From a benching to a ‘blackout,’ Bulls guard Zach LaVine plays hero with 13 threes

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Guard Zach LaVine would’ve loved to have gone over the last few minutes in detail, telling everyone within earshot about the “craziest game I’ve ever been a part of,’’ but there was one problem.

“I blacked out,’’ LaVine said after the Bulls’ improbable 116-115 victory Saturday against the Hornets.

From a benching to blacking out, it was quite the 24-hour roller coaster for LaVine.

In helping the Bulls overcome an eight-point deficit in the last 45 seconds, LaVine gained some vindication after the game Friday against the Heat. He became only the third player in NBA history to make at least 13 three-pointers on his way to a career-high 49 points, which included his Reggie Miller moment.

With the Bulls down by two after guard Tomas Satoransky’s three-pointer, LaVine was in the right place at the right time, picking up a loose ball with 3.5 seconds left, dribbling behind the three-point line and letting it fly.

Nothing but net, and the game, as the Hornets could only throw up a desperation heave with 0.8 seconds left.

“Every play was crucial,’’ LaVine said. “We just kept hitting shots. Something happened [on the steal]. I pretty much said, ‘[Expletive] it, I’m going for the game.’

“Once I shot it, I knew it was cash.’’

Confident? Absolutely. That’s quite a turnaround for LaVine, who admittedly was unable to go to sleep until “4:30 or 5 in the morning’’ after the loss to the Heat.

Before this game, LaVine and coach Jim Boylen confirmed that they had a meeting in Boylen’s suite on Saturday afternoon with only one item on the agenda: hashing out what took place in the loss to the Heat.

Boylen benched LaVine within the first 3:30 of that game, then described his defensive miscues as “egregious.’’

That didn’t sit well with LaVine, who felt he was unfairly singled out by Boylen, resuscitating a storyline from last season that the two just don’t see eye-to-eye.

“I let him know how I felt,’’ LaVine said. “I don’t want it to get bigger than that. . . . We’re not going to try to drag this out. We had a misunderstanding. We still have a lot of things to work out as a team. We all have to be accountable for our actions, so I think that’s where we’re at.’’

That sounds like a good starting point for their relationship, but there’s undoubtedly work to do.

“[LaVine] came to the suite, and we just talked,’’ Boylen said. “It was good. It’s what we’ve done. It’s what we do. Our goals are the same — for him to become the best player he can become and for our team to play better basketball more often. Nothing has changed on that. And we’re moving forward.’’

Boylen said he wasn’t the least bit bothered that LaVine was so vocal after the Heat game about being “singled out’’ and even questioning the trust between him and Boylen to the media.

“No, because I know Zach’s heart,’’ Boylen said. “I know what kind of person he is. I know he cares about the team. I know he cares about playing good basketball. I know we all can get frustrated with a poor performance, me included with my performance. Those things happen.’’

That’s why Boylen had no problem calling out LaVine, and he even confessed that he had singled him out.

“Yeah, that’s the greatest love you can show somebody,’’ Boylen said.

“It’s to try to help them become who they can become.’’

Well, for at least one night, LaVine once again became the face of the franchise.