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DETROIT — It was almost as if Zach LaVine was playing possum, watching teammate Nikola Vučević feast on a lax Pistons defense — and then, he exploded.
It was one triple in the fourth, then another, and another, and another. You could see it in his gait, the light steps, the easy release. The only ones who didn’t seem to notice LaVine on a heater were the Pistons, who were trying to reach the benchmark of .500, as a true show of progress.
Only LaVine ruthlessly snatched it away with six 3-pointers in the fourth quarter of the Bulls’ 122-112 win at Little Casears Arena on Monday night. He had only seven points entering the fourth, but exploded for 18, finishing with 25.
After playing just 25 games last year before right foot surgery ended his season in February, the discussion surrounding LaVine was more about his max contract, trade rumors and his rocky relationship with coach Billy Donovan.
In fact, it was about everything but his game, and it didn’t go unnoticed.
“I heard everything,” LaVine told Yahoo Sports on Monday. “I read everything. Sometimes you gotta take that accountability and put a chip on your shoulder. There’s a lot of things people said I had to prove. I think my resume speaks for itself, the type of player I am, the type of person I am, but it is what it is.
“You can always turn some heads.”
LaVine smiles easy and jumps even easier, even after multiple operations that would’ve sapped the athleticism of most players. But there is an edge to him this season. He’s playing with more force while also working within the scheme of Donovan’s guard-heavy roster.
Always efficient, LaVine is playing above his usual numbers, shooting 51% from the field and 43% from 3-point range (both career highs) on over seven 3-point attempts a night, and averaging 22 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists.
In this luxury-tax-apron world, where teams have seemingly put themselves in worse positions in terms of player movement, every dollar is counted. So conversations surrounding acquiring LaVine often start with the five-year, $215 million deal he signed in the summer of 2022. And when players are…
Source link : https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/im-in-a-good-spot-bulls-zach-lavine-is-turning-some-heads-amid-trade-rumors-180518432.html
Author : Yahoo Sports
Publish date : 2024-11-21 18:05:00
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