Bulls big man Andre Drummond comes from the school of “It ain’t bragging if it’s the truth.’’
And he dropped some truths Wednesday.
When discussing his new team’s improved rebounding, Drummond said, “You have the best rebounder of the past century on your team. I take rebounding seriously. And I know that’s something this team lacked. Going after every rebound is something I bring to this team. And I think it’s showing.’’
Oh, it’s showing all right.
The Bulls are coming off a season in which they came up small on most nights. Even with Nikola Vucevic averaging 11 rebounds, the Bulls finished 28th in the league at 42.3 per game.
Only the 76ers and Rockets were worse.
Enter Drummond via free agency, and the returns have been instant. Granted, it has only been a handful of games, but the Bulls were 15th in the league, grabbing 44.8 rebounds per game.
Drummond is doing his part, averaging 8.5 in only 15.3 minutes.
But there’s also a Drummond effect.
The guy who has to battle Drummond almost every day in practice also is seeing an uptick in his rebounding numbers. Through the first four games, Vucevic was averaging 13, including a 23-rebound effort in the Bulls’ victory against the Celtics on Monday.
“I played against him a lot over the years,’’ Vucevic said. “It’s great competition when you go against a guy who has been playing so long and has been an All-Star. It makes you better.
“I think through camp and all our practices, we’ve had good battles when we’ve scrimmaged and done different drills. It has helped both of us. He’s definitely a load down there on the boards. I use my quickness. He definitely has a big size advantage. It makes me have to work extra hard to keep him off.’’
It also helps that Drummond feels like he should be a starter and practices that way.
Last season, the biggest push Vucevic got during intrasquad showdowns came from Tony Bradley, then Tristan Thompson later on.
Drummond is a four-time league rebounding leader and a two-time All-Star. That means no coasting for Vucevic.
“I think that’s what makes this team very good,’’ Drummond said. “We both know we’re very good players, and that brings the next level out of us. With our second unit, it’s pretty much a starting lineup.’’
Billy, Ball
Coach Billy Donovan has been speaking to Lonzo Ball (left knee surgery) on a daily basis since Ball returned to Chicago and started rehabbing at the Advocate Center, but he offered no clear timetable for a possible return.
Ball had the surgery a month ago and was given a window of four to six weeks before being re-evaluated.
“I have not heard anything as of yet with that,’’ Donovan said. “He’s doing good. He feels like he’s progressing. He’s pretty optimistic and positive about everything. I think the biggest thing with the surgery is the incision healing in order to continue to make progress, and I just don’t know how far along he is in that process.’’
Donovan said Ball was expected to stay in town for the re-evaluation.
