Bulls guard Zach LaVine doesn’t play the role of villain very well, but he’s trying.
That was evident again immediately after the Bulls’ improbable comeback victory Saturday against the Heat, when LaVine all but stormed off toward the locker room while his teammates were celebrating on the court.
It was a bad look made worse when cameras caught LaVine pulling his arm away in anger from public-relations director Beth Esler as she was trying to get him to do a postgame interview with the Bulls’ flagship TV station.
‘‘Just a miscommunication with the PR team,’’ LaVine said when asked about the incident afterward. ‘‘We’re all fine.’’
Not really. Sources indicated the front office was made aware of the situation immediately and was less than thrilled with LaVine’s actions. When coach Billy Donovan found out about what happened, he was downright ticked off.
‘‘I’m happy we got a win,’’ LaVine said. ‘‘We play [the Heat again] in a couple of days. You don’t want to just sit around and celebrate. I’d rather celebrate in the locker room.’’
A solid explanation by the Bulls’ newest villain? No. It just came across as petty from a guy who wants to be elsewhere and no longer is denying it.
The Bulls and LaVine are headed for a breakup. When and to which team he goes are still unknown, but how he ends his tenure with the Bulls is something LaVine has full control over. Going from likable and media-friendly to pouty isn’t a good look, and it’s frankly one LaVine will find tough to pull off.
Being the 16th-highest-paid player in the NBA but well outside the top 25 in terms of talent, then becoming difficult to be around? That’s not his personality.
So if LaVine’s postgame actions weren’t just an act to remind the front office to trade him sooner than later, what could have set him off?
Was it another slow start by the Bulls, who fell behind 22-1 to start the game? Maybe. But what was more likely was LaVine making two key three-pointers midway through the fourth quarter to keep the Bulls within striking distance, only to see DeMar DeRozan play hero and deliver the knockout punches in crunch time.
It was DeRozan’s lethal mid-range game that put the Bulls up by a basket with 21.2 seconds left, then his free throws down the stretch that iced the victory.
Like he has so many times the last couple of seasons, DeRozan bailed the Bulls out of a sticky situation. Heck, he even stepped in as the replacement interview after LaVine stormed off.
Afterward, however, DeRozan credited LaVine not only for his scoring in the fourth quarter but for his defense and playmaking late in the game.
‘‘He made some big plays, and without what he did offensively and defensively, we don’t pull this one out,’’ DeRozan said.
DeRozan was asked whether all the trade speculation around LaVine was a reason the Bulls were having such slow first quarters in recent games. Again, he made sure to take LaVine off the hook.
‘‘I don’t think so because before the story even came out, we were getting our ass kicked in the first quarter,’’ DeRozan said. ‘‘That’s just an us thing. We can’t just find something that’s going on with the outside and pinpoint it to that. I don’t think that’s it at all.’’
Spoken like a good teammate.
LaVine might want to take a refresher course on that.
