The beat down took place for 48 minutes on Wednesday evening.
The apology tour started soon after.
Sure, Bulls center Wendell Carter Jr. was very public about his shortcomings in the 20-point loss to Atlanta, but there should have been a long line of his teammates behind him.
“I wouldn’t necessarily call it a wake-up call,’’ Carter said of the home loss to start the season. “It’s reality, [bleep], we gotta come and play and we didn’t come to play on both ends. Lot of us got inside of our own heads, including myself, worrying about the stuff that happened rather than worrying about the moment. Just kind of speaking for myself, I’ve just got to do better … I just talked to my teammates, apologized for my effort that I showed, and I will be better for my team.’’
Accountability can be a powerful trait, but there now has to be substance behind it.
Following a Christmas Eve afternoon practice, however, the bigger concern was how can there be a quick fix by Saturday, when the Bulls host the Pacers?
“I just didn’t show effort,’’ Carter said. “I felt myself just being a step slow, I felt myself just worrying about the wrong things. This league is a game of runs. There’s too many good players in this league not to be runs, so I feel like for myself – and I can only speak for myself – I’ve got to learn that thing is going to happen.
“How we gonna react to it, how we going to come back from them making three or four baskets in a row? Are we going to finally get a stop and go down and get a good shot for ourselves? Or are we going to get internal and worry about our own stuff? That’s something I need to work on and I feel like that’s something that could be a quick fix in terms of next game.’’
One of many that need to take place.
Obviously, the defense was a mess. Just too many positions where Bulls players didn’t want to make multiple efforts to help get a stop.
Coach Billy Donovan beat that point to death, but also put it on the shoulders of his players to take responsibility for it, especially in the physicality department.
The hope is they will.
“We’re not the most athletic, we’re not the fastest, we’re not the strongest, but we’ve got to be able to get in there and be able to protect the basket as a group,’’ Donovan said. “We’ve got to go in there and protect the rim in transition as a group. When we get hit, we gotta fight to get over screens. When someone is hung up, we’ve got to be able to help. When someone gets driven and the ball is going to the basket, we’ve gotta be able to help. They have to do it together.’’
The other concern in the Atlanta debacle was the play of Coby White.
The second-year point guard went 2-for-11 from the field for nine points, while watching opposing point guard Trae Young put up 37. More disturbing than that, however, was the decision making and lack of communication skills White displayed.
“As I was trying to explain to him during the course of the game, we’re coming down the floor and guys don’t know necessarily what we’re in at that moment in time even though we’re trying to play fast,’’ Donovan said of White. “I think that’s part of his learning curve.
“Coby has to play well for us to play well.’’
A message that White received loud and clear, but now has to execute.
“I think I’ve got to get us more organized on the offensive end,’’ White said. “Got to lead us more.’’
