NEW YORK — Billy Donovan is not going to let the rookie settle.
In the eyes of the Bulls coach, once Matas Buzelis does that or feels like he’s gotten enough out of his first-year campaign, complacency becomes the norm.
That’s not an option for the Bulls or Buzelis.
If this rebuild is to start finding a foothold, Buzelis has to be the first major foundation piece to be developed at a high level. That message has been conveyed to him with tough love early on in the season, a longer leash to run with now, and even story time when Donovan feels the moment is right.
It was right just recently.
“It’s interesting because I had this conversation with (former Bull and Gator) Joakim (Noah) and I asked him where he got that motor,” Donovan said. “And he said, ‘I got that from my dad (former tennis star Yannik Noah).’ I said, ‘What did he tell you?’ He said, ‘It’s a little bit different when you line up in the U.S. Open and you’re looking across the net and it’s Jimmy Connors and Bjorn Borg, and you have to sit there and say I’m not more talented than that guy, what’s going to be the separation?’
“(Buzelis) has got to get that. He’s gotten better at it, but that’s what he’s got to get. I’m trying to continue to put that on him and to his credit he has responded.”
That he has.
Before his five-point showing in Thursday’s overtime loss to the Knicks, the 11th overall pick from the June draft had eight straight double-digit scoring games, averaging 13.1 points since Jan. 29. That put the 6-foot-10 forward third in scoring over that time in the rookie class.
But it hasn’t just been his scoring.
Buzelis is playing better defense and rebounding the basketball with more aggressiveness.
There may be just 26 regular-season games left, but they all seem to matter to Buzelis, no matter where the Bulls currently reside in the standings.
“The games are very important for me,” Buzelis said. “I’m taking them very seriously, and the team is taking them very seriously. I’m going to try to learn and grow and better myself.”
And if that means grabbing some hardware along the way, Buzelis is all for that as well.
San Antonio’s Stephon Castle and Atlanta’s Zaccharie Risacher are the leading candidates for Rookie of the Year, but Buzelis has been closing the gap in a race where there’s no real separation. That hasn’t been lost on him.
“Most definitely. I would like to win that award for sure, but I also want to win as many games as possible,” Buzelis said. “If you win the games then you will be in that conversation also, but I can make a run at it. I believe that.”
That’s another aspect of Buzelis’ make-up that Donovan appreciates. He’s not afraid to chase individual accolades if it’s done within the context of the team getting better and winning first. And if Buzelis does forget that or color outside the lines, he can be spoken to directly from his coach.
“I’ve been very pleased by the way he’s responded to things,” Donovan said. “He wants it very direct. I like that. And I do think he wants to be a good player, but I think it’s also been a very eye-opening experience for him through these 50-plus games with him figuring out, ‘I’m not the most athletic, talented guy out there on the court anymore. I’ve got to find something else.’ “
A search that continues for the rookie.
“The scoring is always going to be there, but with me I want to get better defensively,” Buzelis said. “I want to be a two-way player, I want to be a player that is a leader, and that impacts the game when he’s out there. That’s what Coach has been preaching, just play extremely hard.”