Bulls' LaVine questions Boylen's trust in him after being pulled in loss
The relationship between Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine and head coach Jim Boylen may have hit a rough patch.
Boylen pulled LaVine less than four minutes into the first quarter Friday against the Miami Heat, with the Bulls trailing 13-0. While he re-entered the game at the end of the period, LaVine appeared to feel like he had been singled out.
"I feel I earned that trust, but I guess (Boylen) feels differently," LaVine told Yahoo's Vincent Goodwill after the game. "Other players around the league - and everybody's situation isn't the same - I feel other players around the league have that trust. I guess we haven't got there."
Asked if he trusted Boylen, LaVine sounded hesitant.
"I'm trying my best, I'll say that," he said. "I'm playing my minutes and trying to do the best I can do. It's tough, especially when you're in a rut. If he doesn't trust me, it's hard to trust someone who doesn't trust you."
Boylen said LaVine had been pulled for three "egregious" defensive lapses. "Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen and our starters have to play better," the coach said. "They've got to play better for us to become what we can become. That’s how it works. I didn't want (LaVine) in the game anymore. I think he needed to come over and think about it."
Boylen, who is known as an old-school coach, ordered a practice last season after a Bulls' back-to-back. That incident led to players calling a team meeting to air their grievances with Boylen. Despite that event, the bench boss appeared to have earned the respect of the team - including LaVine. Last March, the shooting guard reportedly paid for the NBA fine levied on Boylen for two technical fouls and an ejection in a game against the Clippers.
"We need to have a sit-down talk? Maybe," LaVine said of Boylen on Friday. "Maybe we should. I think he's a direct guy. We'll figure out a time and place to do it and see where we see eye to eye at."
The Bulls are 5-11 going into Saturday's game against the Hornets.