Losing your first home game is obviously not ideal, but it’s not a big deal either in a season of 82 games. Bowing by twenty points is already a little more annoying. Having a lively discussion between a player and his coach, then a meeting in the locker room, that’s very unique. These three sentences are the summary of the scenario experienced by Nikola Vucevic and Chicago against the Thunder.
So there is this setback of twenty points (104-124), but it is obviously the words exchanged between the pivot and Billy Donovan, in the third quarter, which left their mark. What exactly happened?
“Confrontation is a good thing, it’s healthy”
Nikola Vucevic takes a technical foul for throwing the ball at the base of the backboard, after a basket by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Bulls’ next two actions are missed shots, and the Thunder star scores again. Even if the score is still close, the interior joins the bench frustrated, after having spent several long minutes without having seen the ball.
“I found that at certain times we were static, doing the same things and that I could be more involved in certain situations. It would have helped the team,” explains the former Magic to NBC Sports. “I’m going to watch the footage again and maybe I was wrong and I reacted wrong. It’s not just about me touching the ball or scoring, it’s about doing better offensively. I didn’t like what we were producing. I said it a little aggressively. We were in the heat of the action. We talked about it and now it’s in the past. »
The player actually spoke about it with his coach, Billy Donovan, who approached him to exchange a few words. A fairly rare sequence, especially for a first match of the season and when the score was not yet on fire.
“Confrontation is a good thing, it’s healthy,” analyzes the Chicago coach. “I have the greatest respect for Vucevic. He felt things a certain way, I said what I thought about it and he’s probably not wrong. But how can we channel this to galvanize the group and elevate it? At the time, I could have handled it better, but there is no disrespect. He was frustrated, I don’t blame him for that. However, there must be another way to solve the problems. »
Already frustration in Chicago!
This moment between Nikola Vucevic and Billy Donovan was not the only one that already reflected a certain tension in Chicago. Because in the wake of the defeat, the players organized a small crisis meeting in the locker room. Again, this is usually normal, especially with the Bulls, but not after the first 48 minutes of the regular season…
“This wouldn’t have happened last season. The group would have remained silent, continues the coach. “Again, confrontation is a good sign because it shows that this is all important to them. They know they have to do better. »
What can we learn from these locker room discussions between Chicago players? Zach LaVine and Vucevic tell.
“The guys are frustrated and that’s normal. If we don’t get hit, then that means everything. It’s annoying that this happens in the first match, but that’s how it is. The guys say what they think and we have to make sure we’re on the same page.” describes the rear. “We needed it” continues the pivot. “It was classic exchanges, nothing crazy, no fighting. It was constructive. I started saying things and others bounced off them. No one is 100% right, but everyone has things to say. Communication is very important. »
| Shots | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Bp | Int | Ct | Party | Pts |
| Zach Lavine | 77 | 36.0 | 48.5 | 37.5 | 84.8 | 0.5 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 2.5 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 2.1 | 24.8 |
| Demar Derozan | 74 | 36.2 | 50.4 | 32.4 | 87.2 | 0.5 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 5.1 | 2.1 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 2.5 | 24.5 |
| Nikola Vucevic | 82 | 33.5 | 52.0 | 34.9 | 83.5 | 1.9 | 9.1 | 11.0 | 3.2 | 1.7 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 2.2 | 17.6 |
| Patrick Williams | 82 | 28.3 | 46.4 | 41.5 | 85.7 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 10.2 |
| Coby White | 74 | 23.4 | 44.3 | 37.2 | 87.1 | 0.2 | 2.6 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 1.6 | 9.7 |
| Ayo Dosunmu | 80 | 26.2 | 49.3 | 31.2 | 80.5 | 0.6 | 2.2 | 2.8 | 2.6 | 1.2 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 2.3 | 8.6 |
| Goran Dragic | 51 | 15.4 | 42.5 | 35.2 | 65.9 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 2.7 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 1.2 | 6.4 |
| Andrew Drummond | 67 | 12.7 | 60.6 | 0.0 | 53.6 | 2.1 | 4.6 | 6.6 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 6.0 |
| Patrick Beverly | 22 | 27.5 | 39.5 | 30.9 | 53.3 | 0.9 | 4.0 | 4.9 | 3.5 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 2.9 | 5.8 |
| Alex Caruso | 67 | 23.5 | 45.5 | 36.4 | 80.8 | 0.6 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 2.9 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 2.4 | 5.6 |
| Javonte Green | 32 | 15.0 | 56.5 | 37.1 | 66.7 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 2.8 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 5.2 |
| Derrick Jones | 64 | 14.0 | 50.0 | 33.8 | 73.8 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 1.3 | 5.0 |
| Terry Taylor | 5 | 7.1 | 90.0 | 100.0 | 25.0 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 1.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 4.0 |
| Karl Jones | 7 | 8.0 | 40.0 | 50.0 | 62.5 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 2.9 |
| Dalen Terry | 38 | 5.6 | 44.4 | 25.9 | 66.7 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 2.2 |
| Tony Bradley | 12 | 2.8 | 50.0 | 60.0 | 100.0 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 1.6 |
| Malcolm Hill | 5 | 1.8 | 50.0 | 33.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 1.0 |
| Marko Simonović | 7 | 2.8 | 28.6 | 25.0 | 50.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 | 0.9 |
