CLEVELAND – Nikola Vucevic wasn’t demanding more shots.
That’s not how the Bulls big man is wired.
What he would like to see is more touches. An opportunity to show his teammates that when the ball goes through him he has the ability to make their lives on the court easier.
Maybe he’s finally starting to be heard.
“To me it’s not the fact of get me the ball to shoot it,” Vucevic said on Saturday. “One thing about me, which I think is one of my best qualities, is I make the game easier for everybody. Lot of times like the way DeMar [DeRozan] and Zach [LaVine] are guarded, getting doubled, getting blitzed, all that, the defense focuses so much on them that I can always be an outlet and make plays out of it.”
So why has that seemingly gotten lost at times?
Even in the embarrassing defeat in New Orleans, Vucevic was 7-for-11 that game, and 2-for-3 from three. The fact that he wasn’t searched out more was not only being discussed during that game, but in the film study on Friday, leading into the game with the Cavaliers.
“As a big man you are dependent on others,” Vucevic said. “I’m outside quite a bit, so I think for guards it’s not always something they’re aware of because with a big man they are just taught that we’re inside. Guards are taught to look for a big inside. I think 80% of them are inside. Few of them are shooting and able to step outside, so it’s just an adjustment for everybody. Definitely something we keep talking about.”
Getting Vucevic involved early like they did against Cleveland was a good sign.
All Vucevic did in that opening quarter was go 4-for-6 from the field for a game-high 10 points.
“I think there’s times we need to move it better,” coach Billy Donovan admitted of his offense. “There’s times I think we need to find Vooch in those situations because he’s such a good connector from one side of the floor to the other. I think we miss opportunities to do that. It’s something we certainly talked about and we’ve got to be better at.”
For those that haven’t been paying attention or simply opted to write Vucevic off because of his inconsistent first half, throughout March he’s been one of the few bright spots, shooting 39% from three – his best month of the year – and also entering the night with five of his last 10 games with a shooting percentage of 59% or better.
Yet, there have been too many moments where his touches have dwindled, especially in crunch-time. Donovan wants to see an end to that.
“They definitely miss him, no question,” Donovan said. “He’s a high-level IQ player and he knows the ones he needs to take and the ones he needs to get off of. It’s more in the heat of the moment, the awareness of making these quick decisions [for our guards].”
Lunch money
Tristan Thompson saw his wallet get a bit lighter, as the NBA announced that the veteran big man was fined $20,000 for directing profane language toward the officials late in the loss to the Pelicans.
Thompson drew two technical fouls when the officiating crew opted to review a play late, and then after they tried booting him he dropped the magic word on all three several times.
Thompson had to be escorted off the court and into the locker room, which didn’t help the optics of the incident.
