Caruso thinks Bulls have right formula to play high-energy style
Can the Bulls be successful playing an aggressive, high-energy style? Can a majority of their players stay healthy for more than half the season using that strategy?
We asked the expert, Alex Caruso. During preseason, the Bulls were at their best when utilizing Caruso's style of play - hustling, defensive-minded and pushing the tempo.
He thinks the Bulls can pull it off for a couple reasons. For one, they added reinforcements, including a couple of veterans who seem to fit well, Goran Dragic and Andre Drummond.
"I think that's part of the reason we picked up guys like Gor and Drum," Caruso said after practice at the Advocate Center. "I think we've got 10, 11 guys if you want to sprinkle (rookie) Dalen (Terry) in there, that can come in and play minutes and sustain whatever level of play that we want to play."
Caruso pointed to his Lakers team that won the NBA title in 2020 having the depth to maintain a high-energy style. Of course, that squad also had a younger LeBron James and healthy Anthony Davis to lean on.
The Bulls are hoping the new game plan of organized randomness will create more easy baskets and enable them to save energy for the defensive end. According to Caruso, that could mean fewer designed plays to get shots for DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic.
"Whoever's open, whatever the right read is, you make that play instead of forcing it through DeMar, Zach and Vuc" Caruso said. "Then us having to go back and play catch up on defense because we worked so hard to get these three guys shots."
The idea is to take what the defense gives and react to what the opponent wants to take away. Coach Billy Donovan is hoping to call fewer plays from the bench.
"Whoever has the advantage, whether it's the guy with the ball coming off pick and roll, if he can get to the paint, get downhill," Caruso said. "If not, you get it to the big. If they're covering that up with the low man, you swing it to the opposite side, now they're chasing and you can get downhill. It just keeps everybody involved, it keeps everybody in a rhythm."
Caruso thinks the second unit, which will likely include him, Dragic, Drummond, Coby White and either Patrick Williams or Javonte Green, can excel with the new system. It might not come as naturally to the starting five. As Donovan has mentioned a few times, it's not really possible to play at a fast pace unless the defense gets stops.
"Defense, you've got to play hard in the NBA," Caruso said. "There's no way around it, if you don't play hard, you're going to give up 120 to 130 points, you're not going to win a lot of games. You can't really talk about giving less effort on defense. But offense, I think the way we're playing sets up well to get through the whole season.
Thursday marked the start of feels like the Bulls' second training camp. They have a full week off between the end of preseason and the regular season opener at Miami next Wednesday.
"Players don't love a week off," Caruso said. "You get in decent game shape, then you've got to just maintain it as much as you can for the week.
"The week off will be good for us to just lock in to stuff we want to do. We had a great practice today, really competitive, finished it with some pretty good scrimmages. But it's fine, you can't do anything about it. We'll show up and be ready to play."
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