Rookie Coby White only needed only two syllables to describe Zach LaVine after the Bulls’ 119-107 victory against the Pistons on Saturday.
“All-Star,” White said. “All-Star, that’s all I gotta say. All-Star.”
OK, we get it.
LaVine, the two-time NBA dunk champion, has never been shy about his All-Star aspirations. And with Chicago hosting this season’s game in February, it’s only fueled LaVine’s drive.
LaVine, the Bulls’ leading scorer with 23.5 points per game this season, has continued to make a compelling case for his first career All-Star selection. Despite some questionable late-game decisions, LaVine has continued to refine his game and become more disciplined.
Saturday is a prime example of that.
The Bulls coughed up a seven-point lead in the fourth quarter. But it was LaVine who broke the tie with a three before leading the Bulls to the finish line by scoring 13 of his 33 points in the final 12 minutes.
“It’s almost like setting the table,” teammate Kris Dunn said of LaVine’s ability to close out Saturday’s game. “You just can’t make food and think you are going to just eat it out of the pot. You got to put the plates down, put the forks down, put the glasses down, That’s what he’s doing. He’s not scoring, scoring, scoring, scoring. That’s easier to guard. You get your team involved, you still stay aggressive and when the fourth quarter comes you just be you.”
LaVine hasn’t been the most disciplined on defense, but his shooting has been efficient, especially Saturday. LaVine finished with five rebounds — all coming on the defensive end — five assists and one steal to add to his 33 points against the Pistons.
“He did it in a lot of different ways,” Boylen said. “I thought he showed his whole repertoire. He got to the line, drove it to the rim, finished at the rim, made deep threes, he’s perfected his shot fake ... which is huge to us. And he makes it look really easy.”
In his last 15 games, LaVine is averaging 27.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists, while shooting 45.4 percent from three-point range. That stretch includes a career-high 49 point game in which he went 13-for-17 from the three-point line.
“His last 13 or 14 games, he’s played All-Star basketball,” Boylen said Saturday before the game. “I don’t think anybody can fight that, and before that, he was playing very good basketball, so he’s taking it to another level.”
But even though LaVine has continued to upgrade his game, there’s a good change the six-year NBA guard will be overlooked due to the Bulls’ 12-19 record.
“I do think winning is important for that vote,” Boylen said. “We need to continue to put some wins together and he need to continue to do his thing and if we’re winning, then it probably means he’s playing well for us.”
The last time Chicago hosted the All-Star game in 1988, the Bulls were represented by Michael Jordan.
But the Bulls could be unrepresented this year.
What would an All-Star game in Chicago be without a Bulls player on a roster?
Boylen didn’t want to think about it
“It’d be great to have one,” he said. “And we’ll keep working toward that.”
That means winning more.
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December 23, 2019 at 06:47AM
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Will LaVine finally earn his first All-Star nod? - Chicago Sun-Times
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