Nikola Vucevic didn’t sign up for this.
When the big man signed a three-year, $60 million extension in July, it was under the assumption the Bulls’ offense was going to be tweaked before the 2023-24 season, and he would play a bigger role in that modification.
Yet there was Vucevic in Wednesday’s season opener, watching teammates put up sometimes questionable shots from midway through the second quarter into the third as a once close game dissolved into a laugher.
Almost 12 minutes between field-goal attempts was just one of the reasons he finally had heated words with coach Billy Donovan in the third. It was a stunning turn because the offense was clicking early in the game.
In that first quarter, the Bulls gave Oklahoma City all it could handle, putting up 35 points, while Vucevic was responsible for six of those on 3-for-4 shooting with an assist. He did get off a three-point attempt, but the damage was being done inside with Vucevic playing bully ball with lanky rookie Chet Holmgren.
And when Vucevic wasn’t attacking the rim, he was doing what he could to play inside-out, skipping the ball to teammates on the outside for three-point shots. Basically, it was the kind of basketball Donovan stressed the Bulls needed to play to improve their shot profile from last season.
Being rewarded with a dry spell of touches like that was not what Vucevic expected, but much like his previous two seasons with the Bulls, there it was once again.
That’s why there were words between coach and player, as well as an impromptu players meeting in the locker room after.
“Very constructive,’’ Vucevic said of the talk they had as a team. “It was needed. I think we can really use this to learn and change some things we need to change.’’
A change that Vucevic hopes starts Friday against Toronto and involves his teammates trusting the offense to run through him a bit more, especially when things start to bog down.
But in the back of his mind was he concerned that it won’t?
“No, no. Every issue is fixable,’’ Vucevic said. “We talked about it. We’re all aware of it, and we just gotta fix it. It’s been addressed and now it’s on us to find ways for this team to play good basketball.’’
Not many of his teammates disagreed with that.
While Wednesday might have felt like there was some finger-pointing going on, Thursday was all about watching film and fixing the issues, while taking nothing personal. Donovan did stress that it wasn’t a film session based solely on getting the ball to Vucevic, but one that showed missed opportunities throughout the evening in the decision-making department.
Still, veteran DeMar DeRozan did admit that Vucevic had every right to be frustrated.
“That’s on us to understand and recognize that when we’re playing against teams, there’s going to be games where we can exploit certain matchups,’’ DeRozan said. “That’s on us to be able to recognize that in real time. Going to Vooch, feeding the big man. Make them make a decision on him, and we’ll get a lot of easy things off that.
“That was an opportunity where we could have punished (the Thunder) with Vooch. I definitely get it. None of it is taken as a negative. One thing about it is none of it is from a selfish standpoint at all. (Vucevic was) right, I agree with him and we all agree with him.’’
The hope for DeRozan was it wouldn’t have to be addressed again, especially in the wake of an embarrassing loss.
“I just know we won’t let it happen again,’’ DeRozan said.
