Mirotic worst of bad lot
Awful performance typifies Bulls’ effort in ugly loss to Mavs
DALLAS — Nikola Mirotic wasn’t the only Bulls player who should have walked off the floor of the American Airlines Center on Saturday feeling embarrassed.
It’s just that he seems to be in the front of that line far too often.
Rajon Rondo was shaky in his return to Dallas. Bobby Portis and Cristiano Felicio continued to underwhelm off the bench. But it was Mirotic’s performance that stood out most in the Bulls’ 107- 82 blowout loss to the 4- 15 Mavericks.
Mirotic started in place of a resting Dwyane Wade, who didn’t make the trip, and shot 0- for- 4 in 13 minutes. In those 13 minutes, he was a minus- 24 in the plus/ minus category.
After the game, though, coach Fred Hoiberg still was defending Mirotic, as well as the idea of him being a core player moving forward.
‘‘ I don’t think so,’’ Hoiberg said when he was asked if Mirotic has failed to live up to expectations in his three seasons. ‘‘ When you have a skill set like Niko has — the ability to shoot and deep range — that’s big. The thing I’ve been impressed with is his growth in other areas when his shot isn’t falling.
‘‘ He was a huge key to that win [ Friday against the Cleveland Cavaliers]. He made winning plays, and his offense wasn’t part of it. He’ll get it going. I’m confident in that; his teammates are confident in that. Six- foot- 10 and you have a skill set like that? Sure, I think he’s absolutely part of the future.’’
Mirotic did make several key plays against the Cavaliers, but he was advertised as a space- changer on the floor because of his shooting ability when he came over from Spain before the 2014- 15 season.
In the Bulls’ last five games, though, Mirotic is shooting 27 percent and averaging only five points.
‘‘ Just make sure he understands that it happens to everybody,’’ Bulls star Jimmy Butler said of trying to keep Mirotic confident. ‘‘ Make sure he understands we’re still here with him, he’s still a part of this organization and we need him on this team. But it’s not just Niko; we need everybody. If somebody is drifting away, it’s our job to pull them back.’’
Butler was right about one thing: It wasn’t just Mirotic against the Mavericks. After posting a tripledouble against the Cavaliers, Rondo scored only two points and committed five turnovers.
The difference is, Rondo can let bad games roll off his shoulders. Mirotic seems to dwell on bad games and bad moments and admitted after the loss that he has to stop overthinking the game.
‘‘ Yeah, that’s true,’’ Mirotic said. ‘‘ Jimmy and those guys want me to enjoy the game more. They want me to just play my game. My shot right now, I’m a little bit struggling, especially shooting the three. But I just need to find a way to get out of this situation and play my game.
‘‘ I’m OK mentally, trust me. It’s not the first time I’ve been in this situation, so I know how to get out of this moment. It’s important for me to have confidence from my teammates, confidence from my coach, and I have that.’’
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