It doesn’t exactly sell tickets like “Run With Us’’ was supposed to do, but that Bulls slogan died a quick death months ago when Otto Porter Jr. played just nine games before a fractured left foot sidelined him.
Leave it to Zach LaVine to find a solid replacement.
“Nothing has been easy for us this year,’’ LaVine said Tuesday, minutes after a shortened practice in which they had just eight healthy bodies.
Print it.
Throw it on T-shirts, posters, and any other good they can peddle in what’s left of the dwindling attendance that is the United Center.
That’s right, “nothing has been easy’’ and it doesn’t sound like Thursday’s NBA trade deadline was about to offer up any relief.
“It’s very quiet in the league in general,’’ Bulls coach Jim Boylen said, when asked about the meetings he’s had with the front office since Monday on that trade front. “It seems to be the whole league for the most part is standing pat at the moment. I think you always listen, but as far as activity not a whole bunch has been expressed to me.’’
Not good news from a few weeks ago, when the Sun-Times reported that there was some initial interest in both Thaddeus Young and Denzel Valentine.
And while the deadline is always fluid, the Bulls weren’t in much of a position to flip this roster through trades.
Kris Dunn, who like Valentine is a restricted free agent this summer, was another possibility to be on the move, but the Bulls have had a high asking price on a guard they felt has turned into one of the premiere defenders in the league.
Any hopes of moving Dunn, however, collapsed on Friday, when he suffered a right MCL sprain, and will sit for at least the next two weeks. He will then be re-evaluated, and an updated timetable was expected. The last time Dunn messed up his right MCL it cost him 23 games, so history isn’t on the side of the Bulls to get him back quickly.
“I don’t want to say we’re used to playing undermanned, but it’s almost like we are,’’ LaVine said. “It just sucks for K.D. He’s been having a really good year, leading the league in steals and things like that. It’s tough.
“We gotta keep moving forward. It’s not going to get easier. Teams aren’t going to be like, ‘Oh, let’s take a break because they’re injured.’ We gotta go out there and play. We have to have dudes step up in multiple ways.’’
Dunn joins Wendell Carter Jr. (right ankle), Lauri Markkanen (right pelvis) and Porter as key bodies on the shelf.
Which means even more pressure for LaVine.
Not that he’s running from it.
Still feeling the sting of missing out on playing in front of the home crowd in the All-Star Game, LaVine accepted the invite for the All-Star Weekend 3-Point Contest, opting to pass on going for a third Dunk Contest title.
“If I made the All-Star Game I would’ve felt a lot better about doing the dunk contest,’’ LaVine said.
And just in case he’s worried about holding up from long-range, Boylen sounded like a Jedi master ready to pitch in.
“I can’t give away my secrets,’’ Boylen said. “I talked to our equipment guys three weeks ago and had them order the same ball racks they use. Stuff like that. Same ball racks. Where do you put your money balls? What side do you grab the ball from? There’s a lot to it. What side of the floor do you grab the ball from? I think I was with [Marco] Belinelli when he won it [in San Antonio]. So I was a part of that preparation for him.’’
