The Chicago Bulls ushered in a brand new season with heightened expectations throughout media day Monday on the Advocate Center.
Training camp begins Tuesday in preparation for 4 preseason video games, beginning Oct. 4 at residence in opposition to the New Orleans Pelicans. The season opener is Oct. 19 in Miami with the house opener three days later in opposition to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Here are 5 issues we discovered from media day.
1. Zach LaVine is prepared for motion.
LaVine voiced pleasure about returning at full power after a left knee damage hampered the All-Star capturing guard’s availability all through the second half of the 2021-22 season. He underwent arthroscopic surgical procedure in May to handle lingering swelling and discomfort within the knee.
After scuffling with discomfort for months within the spring, LaVine stated he now feels pain-free and assured in his bodily talents following the process.
“I feel really good,” he stated. “Surgery is surgery, but being able to have a small invasive surgery like that is great. Being able to get back to 100% was all I was looking for, so I feel great going into camp.”
Executive vice chairman of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas stated LaVine — who signed a five-year, $215 million max contract extension in July — received’t have any restrictions to begin the season.
“He’s good to go,” Karnišovas stated.
2. Lonzo Ball’s absence creates level guard competitors.
Ball’s lingering knee damage loomed giant over media day because the Bulls plan to begin the season with out their main playmaker and ballhandler.
LaVine stated he speaks usually with Ball, who’s understandably pissed off by his state of affairs as he enters his tenth month sidelined by the damage.
As the Bulls await Ball’s return, coach Billy Donovan will draw from a pool of 4 guards throughout coaching camp to find out the place to begin guard to begin the season: Goran Dragić, Alex Caruso, Ayo Dosunmu and Coby White.
Each brings his personal strengths. Dragić, 36, is probably the most skilled however unable to play a starter’s load of minutes. Caruso is a reliable veteran ballhandler however struggled to remain on the courtroom due to accidents final season. Dosunmu was a dependable backup however sputtered on the finish of the season as he hit the rookie wall. White’s on-ball confidence grew all through final season, however he thrives extra as a spot-up shooter than as a main ballhandler.
Donovan stated he doesn’t have a favourite to begin coming into the preseason.
“I don’t want to sit here and say it’s wide open, but we need to compete,” Donovan stated. “I’m more concerned about how groups function and play together more so than just one position. … Who starts, how it goes, the starting job — I’m not really that wrapped up in that right now.”
3. Patrick Williams faces stress in his third season.
All eyes are on Williams as the facility ahead enters his third season in Chicago. Expectations had been excessive for the No. 4 choose within the 2020 draft, however Williams nonetheless is discovering his footing after accidents decimated his sophomore NBA season.
After feeling “a little overweight” when he returned from a wrist damage within the spring, Williams spent the offseason targeted on slimming his physique. Although he enters the 2022-23 season on the identical weight (215 kilos), Williams stated he feels extra assured along with his visibly lighter construct.
Williams shall be challenged this season — each by expectations all through the league and by his teammates and coaches. He spent a part of the offseason coaching in Los Angeles with DeMar DeRozan, who emphasised the significance of progress between a participant’s second and third seasons.
A serious leap in effectivity and confidence from Williams may function the largest distinction maker for the Bulls this season.
“Him being more aggressive is where it starts,” Donovan stated. “We need him to take another step as a player and I think he can do that. This was a very, very good summer for his progress going into the season.”
4. New additions deliver expertise.
Players, coaches and executives alike emphasised one key issue within the additions of Dragić and large man Andre Drummond: veteran management.
This shall be Drummond’s eleventh NBA season and Dragić’s fifteenth. Both have intensive backgrounds dealing with new teammates comparable to Caruso and DeRozan.
“I’m excited to be his teammate and not playing against him,” Caruso stated of Dragić.
Neither participant can single-handedly repair issues comparable to perimeter capturing, which plagued the Bulls final season after the All-Star break. But their management as supporting gamers off the bench shall be key because the Bulls look to strengthen their rotations.
5. Alex Caruso honors Bill Russell whereas sporting No. 6.
Caruso’s jersey quantity carries added weight this season as he honors the lifetime of Bill Russell, the legendary Boston Celtics heart and racial justice pioneer who died in July at age 88.
Every NBA jersey can have a No. 6 patch on the proper facet of the chest this season to honor Russell’s influence on the league and the game, however Caruso additionally will put on No. 6 as his personal quantity.
Caruso switched to No. 6 when he joined the Bulls final season from No. 4, which he wore with the Los Angeles Lakers and which is retired in Chicago in honor of Jerry Sloan. Caruso deliberate to alter his quantity after Russell’s demise, however the NBA required him to maintain No. 6 for the 2022-23 season as a result of his jersey is among the many league’s prime 75 sellers.
Caruso stated he doubtless will change numbers subsequent season however hopes to honor Russell this season as he wears his quantity.
“I want to do nothing but honor him, his legacy and what he stood for,” Caruso stated. “He’s a pioneer, a racial advocate for the game of basketball and just all around a great person.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com