The Bulls provided the stone and gravel years ago.Heck, they even plowed it, put the cement over it and painted in the lines of the runway for Patrick Williams. Lights, a tower, a plethora of workers waving those ground crew flags, the whole shebang.All Williams was asked to do was take off.Heading into Season No. 6 for the former No. 4 overall pick? The plane is still sitting there grounded and the runway is in bad shape.That’s why as the Bulls finished off the second game of the preseason on Thursday with a 119-112 win over the Cavaliers, Williams was discussed in a media session with coach Billy Donovan but not dwelled on.If the power forward wants to succeed at this point, it’s on him. That’s been made very clear by the organization.“When you talk to Patrick, he’s a guy that assumes responsibility,” Donovan said. “I talked to him, even like his rookie year when he was going through some things where he had to learn a lot. I tell all these young guys the same thing: There’s a certain amount of runway you end up having and that runway kind of ends and it’s like, ‘OK, you gotta step up.’ “An attitude the franchise really took on late last year.The Sun-Times reported over the summer that Williams had already gone through numerous development coaches that work with the players individually, including former shooting guru Peter Patton, who actually connected with Williams.But the former Florida State standout was informed in the exit meeting that the days of catering to him had come to an end. If he wanted it, go and get it. After all, they gave him a five-year, $90 million deal in the 2024 offseason, and wanted more results.To Williams’ credit, he did come into this camp in much better shape and obviously shedding some pounds, and he’s been saying the right things, but it’s way past talk for Williams at this point.Matas Buzelis took his starting spot in the middle of last season, Isaac Okoro was added in the summer to fill his role as wing defender, and he’s now just a piece off the bench.Deep off the bench in some instances.In the preseason opener, he was the 11th player in the rotation. Thursday, he jumped up to seventh, but the Bulls were also without Nikola Vucevic, Kevin Huerter and Julian Phillips.“It’s like that old adage, ‘Oh, it’s talent, talent, then it’s potential, potential,’ “ Donovan said. “Then over a period of time it’s like, ‘The potential thing … there’s a runway here and it’s Year 6, Year 7, like yeah, but …’ I do think for him, him carving out a niche, and I get the whole where he was drafted and everything else, but he can carve out a really good niche for himself as an NBA player.“Like he’s really good defensively but can he play with a consistent motor up and down the floor? And I think he knows that’s coming from within himself and he really wants to do that. You can tell he’s tried to focus on his conditioning and being really in shape, but we’ve talked a lot about that.”How much is being heard is still the question.To Williams’ credit, he was solid in his debut in Cleveland with 11 points, and then in the follow up on Thursday he scored eight points and was a plus-8 in plus/minus.Progress?Remains to be seen with Williams.“He has to accept the fact that he knows (what needs fixing) and he wants to make that step,” Donovan added. “That’s what I’ve heard from him.”
There was a reason why the Bulls wasted no time in the offseason making sure Jones was staying put, and the hope is he will continue to do whatever it takes to impact winning.
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Coach Billy Donovan wants his offense to remain a blur for the opposing team, but the Bulls also have to make smart decisions with the ball. It was only one preseason game, but the 26 turnovers Tuesday were concerning.
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Okoro was traded from the only NBA home he knew in June, leaving the Cavs for the Bulls. He had his first homecoming Tuesday, scoring 11 points in the Bulls’ preseason victory.
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