Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan did not mince words after Tuesday’s defeat. The Bulls dropped their 10th consecutive game, falling 131-99 to the visiting Charlotte Hornets. They slipped to 24-35 and 12th in the Eastern Conference.
Matas Buzelis provided the lone highlight, erupting for a career-high 32 points on 13-of-19 shooting. But even that breakout performance did little to hide the deeper issues that have plagued Chicago all season.
After another disappointing outcome at home, Donovan stepped to the podium and addressed the elephant in the room. He called for full accountability from everyone in the building, coaches and players alike.
Chicago Bulls: Billy Donovan calls out turnover woes as skid continues
Donovan singled out the team’s sloppy ball-handling after the game. The Bulls coughed up the ball 19 times against the Hornets. Josh Giddey and Patrick Williams were the main culprits with five and four, respectively.
It has been an ongoing problem all season. Chicago ranks among the league’s worst in turnovers, surrendering the ball an alarming 14.8 times per game.
“The turnovers are a problem — they are a major problem, and we have to continue to get that resolved,” Donovan said, via the Chicago Sun-Times. “When there are mistakes that are made and they are constantly compounded, I think it takes away the fuel and the gas from our team, and we’ve got to be tougher than that.”
The Hornets made Chicago pay for those costly errors. Brandon Miller poured in 23 points while Kon Knueppel added 21. Former Bull Coby White also chipped in 10 points off the bench in his Hornets debut. He was making his first appearance after recovering from a calf strain following a mid-season trade.
Meanwhile, Donovan made clear that the solution requires a collective effort.
“We’ve also got to be more responsible than that. All of us, coaches and players, have to do a much better job in terms of trying to help one another. I sensed the frustration [in the third quarter] and being deflated,” he said.
If the Bulls have any hope of reaching the play-in, solving the turnover problem has to start now.
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