Nikola Vucevic’s Return to Relevance

While the duo of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan took off immediately to begin the season, the same could not be said of two-time NBA All-Star Nikola Vucevic.

The 6-foot-11 center, who was acquired at the 2021 NBA trade deadline, started the season in the worst slump of his career, missing everything from wide open jumpers to short hook shots deep in the lane. It reached levels of near absurdity, as Vucevic looked like a shell of his former self.

Recently, however, Vucevic has flipped the narrative back in his favor.

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Making Shots

Vucevic struggled to convert on even the most simple attempts, leading him to sport a true shooting percentage of 43.7% after 10 games. One of his main attributes – being a shot-maker – had suddenly been removed, lessening his overall impact.

He soon after entered health and safety protocols and missed seven games, of which the Bulls lost three.

While Vucevic had issues stringing together good shooting games, he had no trouble delivering in other crucial areas, such as defensive rebounding, passing and even offering respectable post defense.

Vucevic’s slump had become an isolated event. While it was a hot button issue for Bulls fans, and likely something that occupied the mind of the man himself, he was not one to compound an issue by sulking or not making an effort elsewhere.

Having always been a remarkably good passer for a center, Vucevic remained on the good side of four assists per game, passing the ball around from the low-post, the three-point line, and while on the move. If he wasn’t going to be a threat scoring the ball, he was going to be a threat passing it.

LaVine and DeRozan, both of whom are averaging over 26 points per game, were more than capable of filling up the point totals while Vucevic worked his way back into rhythm.

While he’s not all the way back to normal, Vucevic’s past 10 games have seen him average 19.3 points and 10.7 rebounds, while connecting on 45.2% from behind the three-point line on a solid 6.2 attempts.

His lowered 2.9 assist rate in that time span can even be seen as a good thing. Vucevic is now aggressively hunting shots, turning himself into an offensive weapon that demands defensive attention. When opposing defenders leave Vucevic to double on LaVine or DeRozan, they’re not getting away with as well as they were earlier in the season.

The Bulls are currently ranking as the fifth best offensive team in the league, in large part due to the re-emergence of Vucevic’s shot. His floor spacing and commanding presence has had a ripple effect on the entire team, because how well can you really guard three players all capable of scoring 25-to-30 points on any given night?

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Unlocking Chicago’s Full Potential

With Lonzo Ball still in health and safety protocol, Chicago’s front office and coaching staff must be licking their chops at the idea of a team finally back healthy to begin 2022.

With 11 players, and head coach Billy Donovan, going through protocols, the Bulls had three games postponed and a revolving door of new faces and new lineups.

During the first 20 games of the year, defense was what these Bulls hung their hat on, led by Ball, Alex Caruso, Javonte Green and Derrick Jones Jr. Caruso on particular looks like a lock to make the NBA’s All-Defense team if he comes back healthy and picks up from where he left off, swiping two steals per game and leading the charge defensively.

Since then, the offense has taken over, which only makes it that much more interesting to see how everything meshes when everyone is back healthy. It doesn’t take an advanced degree to conclude that adding an elite defense to an elite offense means a proper crack at becoming a fully-fledged championship contender.

Now add in the surprising play of Alfonzo McKinnie, who was recently signed to a standard contract for the rest of the season, and the Bulls could enter 2022 with very few weaknesses in tow, assuming he becomes the big wing floor spreader they need.

The man setting off that domino effect, however, is Vucevic. As crucial as both LaVine and DeRozan are, a high-volume three-point shooting center who passes, rebounds and defends the rim, all at fairly high levels, is an outright necessity if Chicago’s dreams of making a run are to become reality.

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