Bulls received an injection of experience for Saturday’s game, but those veterans couldn’t save them in 125-106 loss to Pacers
CHICAGO — For the second straight game, the Chicago Bulls loaded up the starting lineup with their entire young core. Zach LaVine is only 25 years old and stands as the most experienced player in a lineup with an average age is 21.6.
But the Bulls’ second unit received an injection of experience for Saturday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers, when Tomas Satoransky, Garrett Temple and Denzel Valentine made their season debut after missing Wednesday’s opener. Despite that added help, the team still fell 125-106 to the Pacers at the United Center.
TJ Warren led the Pacers with 23 points, while Domantas Sabonis recorded a 22-point, 11-rebound, 10-assist triple-double, and Victor Oladipo added 22 points.
Zach Lavine scored 17 points for the Bulls.
While the Bulls' veterans are not stars — and forward Thaddeus Young is still recovering from staph infection — they have all established themselves as capable NBA players. They combine with Otto Porter to form a solid reserve unit. The introduction of veterans can provide stability for a young team still growing accustomed to riding the ups and downs of a season.
“I think that experience, competitiveness, that toughness — whether it be blowing up a screen, getting a hard foul, doing things to a team that says, ‘OK, they’re here to play tonight’,” Temple said at shootaround Saturday morning. “I think those things defensively, when you play physical.”
Coach Billy Donovan used the same starting lineup and leaned on a nine-man rotation through the first half of Saturday’s game. He had toyed with the idea of using a nine or 10-man rotation throughout the preseason, and before the game he said he would ideally like to keep the same rotation from game to game. The start of the season had not given Donovan much of a chance to do so, however, with several players sidelined for most — if not all — of the preseason.
Temple tested positive for COVID-19 before the start of training camp and had to clear NBA protocols before returning to play. Satoranský played in the first preseason game before being forced to quarantine after coming into close contact with Noah Vonleh, who also tested positive for the virus during training camp. And Valentine missed the entire preseason with a left hamstring strain. After a pregame conversation with all three players before Wednesday’s season opener, Donovan decided not to rush them back.
“It’s going to take them a little bit of time to get where they need to be, but I think all three guys are in a much, much better place now after being out for certainly a pretty long period of time,” Donovan said. “I think they feel better about where they’re at physically.”
One of the benefits of the Bulls signing a player like Temple, who is in his 10th season in the league, during the offseason is that he has a chance to help mold one of the youngest rosters in the league. And even after missing most of training camp, he’s already been able to start lending advice to his less experienced teammates.
That includes small things like making sure players eat breakfast, helping Patrick Williams stay in the right spot defensively and aiding Coby White’s development as a combo-guard as he learns to get his teammates involved.
“This year is going to be a year of learning for these guys obviously,” Temple said. “But we just hope that we can stay competitive and win games while they’re learning what they’re doing over the next few months.”
“The team hasn’t changed much. I think it’s practicing those good habits. We’ve done it in practice, so I’ve seen that we can do it. It’s just a matter of transitioning that from practice to games, which takes the time that it takes, depending on what team you have and how much guys want to win.”
