CHICAGO SKYLINE
Drummond and Vučević prove to be successful complements — but bigger lineups may not become a trend
It’s rare for the Bulls to get the chance to go big — but Monday night’s victory over the San Antonio Spurs showed how fun it can be to play the bully around the rim.
Starting center Nikola Vučević splashed a pair of 3-pointers while scoring a teamhigh 22 points. Backup Andre Drummond crushed the rim with a series of dunks on his way to 21 points. The pair also combined for 27 rebounds, four steals and three blocked shots.
And for four quarters, the Bulls dominated around the rim, outscoring the Spurs 74-58 in the paint — 30 of which came from Vučević and Drummond — in the 128-104 win at the United Center.
Entering Tuesday night’s 104-89 road loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, Drummond and Vučević both had found success in the previous two games as the Bulls used larger lineups. But coach Billy Donovan isn’t convinced they can consistently stick with Drummond on the second unit as he tests the team’s ability to play small.
“I don’t have a problem at all using Andre,” Donovan said. “I think we have to use a whole roster and all of our guys when it’s called for . ... We need to see a little bit of those guys playing small against bigger teams. A lot of it’s going to come down to, are we better off switching or are we better off being in coverage with our center?”
Drummond and Vučević are markedly different types of centers — Drummond a bullish enforcer around the rim, Vučević a savvy pick-and-pop shooter who uses speed over size. During their careers, they have been well-accustomed to each other’s game.
“It was always tough to play against him,” Vučević said. “He’s such a dominant player, especially when he was in Detroit, on the glass especially. He’s a guy I respect a lot, a guy I’ve played against a lot in my career.”
Drummond has played with other All-Star
centers in the past — most notably six-time All-Star Joel Embiid with the Philadelphia 76ers last season.
While Vučević is a different type of big man than Embiid, Drummond highlighted Vučević’s shooting and mobility as challenges for an opposing center.
“Vooch is his own beast in his own way,” Drummond said. “It’s very fun to play with him.”
The differences between Drummond and Vučević offer an advantage to the Bulls when playing against bulkier teams such as the Spurs.
While the Bulls offense can attack through the same pick-and-roll scenarios, the two centers take different approaches — Drummond homing in on the restricted arc, Vučević popping out for a mix of jump shots.
“It makes it difficult for other teams because they have to adjust every time either one of us is on the floor,” Drummond said. “It’s really difficult for them to set their defense.”
Drummond’s resurgence over the last week came as a welcome change for the big man after being a healthy scratch in five of seven games from Jan. 13-28. But it’s unclear if this will be a long-lasting change to the Bulls rotations.
Donovan remains steadfast that Drummond can fill certain needs for the Bulls, but he prefers rotations with Derrick Jones Jr., who is 5 inches shorter at 6-foot6 but offers more defensive versatility. Although Donovan will opt for Drummond against larger centers such as the Spurs’ Jakob Poeltl, he prefers to sacrifice rebounding to accommodate the defensive switching Jones can offer.
Even after Drummond’s 21-point performance Monday, Donovan was quick to emphasize the importance of the rotation with Jones playing center.
“DJ at the five is something we still have to keep looking at,” Donovan said. “There’s going to be some games where they’re small and we can switch and there’s not that threat of size and physicality at the rim, and Derrick may be the better option.”