Copyright Chicago Sun-Times
MILWAUKEE – Kevin Huerter leads the Bulls in total plus/minus since his arrival in the three-team Zach LaVine deadline deal last February. Not the only plus for the guard, either. At age 27 and on his third team in the last five seasons, he finally feels like he’s found a home. Where it gets tricky, however, are the feelings mutual? Considering the way coach Billy Donovan talks about Huerter it would seem so. But Huerter is a free agent at the end of the season, and on a roster with at least six expiring contracts – including Coby White and Nikola Vucevic – feelings take a backseat to business. Huerter knows that more than most on the roster but also knows where his best fit might be. Hint: It’s right where he is. “I just want to be a part of winning basketball at this point of my career,” Huerter said on Friday. “Whether fans have liked it or not, Billy has preached that since I got here. He’s trying to win. Even when that (LaVine) trade happened, he was like, ‘I know who left the building. Are we going to be a team that folds or are we going to try and make a push to the playoffs, get a little taste of that?’ The energy since I got here hasn’t been, ‘Hey, we’re looking to take a step back.’ It’s been, ‘We’re going to retool and keep going.’ I want to be in an organization that wants to do that and we as players all have a piece in that. “I love the way we play here. It’s a fun brand and good energy to be a part of, and I feel like I’ll have a piece in that success, and I’ll have a piece in the failure if it goes that way at this point.” Quite the change from when he was first traded to the Bulls. Because there was still almost a week until the official deadline came and went, Huerter, Tre Jones and Zach Collins did not dress for games or practice with the team in case another deal came along. They were in a holding pattern but still able to get a sense of the makeup of the organization. “I think for me that little holding period last year, that was as much about figuring out what the organization is looking to do here,” Huerter said. “For me, I’m 27. I feel like I’m right at the start of my prime, so I feel like I have a lot of good years and my best are ahead of me, so it was more about making sure the fit was right. We always really liked the fit. I had heard really good things about Billy as far as him being the head coach, and it’s obviously been great since I got here.” That’s why when the time is right his hope is to stay. Minute man Ayo Dosunmu returned from an injured left quadriceps that cost him the last two games, but he also returned off the bench on a minutes restriction. According to Donovan, the plan was to keep Dosunmu at 24 minutes, hope he can also play in the back-to-back in Cleveland on Saturday, and then re-evaluate the combo guard from there. Robbing ‘em blind Tre Jones kept his ridiculous steal numbers alive and well against the Bucks, grabbing No. 17 on the season in the first quarter. The guard came into the night joining Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Ennis Whatley and Alex Caruso as the only Bulls players with 16-plus steals through the first seven games of a season.
