How can Billy Donovan unlock Nikola Vucevic in first round?

The Chicago Bulls are set to play the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round beginning Sunday. The Bucks have had consistent success against the Bulls, sweeping them this year in dominant fashion.

Chicago is coming off of a disappointing end to the regular season, slipping from fourth in the Eastern Conference to sixth and losing six of their last ten games. The team’s role players were missing in action for much of that stretch, and their stars’ defense was non-existent.

DeMar DeRozan found consistent success on the offensive end but did so on high-volume shooting. Zach LaVine’s knee proved to be a problem, as his explosiveness withered as the season progressed. Even with his nagging injury, he was able to give the Bulls consistent double-digit scoring and was the best defender out of the stars… though that isn’t saying much.

The biggest puzzle piece that head coach Billy Donovan hasn’t been able to unlock is Nikola Vucevic. In their last matchup against Milwaukee, Vucevic went 3/19 from the field. That stat is insane and obviously his worst showing of the season, but it was a summary of his overall play against Milwaukee.

Milwaukee thrives when they can beat teams up down low. They have the second-tallest roster in the league, only trailing the Cleveland Cavaliers. Chicago clearly doesn’t have the personnel to go toe to toe with the Bucks in the paint, but they have a max player who should be able to give them something down there– at least to put one of the Bucks’ bigs in foul trouble.

Vucevic’s contribution will be key to the Bulls competing with Milwaukee.

How can Billy Donovan get Nikola Vucevic going?

Their star, Giannis Antetokounmpo, is at his best when he is able to get downhill. When Antetokounmpo is scoring, the Bucks are nearly unstoppable. The best way to limit him is to get him in foul trouble.

That task is hard because Bucks Head Coach Mike Budenholzer doesn’t let Antetokounmpo defend top-tier players. Instead, he has the Greek Freak play a “safety” role on defense, living in the help side. This lets Antetokounmpo get highlight blocks and steals.

To combat this, Donovan will have to add an off-ball action into his four-out offense to free Vucevic up. Currently, the offense calls for Vucevic to get the bulk of his looks in the pick-and-roll. There isn’t a set moment in the offense for him to get a post-up look or even a high post look prior to setting the on-ball screen.

Donovan can have one of the guards– Alex Caruso or Coby White– set a flex screen for Vucevic prior to setting the screen. He can hold the post up for three seconds and then get into the PNR action.

It is a very simple tweak that can also lead to the guard setting the pick being open on the wing– giving DeRozan or LaVine a wide-open kick-out. More importantly, this might force the Bucks to switch down-low, giving Vucevic a clean look at the rim. In his worst game of the year, he still shot 75% when defended by one of the Bucks’ guards down-low.

When a switch occurs on the block, the post often tries to come over late and get a block. These types of plays usually result in a foul. Vucevic is an average free-throw shooter but can get going if he has frequent trips to the line. More importantly, Antetokounmpo getting in foul trouble is the best bet for the Bulls in this match-up. Chicago has found zero success against the Bucks when the Greek Freak is on the floor in the last five years.

The next best bet for Chicago is to possibly further explore their horns set. Donovan had the teams run some horns action early in the year but abandoned it to get DeRozan more midrange looks out of the pick and role set.

By doing the horns set, they will likely have to insert two post players into the lineup. This can help on the boards, given that the Bucks killed Chicago on the glass in every matchup this season. This will also allow Vucevic to float around the high post area.

He is a very skilled passer out of the high post, finding cutters and shooters with ease. In his career, he shoots 60% from the high post to the paint area. When his midrange gets going, his three-point shot gets going. The Bulls have been trying to hit him on the pick and pop early in games without letting him get a high post, hook, or even layup look. If they get him going inside-out as opposed to outside-in, he will be much more effective.

With the Bulls current role player irregularities, they are going to need their stars to be as productive as possible if they hope to compete with the Bucks in the first round. If Donovan is unable to find a way to get Vucevic going, the Bulls’ season may be over sooner than later.