Zach LaVine Opens Up About New Head Coach Billy Donovan

Bulls shooting guard Zach LaVine discussed this week about the news of head coach Billy Donovan signing with the team. LaVine has been doing his homework on Donovan and had a lot of praise for the new management of the Bulls.

Executive Vice President of Basketball Operation Arturas Karnisovas and General Manager Marc Eversley are changing the culture of this franchise. The two of them are focused on making the players happy and building a playoff contender. LaVine is the Bull's best player so to hear him have such high praise for the head coaching hire as well as upper management is a great thing. LaVine went on to discuss his first steps after hearing that Donovan had been hired as the new head coach.

With all the changes in our world due to COVID, LaVine couldn't simply pop over and meet the coach and discuss things face to face. Instead, he reached out to his new head coach over the phone. He then took it another step forward and reached out to NBA players who had experience working with Donovan. It sounds like LaVine liked what he heard about Donovan.

  Former Bulls center Joakim Noah was coached by Donovan in college at the University of Florida. While playing for Donovan, Noah won two NCAA championships. Joakim's comments show the type of person Donovan is beyond a basketball coach. Donovan appears to be the type of coach that LaVine is looking for. I can imagine the rest of the team feels the same way.

Zach's Impression On Donovan's Playstyle

LaVine then touched on how Donovan utilizes players' strengths/tools and doesn't take them away.

LaVine clearly paid some attention to the Oklahoma City Thunder this year. Donovan knew he had to play to the team's strengths and he kept the midrange game as part of that plan. In today's NBA it's a lot of three-pointers and getting the ball inside. Which works, but it also makes the team's playstyle two-dimensional. From what Donovan has said he plans to utilize the strengths each player has. This allows for each player to have all of their tools while playing the game. As the leader of the team, LaVine sets the tone. Whatever energy he brings, the team will follow. Karnisovas and Eversley bringing in a player first head coach should make a world of difference for this team. It's clear that just the signing of Billy Donovan has boosted the team's morale.