but is in a holding pattern since he was added to the player pool.
“All I’ve gotten is that they’ve invited me so far,’’ LaVine said. “I don’t even think there’s going to be a tryout or anything like that. I think they’re just going to select 15 guys. We’ll see what happens. Obviously, I would love to go out there and represent my country. I think I’ve shown what kind of player I am and what I can contribute to a team.’’
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