No noise around the Bulls as season starts ... but give it a few months
For now, there’s quiet.
But Billy Donovan understands the unavoidable, especially when it comes to this Bulls organization.
No matter how content the locker room feels, no matter how silent the phones in the front office currently remain, and no matter how little traffic there is in the doorway of the head coach’s office, get back to him in a month. Heck, a few weeks.
The NBA regular season tipped off Tuesday night. The Bulls open up their journey Wednesday in New Orleans.
Donovan knows the outside noise will only get louder.
Then the Kumbaya of this Bulls roster will really be tested.
“Probably the overriding thing is everybody is opening up (the regular season) and are excited to play,” Donovan said on Tuesday. “There’s always optimism. (The noise) is something where you go through losing, you go through difficulties, that’s when you really gotta find the resiliency of being able to deal with the adversity and being able to come in and be professional, go to work and do your job at the highest level.
“You start getting 25-30 games into it and it’s a grind, it’s tough, that’s where you really gotta find meaning in what you’re doing.”
How noisy can it get around the United Center this season?
Well, the Zach LaVine trade rumors aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, there’s still a little matter of how repaired the Donovan-Lavine relationship really is, don’t forget Nikole Vucevic, Lonzo Ball, Jevon Carter and Torrey Craig all being trade rumors, playing time could be an issue in the attempted youth movement, and then there’s the contract situation of Josh Giddey.
He was due to receive a rookie extension on Monday, but the deadline came and went without a deal being reached.
Giddey became the highest drafted player (No. 6 overall) from the 2021 class not to be extended but was saying all the right things a day later.
“I played the third year (in Oklahoma City) with the fourth year on my mind and that was a thing that probably weighed on me a lot,” Giddey said. “I spent a lot of time stressing about it. I went into the summer kind of not worrying about that, and once the trade happened, contract stuff, it will take care of itself. This summer, next summer, whenever it is, that stuff kind of takes care of itself.
“It will get done. My goal now is focusing on this team winning games and doing what I can to help this team.”
Giddey can feel that way for several reasons: First, the Bulls have operated this way with rookies like Coby White and Patrick Williams, extending both of them the offseason after the deadline passed. It’s just how they operate.
Second, they did not trade all-defensive first-teamer Alex Caruso to bring in Giddey for a one and done experience.
Barring a catastrophe for the 6-foot-8 point guard, pay day will be coming, as Giddey’s future will prove to be the least noisy thing about this Bulls team.
The rest of it? Stay tuned.
“I think every player has individual personal stuff that they go through, whether it’s in their job or with family, so I think everybody is always dealing with stuff, right?” Donovan said. “But I do think from a sanctuary standpoint these guys enjoy playing. I have not gotten any sense where guys are thinking about what may or may not happen. I think they want to play, I think they want to compete.
“I haven’t gotten anything, ‘Well, why should I work hard? Why should I be committed? What’s going to may or may not happen?’ I haven’t got any sense of that at all. I think guys have been really bought in.”