Billy Donovan is looking for more from the Chicago Bulls' bench

This year, the lack of consistency is something coach Billy Donovan wants to see his bench improve upon.

© Kevin Sousa-USA TODAY Sports

Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan is looking for more from his bench players. The Bulls are coming off of a brutal home loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and Donovan was not happy with the effort put forth by his reserves, so much so that he increased his All-Star wingmen's minutes in the second half so that either DeMar DeRozan or Zach LaVine would be on the floor with the reserves.

Sluggish ball movement

Donovan cited the reserves' lack of ball movement as a critical factor in the Bulls' 128-96 loss to the Cavaliers. As great as the second unit was in the preseason and training camp, it has yet to translate that success to the regular season.

"I was disappointed because that's not been the group that's been in training camp. The one thing that happened to that group in my opinion that had been uncharacteristic is the ball stopped moving, we didn't help each other," said Donovan.

During a telling stretch in the first half, the Bulls faced a 27-23 deficit when Donovan took out DeRozan, LaVine, and Nikola Vucevic. The Cavaliers then abused the Bulls' reserves, raising their lead to 17, 51-34, eventually setting the tone for the lopsided affair.

Down at the half.

Zach LaVine: 17 pts (7-10 FG), 3 ast, 2 stl pic.twitter.com/5rm50YQUST

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) October 23, 2022

The Bulls' bench knows their role

Although Bulls' big man Andre Drummond has been a starter for most of his career, he has accepted his recent string of reserve assignments. He's come off the bench in his last three stops at Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Brooklyn and now has a solid grasp of his role with the Bulls.

"With our unit, we have to either keep the win and help our team get ahead, or sustain where we're at. We can't come in there and have lapses," shared Drummond.

Against Cleveland, the reserves were so ineffective that Donovan had either DeRozan or LaVine in with the reserves. Drummond welcomed the move, saying it helped create more space and lessen the pressure on their group to make something happen.

"It takes a little bit of pressure off of us because these guys are able to create their own shot and we can feed off of them," Drummond said.

Drummond to the rack!@AndreDrummond | @NBCSChicago pic.twitter.com/6RlBXAlyj9

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) October 23, 2022