Isaac Okoro was asked to do just about everything during his five seasons with the Cavaliers — start, come off the bench, guard Jalen Brunson one night, then Jaylen Brown the next.
It’s about sacrifice for the newest Bull. It always has been.
“Last year [with the Cavs], just like previous years, the goal was to win a championship, and if I had to dim my role down to do that, I’m willing to play any role to win a championship,” Okoro said. “Always the mindset I’ve had coming into the NBA.”
That’s just the mindset the Bulls will need this season.
After putting a bow on the preseason with their 126-120 victory over the Timberwolves, the Bulls have final decisions to iron out on a starting unit and rotation before the games actually count. Coach Billy Donovan’s squad will host the Pistons on Wednesday and will use the next five days to figure out a plan of attack.
Has Okoro shown enough in preseason games and practice to earn a starting nod?
He was dealing with a sore knee the last few days — it was the reason he left the game against the Nuggets on Tuesday after the first half — and was held out against the T-wolves for precautionary reasons.
But Donovan has seen enough. He didn’t need convincing.
“He is a guy that has come off the bench, he has started, so I feel really comfortable with him in the starting lineup or coming off the bench,” said Donovan, who didn’t want to be pinned down just yet. “One through four, he has pretty much [guarded] every position; you feel comfortable with him doing that.
“As you look at trying to match up rotations and things like that, I think we have to use the depth on this team. The one thing that’s been hard and a little challenging for us is we just have not been whole [in the preseason], and I have not been able to see as many different combinations as I would have liked to. This is a group that’s been pretty selfless, and they’re comfortable starting or coming off the bench. I think in a lot of situations when you’re dealing with first-unit guys, [Okoro’s] a guy you would feel comfortable defending the other team’s best player because he has done that.”
Translation from Billy-speak: Okoro had better be prepared to start.
Donovan and his staff want versatility from this roster. It was on display against Minnesota when Donovan started a big lineup with Nikola Vucevic and Jalen Smith. Considering the Bulls fell behind 21-8 about seven minutes into the game, it was an experiment that went awry initially.
But that doesn’t mean the concept of different starting lineups won’t be used.
“I’ve talked to these guys about it, and it’s not probably necessarily conventional just from the perspective of we’ve got to get out of the old-school NBA mindset of, ‘Here’s my rotation, here’s my guys that go in the game and here’s how many minutes they play,’ ’’ Donovan said. “I just don’t know if we’re going to be able to do that. Probably over 82 games, there will be a consistent group that starts, but maybe some nights we have to change the starting lineup.
“In my opinion, we have to change starting lineups based on who we’re playing and what the matchups look like for us.”
So after finishing the preseason with a 3-2 record, it’ll be a waiting game until Donovan makes it official, at least for Game 1.
“I expect Billy Donovan to do whatever Billy Donovan is going to do, and whatever role that is, me starting or me coming off the bench, I’m willing to do that and help this team win,” Okoro said.
The versatile guard missed the preseason with a strained calf, but if he can get through a full-contact practice over the weekend with no setbacks, there’s a good chance he’ll be ready for the regular-season opener against the Pistons.