Bulls' Carter relieved to see 3-pointer finally fall
Billy Donovan wants center Wendell Carter Jr. to shoot 3-pointers this season. But Carter missed his first 8 attempts during preseason before finally connecting in the third quarter of Sunday's victory over Houston.
When he finally connected, Carter ran down the floor and seemed to be motioning to the bench, a gesture that seemed to suggest, "It's about time."
"I'm a huge competitor, so whenever I'm not making the shots I usually make in practice or things like that, I kind of get down on myself," Carter said. "But seeing that coach was still telling me to take my shots - 'keep taking them, keep taking them' - it just allowed me to stay confident.
"So when I made that first 3, it was kind of a sigh of relief, just for myself. That I finally got the first one to go in, so now they know that I can shoot."
During his first two years with the Bulls, Carter spent a lot of time setting the screen in pick-and-rolls. So he's still getting used to playing on the perimeter or waiting at the foul line. He did score on a lane drive on Sunday.
"My decision-making isn't the best right now, just because it's a completely different role than I've been used to these last two years," Carter said. "So, it's just something I've got to get used to. I pick up on things really quickly and my coaching staff, that's what they want out of me. So, I feel like it's either I do it or I don't, and I feel like I'm pretty confident I think I'll be able to do it for this team."
During his first two seasons, Carter made 12-of-61 shots from 3-point range, a .197 percentage.