Chicago Bulls: Zach LaVine admits ‘Guys are frustrated’
The Chicago Bulls hit potentially a low point in their season on Wednesday night as they fell to the Orlando Magic, 115-106. It was a moment that hopefully serves as a reality check for this group.
It appears players on the Bulls are understandably frustrated with the team’s lack of success recently. Just 3-8 since the trade deadline, the Bulls are free falling and are in danger of missing out on the post-season play in tournament.
LaVine: "Guys are frustrated. We know we're better. We know we should be beating some of these teams. Frustration has to turn into something sooner than later."
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) April 15, 2021
It makes sense that players would be growing frustrated at the level of underachieving that has been taking place. What stands out to me is the last line, in which LaVine says ‘frustration has to turn into something sooner than later’.
It’s on the Bulls leaders to turn the frustration into something positive the team can use on the court. Zach LaVine is obviously one of those leaders and this current struggle the Bulls are going through could be a big moment for him and the entire Bulls team.
Simply being frustrated is not good enough. It’s about channeling that frustration into positive results. While it is good to see that the players care, it is also fair to wonder what exactly they could be frustrated at.
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Multiple times recently they have refused to put in effort defensively and hoped their high-scoring ability would keep them in games. They don’t have to be a great defensive team but a little bit of effort on that end could go a long way.
If the team wants to end their frustration sooner than later, they’ll start displaying the kind of effort required for 48 minutes. The tone needs to be set by leaders such as LaVine, Thaddeus Young and Nikola Vucevic.
It will be interesting to see if the Bulls frustration can turn into anything when they take the court next. That comes Friday night when they host the Memphis Grizzlies in what is a very important game for the Bulls in the eastern conference standings.
Next. Where is Thaddeus Young?. dark