Zach LaVine knows the call is coming.

Even if it is a week later than it should be for the Bulls guard.

The starters for the All-Star Game were named on Thursday, as LaVine finished just out of the running for a backcourt spot, behind teammate DeMar DeRozan and Atlanta’s Trae Young.

LaVine did finish second in the player vote, but the media and fans had him third, and unfortunately for him the fan vote carried the most weight.

He was more than at peace with it, but was just hoping for some clarity on the “narrative.”

Last season, he missed out on being a starter because although his individual numbers were as good as anyone’s, LaVine was told that being on a losing team at the time hurt him.

His individual numbers this season were a bit down, but the Bulls were a first-place team throughout most of the voting process, while Young’s Hawks team has been messing around in play-in territory on the fringe of a playoff spot.

“I’ve done that for the last couple years, won the players’ vote,” LaVine said of the process during his postgame media session, after the loss to the Spurs.

“It’s you [media] guys that don’t like me,” he then said with a laugh. “Nah, I’m just messing around. I’m very happy for DeMar, I’m happy for Trae. You know obviously Trae is very deserving. I felt like I was just as deserving, but every year there’s going to be somebody in and out. I just wish the criteria would stay the same each year.

“Last year, I had a really good year where I had really good stats, but we were on a losing team. I wasn’t in that same position [this season] or the narrative wasn’t the same, but it is what it is. Keep my head down, keep on working. I think I’m going to be an All-Star, either way we’re going to enjoy the weekend.”

LaVine will find that out on Feb. 3, when the rest of the All-Star Teams are named.

But even in explaining his feelings about the NBA’s showcase weekend, LaVine displayed just where mindset currently resides.

In the past, he seemed more irked when not considered one of the NBA’s elite. However, in mid-sentence he pivoted back to what was really atop his priority list.

” … but back to this, this isn’t a good feeling to come out to San Antonio and give up 130 points,” LaVine said. “This season, yeah, you definitely see me a lot more dejected [after losses].”

That’s because LaVine knows that this current Bulls team has a chance to do something special. Not next season or in some mythical window that the outside likes to create.

No, this team, this year.

But if the defensive effort is going to be what it was against the Spurs, and the entire roster knows that Lonzo Ball (knee surgery) and Alex Caruso (wrist surgery) won’t be walking through that door to help with the defense for another six-to-eight weeks, every healthy body has to step up or face the consequence of a promising season lost.

“Obviously you’re not going to replace those guys, that’s what they do,” LaVine said. “AC is known for that, Zo is known for that, we’re not going step in and be as good as them, but as a team and collectively we’ve got to fill those gaps in and still hold on. We just can’t get exploited and give up 130 points.

I don’t care what extra we have to do, I’m for it. We all have to give more effort and understand the moment of what we’re trying to do this year, because this isn’t cutting it.”

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Please send scores and corrections to [email protected].

Saturday, January 29, 2022

BIG NORTHERN

Genoa-Kingston at Rockford Lutheran, 7:00

Winnebago at Rockford Christian, 7:00

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

Northridge at Morgan Park Academy, 12:00

INTERSTATE EIGHT

Morris at Rochelle, 3:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE RED-SOUTH / CENTRAL

Simeon at Morgan Park, TBA

PUBLIC LEAGUE WHITE-CENTRAL

Richards (Chgo) at Dunbar, 4:00

SOUTHLAND

Bloom at Thornwood, 2:30

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – WEST

Yorkville at Oswego, 4:30

NON CONFERENCE

Addison Trail at Evergreen Park, 1:00

Brooks at Perspectives-Lead, 1:30

Burlington Central at Hinsdale South, 6:00

Chicago Tech at North Chicago, 5:00

Christ the King at St. Patrick, 4:30

Dixon at Moline, 7:30

Dundee-Crown at Barrington, 6:00

East Moline at Auburn, 6:30

Elgin Academy at Alden-Hebron, 6:00

Elmwood Park at St. Francis, 7:00

Englewood STEM at Niles North, 4:30

Foreman at Intrinsic-Belmont, 11:30

Forreston at Byron, 1:30

Geneva at Prairie Ridge, 3:30

Glenbard East at West Aurora, 6:00

Grayslake North at Buffalo Grove, 4:30

Harvest Christian at Woodstock, 1:00

Highland Park at Palatine, 4:30

Hinsdale Central at Bartlett, 2:30

Hoffman Estates at Niles West, 4:30

Holy Trinity at Fasman Yeshiva, 8:30

Homewood-Flossmoor at Hillcrest, 12:30

IC Catholic at Walther Christian, 4:30

Intrinsic-Downtown at Muchin, 12:30

Lake Zurich at Wheeling, 5:30

LaLumiere-White (IN) at Lake Forest Acad-Org, 5:0

LaSalle-Peru at St. Bede, 5:30

Libertyville at Hersey, 6:00

Lisle at Latin, 1:00

Maine West at Lakes, 2:30

Marshall at Maine South, 4:00

Mather at Glenbrook North, 3:30

Mundelein at St. Viator, 3:30

Naperville North at Aurora Christian, 7:30

North Boone at Mendota, 2:30

Ogden at Mount Carmel, 7:00

Oregon at Belvidere North, 7:00

Peotone at Westmont, 3:00

Plainfield East at Waubonsie Valley, 6:00

Plano at Coal City, 3:30

Reed-Custer at El Paso-Gridley, 6:30

Richmond-Burton at Antioch, 1:00

Rock Falls at Princeton, 6:30

Sandburg at St. Francis de Sales, 5:30

Shepard at Grace Christian, 2:30

St. Charles North at Glenbard West, 5:30

St. Ignatius at Nazareth, 2:30

Streamwood at Schaumburg, 4:30

Streator at Washington (IL), 4:15

Tri-Point at Midland, 4:30

Vernon Hills at Grant, 2:30

Warren at Round Lake, 4:00

Wheaton North at Plainfield North, 6:00

BEECHER

St. Anne vs. Wilmington, 11:00

Beecher vs. Carver, 12:30

Clifton Central vs. Somonauk, 2:00

Armstrong-Potomac vs. Illinois Lutheran, 3:30

Iroquois West vs. Johnsburg, 5:00

Prairie Central vs. Joliet Catholic, 6:30

FULTON

West Carroll vs. Prince of Peace (IA), 9:00a

Riverdale vs. Aquin, 10:30

Alleman vs. Orion, 12:00

Bureau Valley vs. Lena-Winslow, 1:30

East Dubuque vs. Monticello (IA), 3:00

Normal vs. Romeoville, 4:30

Newman vs. Easton Valley (IA), 6:00

Fulton vs. Comanche (IA), 7:30

HERSCHER

Marmion vs. Momence, 12:00

Woodland vs. Grant Park, 1:30

Leo vs. Pontiac, 3:30

Centennial vs. Kaneland, 5:00

Paxton-Buckley-Loda vs. Herscher, 6:30

McNamara vs. Manteno, 8:00

LINCOLN-WAY WEST

Lincoln-Way Central vs. Richards, 1:30

Lemont vs. Neuqua Valley, 3:00

Lincoln-Way West vs. Minooka, 4:45

Oak Forest vs. Lincoln-Way East, 6:15

LITTLE TEN TOURNAMENT

at Somonauk

DePue vs. Hiawatha, 1:00

Indian Creek vs. LaMoille, 2:30

IMSA vs. Leland, 4:00

LOYOLA

New Trier vs. Rolling Meadows, 1:00

Evanston vs. Lake Forest, 2:30

Loyola vs. Glenbrook South, 4:00

ORR

Bloomington Cent. Cath. vs. Phillips, 9:00

St. Laurence vs. Kankakee, 10:30

University High vs. Madison, 12:00

Larkin vs. Thornton, 1:30

Orr vs. Confluence (MO), 3:00

North Lawndale vs. Proviso East, 4:30

Curie vs. Ritter (MO), 6:00

Yorkville Christian vs. Kenwood, 7:30

SANTA ANA (CA) – MATER DEI

Young vs. Bishop Gorman (NV), 6:30

VASHON (MO)

Fenwick vs. Chaminade (MO), 5:30

St. Rita vs. Vashon (MO), 7:00

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Forward Jhon Duran had options.

In October 2020, Duran was listed in The Guardian’s Next Generation 2020 as one of the 60 best young talents in world soccer. Before he signed with the Fire on Jan. 11, 2021, Duran reportedly was getting attention from European clubs because of his potential.

But Duran picked the Fire, staying with Colombian club Envigado through the 2021 season before coming to Chicago after turning 18. The signing was arguably the Fire’s most exciting acquisition since they coaxed legendary midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger to Chicago in 2017.

One question about Duran signing with MLS and the Fire instead of a European club was obvious: Why?

“I had heard there was other interest and other offers, but a bird in hand is better than a hundred birds in the air,” Duran told the Sun-Times last week through a translator. “I’ve come, I like the club. The club is really good for me. I like the base here. I like the way things are run, and even in the few days that I’ve been here I’ve learned a lot about the team and the club and I’m really liking it so far.

“It’s a city and a league that really help you grow as a player. They kind of buff you a little bit so you come out shining and as a player that is really helpful so I can come in here and grow as a person, grow as a player, do well and then from here make that leap to Europe.”

That any promising youngster would say that is no surprise. If he’s the player the Fire and The Guardian think he is, European teams will pursue Duran, and it will only be a matter of time before he goes across the pond.

Obviously, Duran’s been well-known in soccer circles. Getting named to a significant annual list will only add to that, but it also has served as motivation.

“It felt really good to be named one of those Next Generation [players] by The Guardian,” Duran said. “What it did for me was make me want to work harder. I had to put in more effort because it did increase the pressure a little bit. People get to know who you are, you’re recognized a little bit more, and so what that means is that you have to work harder in order to be up for the challenges that are coming.”

Considering his pedigree and growth in 2021 with Envigado (seven goals, three assists), Duran’s usage will be interesting to follow this season. With the recent signing of Kacper Przybylko, Duran likely won’t be relied upon to lead the Fire attack, though coach Ezra Hendrickson mentioned his versatility and didn’t dismiss starting him for the Feb. 26 opener at Inter Miami.

“That versatility that he brings and that dynamic that he brings, the ability to take guys on [one on one] and that finishing ability is something that we are going to look to see from him this year,” Hendrickson said.

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At the end of an ordinary January, I would be cold and a little worn out from winter. But I would be uplifted knowing that there would be baseball next month. Sadly, this is no ordinary January.

So bundle up, and good luck on this week’s quiz.

1. Which Chicago pitcher has picked up the most wins since the start of the 2000 season?

a. Jon Lester

b. Carlos Zambrano

c. Mark Buehrle

d. Jon Garland

2. Who is the most recent Chicago batter to pick up 100+ walks in a season?

a. Sammy Sosa

b. Carlos Pena

c. Adam Dunn

d. Jim Thome

3. We have spoken about many Chicago managers, but we haven’t mentioned much about Lee Elia, who might be best-known for an obscenity-laced rant that is not safe for work or just about any environment. Who recorded this classic tirade?

a. Les Grobstein

b. Les Grobstein

c. Les Grobstein

d. Les Grobstein

4. The Postal Service recently announc-ed its stamps for 2022. There are no baseball stamps, nor any stamps celebrating lockouts. Throughout the years, there have been many stamps celebrating our game (baseball, not the quiz). Which of these had a commemorating stamp? True or false for each, please.

a. Wrigley Field

b. Baseball Bugs Bunny

c. Comiskey Park

d. Mighty Casey

5. We hear a lot about triple-doubles in basketball, but who was the only Chicago batter with a three-double game in 2021?

a. Javy Baez

b. Luis Robert

c. Jose Abreu

d. Anthony Rizzo

6. Here’s a Hall of Fame question: When Dave Winfield picked up his 3,000th hit, which former Chicago pitcher did he hit it off?

a. Bruce Sutter

b. Ferguson Jenkins

c. Dennis Eckersley

d. Greg Maddux

7. Here’s an actual question from Jeopardy! The category is Baseball Geography, and the answer is “After Alaska, this is the largest state without a major-league team.” Remember, your response must be in the form of a question.

8. On this date in 1958, the first six-figure contract in National League history was signed. Who inked this $100,000 deal?

a. Willie Mays

b. Hank Aaron

c. Ernie Banks

d. Stan Musial

9. Iconic singer Meat Loaf recently died. On his classic song “Paradise by the Dashboard Light,” who provided the (ahem) play-by-play?

a. Jack Buck

b. Harry Caray

c. Mel Allen

d. Phil Rizzuto

ANSWERS

1. Mark Buehrle compiled 214 wins, 161 while pitching for the Sox, the most of any Chicago pitcher.

2. Carlos Pena walked 101 times in 2011, but Adam Dunn walked 105 times in 2012 and is our guy.

3. “The Grobber,” Les Grobstein

4. All true. Wrigley and Comiskey were part of the 2001 Legendary Fields series. Bugs Bunny came out in 2020, and Mighty Casey was part of the 1996 Folk Heroes collection.

5. On Sept. 11, the White Sox lost to the Red Sox 9-8, and Luis Robert went 4-for-5 with three doubles.

6. On Sept. 16, 2003, Dave Winfield, playing for the Twins, singled off the A’s Dennis Eckersley.

7. What is Montana?

8. Stan Musial, the 37-year-old Cardinals legend who won his seventh batting title, hitting .354 in 1957, accepted a $20,000 raise.

9. “The Scooter” Phil Rizzuto.

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It doesn’t look as though there will be a timely resolution to the lockout, with talks between MLB and the union about a new collective-bargaining agreement going slowly. But the Cubs still have business to attend to, and there are a couple of questions that still need to be answered.

Will the Cubs extend manager David Ross’ contract?

Ross’ first two seasons as the Cubs’ manager have been anything but normal. In 2020, the Cubs won the National League Central in the pandemic-shortened 60-game season. In 2021, they led the division for much of the first half before a long losing streak prior to the All-Star break sparked a sell-off at the trade deadline.

The Cubs love what Ross — who has one year left on his contract — has done in his first two seasons at the helm, and the expectation is that he will be in place for a while.

”David has done a fantastic job as a manager,” president Jed Hoyer said this offseason. ”He’s learned a ton on the job. Even while learning, I think he’s excelled. He’s kept morale good. He’s run the staff very well. I love having him as a partner. . . . Our hope is that David’s here for a long time.”

”He wants to put in the work and believes success is associated with work and wants the team to get after it,” bench coach Andy Green said. ”Those things resonated really deeply with me, to be under somebody who I didn’t know how good he was going to be in front of a team, talking. But he’s literally the best I’ve ever seen or heard.”

There are a lot of things to do after the lockout is over, but Ross’ extension likely will be something to discuss sooner than later.

What will the cubs do with Nico Hoerner?

It wasn’t long ago that the versatile Hoerner, a first-round draft pick out of Stanford in 2018, made his big-league debut in September 2019. A little more than two years later, he is in a strange spot. He finds himself without a true position and has yet to play a full season because of injuries.

Hoerner started last season strong and looked like the player many expected. But after several injuries cost him a majority of the season, he will enter next season without having had the playing time to develop.

”Definitely been a lot to take on this year,” Hoerner said in September. ”I think every year comes with challenges like that. . . . But definitely when this year is done, there will be a lot to reflect on.”

The organization thinks highly of Hoerner and thinks he can play on winning teams, but figuring out where to play him has become a head-scratcher. Hoerner was one of the best defensive second basemen in the majors in 2020, but with the acquisition of Nick Madrigal — who doesn’t have his versatility — he’ll be forced to find another position. Hoerner is a shortstop by trade, but the Cubs’ efforts to find a long-term answer at that position likely will continue after the lockout.

”I think he’s frustrated, as you’d expect,” Hoyer said in October. ”I think most of the conversations with him are about that frustration. He had such high hopes for the season, given the physical condition he came in with. [Then he suffered] multiple injuries, some random and some soft-tissue. And we’ve obviously talked about how to address those things with his strength and conditioning and making sure he’s ready to go and addressing those issues in the offseason. So, yeah, it was a frustrating season in a lot of ways.”

It never has been a question about whether Hoerner has the ability to be a good ballplayer; he has shown he can be. But until he can stay on the field for a significant part of a season, there always will be questions.

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The Bears’ three-week search for a general manager and coach is finally over, and it’s up to Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus to turn around a team that went 22-27 and scored the sixth-fewest points in the NFL over the last three seasons.

Now that Poles and Eberflus are in place, here’s a look at where the Bears are headed:

The Eberflus hire was…
Normal. And it’s a relief anytime the Bears do something that qualifies as such.

Eberflus wasn’t one of the hottest candidates like Brian Daboll or Brian Flores, but he also wasn’t in the high-risk, high-reward category like Byron Leftwich or Nathaniel Hackett.

He’s a steady, defensive-minded coach with three decades of experience. He stayed at Toledo nine years, Missouri for eight, the Cowboys for seven and the Colts for four. He’s far from a mercenary. He could be just the right fit as the Bears try to establish long-term stability.

The Ryan Poles hire was …
Exciting. Poles comes from the most compelling team in the NFL. Not only have the Chiefs been the winningest team in the league the last four seasons, they’ve been the most watchable. They’ve put up 30.3 points per game over that span.

That’s a dream for those who have trudge through the slog of a Bears game every week. Hiring someone who helped build the Chiefs into an incredible machine is cause for optimism.

Other than Poles and Eberflus, who would have been your picks?
If not Poles, Eliot Wolf was intriguing.

If not Eberflus, Brian Flores seems like the best coach available, followed by Dan Quinn. Quinn interviewed with six of the nine teams that needed a coach before withdrawing and returning to the Cowboys as defensive coordinator.

How will their hires affect Justin Fields?
Hopefully Fields will be so good that it won’t matter. But both Poles and Eberflus will be judged primarily on the moves they make to surround him with the right pieces and maximize his skills in the scheme. Eberflus has a very difficult task of maintaining offensive stability despite being a defensive coach.

What’s one thing Poles and Eberflus need to do differently than their predecessors?
Be honest with the public. Chicago has been through enough nonsense the last four seasons with Ryan Pace hiding and Matt Nagy rambling. Just be real.

What’s the best and worst thing about how the Bears handled this process?

They did a great job forming a pool of candidates. For all the warranted criticism about putting this in Bill Polian’s hands, the Bears mostly interviewed the right guys.

The concern, however, is that they did so before hiring Poles. By the time he arrived, they already had three finalists scheduled for second interviews. If Poles chose Eberflus completely of his own judgment, that’s how it should be. If he was handed a list of candidates the Bears liked and candidates they didn’t, that’s already too much meddling.

What’s a best-case scenario for Poles and Eberflus in Year 1?
Realistically, improving this offense and getting back to .500 would be considered a success. For that to happen, the Bears need to beef up the offensive line in free agency, add a top-line wide receiver and put Fields in an ideal position to flourish.

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Toronto raised DeMar DeRozan.

The veteran forward hasn’t been shy about discussing that.

But his three seasons with the San Antonio Spurs picked him up from a low point, and then perfected him.

“You kind of get knocked down from being traded from the situation you thought you wanted to be in for your whole career,” DeRozan said of the move that snatched him away from the only franchise he knew to join the Spurs prior to the 2018-19 season. “You kind of have to start over in every type of way.

“I just stayed locked in and tried to figure out how could I continue to get better, be better, be better, be better … it got me to this point.”

And the Bulls have been very thankful for that.

On Friday, however, even with DeRozan scoring 32 points just 24 hours after being named a starter for the Eastern Conference All-Star Team, the same team that dusted him off simply dusted him.

Despite the Bulls (30-18) putting up 122 points and getting a combined 62 total points from DeRozan and Zach LaVine, the Spurs put on a pick-and-roll clinic down the stretch, outlasting the visiting team 131-122.

The culprits were obvious, as the Bulls struggled with on-the-ball defense the entire game, and offered up very little help slowing down the pick-and-roll.

“We didn’t make it hard enough on them,” DeRozan said of the defensive breakdowns. “We didn’t do our job, we didn’t do a great job of helping each other. We never knocked their rhythm off. You can’t give up 131 points … that’s unacceptable.”

Coach Billy Donovan was in full agreement.

“I thought we had a really, really hard time controlling the ball,” Donovan said. “The initial thrust, you’ve got to be able to contain the ball, and we just didn’t do a good enough job defensively.”

It wasn’t like Donovan was playing the blame game and singling players out, either. He thought collectively as a group the defense was poor, and if the Bulls want to stay near the top of the Eastern Conference it had better be a quick fix.

What was really unfortunate was the night setup perfectly for DeRozan to return to San Antonio and show his former organization how much they taught him before he went to the Bulls last offseason in a sign-and-trade, and in the first half it looked like he would do just that.

DeRozan went into the halftime locker room with a game-high 17 points, doing most of the heavy lifting for the Bulls, who shot a ridiculous 63.6% from the field, and turned the ball over only twice. What they didn’t do, however, was lose the Spurs.

As efficient as the Bulls offense was, the defense was a mess, and would only get messier in the third quarter. The Spurs just wouldn’t go away, wouldn’t quit, outscoring Bulls 35-23 in the third to take control of the game.

Control they never relinquished.

DeRozan gave the Bulls some life with a three-pointer that cut the deficit to four with 1:06 left, but Jakob Poeltl flipped in an 11-footer off, guess what? A poorly defended pick-and-roll.

The loss ended a two-game winning streak for the Bulls, but again showed them that life without an injured Alex Caruso (wrist surgery) and Lonzo Ball (knee surgery) isn’t that easy.

“Terrible,” LaVine said of the defensive showing. “Couldn’t stop in any coverage or in any scheme that we had. It didn’t matter what we were in we just couldn’t stop the ball. We gotta figure out how to stop having teams score so much. We gave up 130 … it’s just going to be hard to win any game that way, so we just gotta do better. That is unacceptable.”

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