New guy Isaac Okoro’s hunger, versatility and physicality are already impressing his Chicago Bulls teammates as the group looks to make a dramatic leap toward defensive respectability.

The Bulls had one of the most explosive offenses in the NBA last season, but their postseason hopes were undone by a horrendous defense. Chicago allowed 119.4 points per game, third-worst in the league. Its 54.0 points per game allowed in the paint was dead last. Perhaps more concerning, the Bulls were 27th in the league in deflections, 29th in loose balls recovered, 27th in charges drawn and 28th in contested shots.

In short, the Bulls bled points and didn’t play with enough effort to make up for their deficiencies. That’s where Okoro is already making a difference.

Isaac Okoro earning praise from teammates early in training camp

Chicago’s shaky front office added Okoro this summer in a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers that sent Lonzo Ball in the other direction. As soon as the ink dried on the paperwork, the 24-year-old became the Bulls’ best on-ball defender.

There’s surely more to his offensive repertoire than just catching and shooting open threes, but executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas acquired Okoro for what he provides on the other end — switchability, grit and a thirst to play a physical brand of defense.

Head coach Billy Donovan weighed in on what his new wing will give to Chicago, per Julia Poe of The Chicago Tribune, saying simply, “There’s things that he’s really good at that we need to get better at.”

Matas Buzelis is well aware of the Bulls’ need for more effort and physicality, and he’s already singled out Okoro as someone who will help instill that philosophy, according to Joel Levine of The Athletic.

But it’s Okoro himself who best illustrates the impact he plans to make — and already is — on the Bulls, via Poe:

“If you see one of your teammates dive on the ground or go for a loose ball — they’re playing hard, so you don’t want to be the guy that is out there looking like they’re not playing hard. It’s kind of a contagious thing. … In order to win, people have to take sacrifices. If I have to play my role of guarding the best guys, being the hustle guy, I don’t mind that. At the end of the day, I want to win.”

Chicago Bulls wing Isaac Okoro

Diving on the ground for loose balls. Playing hard. Making sacrifices. Playing a role. Being “the hustle guy.” These are the things Karnisovas brought Okoro to Chicago to do. And not only is he doing his job, he’s making defense a “contagious thing.”