Chicago Bulls: 5 steps Billy Donovan must take to succeed
5. Show players he respects them as professionals
Last season, head coach Jim Boylen instituted a clock-in and clock-out system for players as they entered and exited the practice facilities. Former NBA players sounded off in interviews that they’d never heard of anything like that in the league and stated they’d be personally offended if their coach tried it. Rumors of Boylen treating his team like a high school program and not an NBA roster swirled around the team all season.
Chicago’s lone All-Star candidate, Zach LaVine, was benched early in a game against the Miami Heat last November. This led to a verbal sparring match in the media between him and Boylen that lasted the rest of the season. LaVine didn’t feel like he had the trust of his head coach even though he was clearly the most productive player on the team.
When players feel like they will be punished for small mistakes instead of empowered to atone for them, they will stop playing for the coach and start playing for themselves. LaVine eventually got his mojo back and had the most prolific scoring season of his career. However, the team never gelled and LaVine’s exploits did not translate to wins.
Billy Donovan has been known to recognize players’ strengths and embrace them. He saved Dion Waiter’s career in his first year in OKC. After an erratic stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers and a tumultuous half-season with the Thunder, it looked like Waiters was going to have to make a living overseas
However, Donovan came to town and recognized Waiter’s true fit in the NBA as a spark-plug. A spark-plug is not a well-rounded player or a full-time starter. He’s a guy who has one role, come into the game, make a few plays and from time to time score in double digits if he’s having a good night. Donovan recognized that Waiters would never an All-NBA performer. He empowered Waiters to do what he does best, score in bunches.
Instead of LeBron James going to management asking them to trade him, Waiters had Kevin Durant publicly praising the way he’d embraced his role in OKC. This was a complete 180 and it saved Waiters’ career.
The Bulls need Donovan to work his magic in Chicago. He must empower proven players like Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen to perform at a high level by letting them know they are trusted and valued. If he gains the confidence of those two guys, the rest of the locker room will fall in line.