GoBlue72391 wrote:People worth the big bucks don't have their roles and usage fluctuate on a game by game basis either.
I agree, and the Bulls did everything they good for 3.5 seasons to try to put Lauri in position to succeed. After Lauri still didn't succeed, they are now treating him like a player worth the big bucks and have relegated him to a player whose role will fluctuate.
He was put in a position to fail against the Hawks, forced to play a role that doesn't suit him. Given how he was utilized that game, it would have made much more sense to play Theis instead.
Most players whom are fringe / MLE talent types take what minutes they can get and make the best of them and don't expect the team to be built around trying to make them succeed.
That is in direct contrast to the previous two games where we did a great job of utilizing him properly and it seemed like he was getting more comfortable with his new bench role. I mean, what's the logic in playing a guy 18 minutes when he's 8-10 then playing him 27 minutes when he only has 4 shots?
Guys who rely on other people to get shots are always going to have up and down attempts. Personally, I think we've seen Lauri get tired lots of times in the past, four games in five nights, I think Lauri was just gassed and had a poor night. Could the Bulls have gotten him more looks? Maybe, but who cares? You don't argue about how many looks your fringe players get. That's who Lauri is. He's a fringe player. If Coby White gets 4 looks one night or Pat Williams gets 4 looks one night, I don't care about it either.
At the same time, I don't bury Lauri for having a poor game against Atlanta. He could easily bounce back next game. It's just who he is, an offensive gunner that can't create his own shot but can create good offense with help occasionally. Some games he'll be really useful some games he won't.
