ORLANDO, Fla. — The Bulls must continue to live by the 95% rule.

If they do that, coach Billy Donovan likes their odds night in and night out.

“The reality of it is that most of these guys, 95% of the game, they’re playing without the ball in their hands,” Donovan said Saturday. “They don’t need to be waiting to get the ball back in their hands. There are other things they can be doing to impact the game. [Former Bulls guard Alex] Caruso did it for us at a really high level, and I think Isaac [Okoro] will do it for us. But I think for our guys being young, too, they have to understand that we don’t have a lot of guys that can play with the ball in their hands and that can make plays, be these elite, high-level scorers.

“So for them to carve out a niche in the NBA and have a long career, they’ve really got to understand that they have to embrace that 95% that they don’t have the ball in their hands in some way.”

Center Nikola Vucevic had a good suggestion: Keep making cuts offensively.

The Bulls flipped the script on their offensive philosophy last season, going from midrange and methodical to pace and space.

Vucevic believes the next step in the offense’s growth is the constant cutting that has been featured in the preseason and through the first two regular-season games as well as the addition of the right personnel to execute that style.

“The league in general is doing a lot of off-ball movements, especially with bigs being able to pass and stretch the floor, and it opens up so many more opportunities,” Vucevic said. “It’s something we talk a lot about. The additions of Tre [Jones] and Kevin [Huerter] last year and Okoro this year, they’re really good cutters, so it adds to our offense.”

And it comes in flurries.

The Bulls had 29 assists in the season-opening victory against the Pistons, including 10 in the first quarter alone. Against the Magic on Saturday, the Bulls weren’t necessarily finishing well at the rim early, but they were cutting and at least giving themselves a chance in building a first-half lead.

“When we’re all moving and we stick to the offense, it’s going to make us really hard to guard,” Vucevic said. “So we have to stick to that.”

Tough love

Donovan has had to answer a lot of questions about the way he has coached second-year forward Matas Buzelis since his rookie season. He reiterated before the game that there has been a method to his madness.

“Players can tell when you’re not being authentic or being yourself,” Donovan said. “I think when you talk to any player when they come in, especially when they’re new, whether it’s a draft pick or [acquired] like [Okoro], it’s, ‘Hey, what’s the best way to communicate with you?’ For Matas, it was, ‘Listen, just stay on me, stay on me and help me in the areas I need to get better at.’ There’s a fine line. I think coaching is constant confrontation, but it’s not necessarily yelling and screaming. It’s confronting the things that you need to do.”

Under construction

Donovan is still experimenting with the rotation, flirting with going 10 or 11 deep on a nightly basis. In the win over the Pistons, he played 10; against the Magic, he played a rotation of 11.

Rookie Noa Essengue and veteran guard Jevon Carter have been the odd men out.