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    Billy Donovan Ripped by Fans After DeMar DeRozan, Bulls Eliminated with Loss to Heat

    Julia StumbaughApril 15, 2023

    MIAMI, FL - APRIL 14: Head Coach Billy Donovan of the Chicago Bulls looks on during the game against the Miami Heat During the 2023 Play-in Tournament on April 14, 2023 at Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2023 NBAE (Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)
    Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images

    A late-game breakdown against the Miami Heat ended the Chicago Bulls' playoff hopes with a 102-91 play-in tournament loss Friday at Kaseya Center.

    Some Bulls fans hoped the loss marked not only the end of the 2022-23 season but also of head coach Billy Donovan's three-year tenure in Chicago.

    Akasei @Akaseipm

    Billy Donovan masterclass <a href="https://t.co/W2M8GELBcC">https://t.co/W2M8GELBcC</a>

    Max Strus, whom the Bulls let walk after the expiration of his contract in 2020, put up 31 points for the Heat while going 7-of-12 from behind the arc.

    That mark was one point shy of a personal best for Strus, and Bulls fans were alarmed by Chicago's lack of adjustment in covering a player having one of the best nights of his career.

    Justin Thomas @JustinThomas52_

    Billy Donovan making absolutely no adjustment of Strus. They deserve this L. Donovan should probably walk..

    The Chicago Bulls Charge @thebullscharge

    Beverly, who shouldn't be in the game, lost Strus.<br><br>Billy Donovan is doing a trash job tonight. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BullsNation?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BullsNation</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bulls?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Bulls</a> <a href="https://t.co/x8qxOnskJa">https://t.co/x8qxOnskJa</a>

    Donovan also earned fans' ire for leaning on Derrick Jones Jr. instead of Andre Drummond, who kept the Bulls in the game with some key rebounds in the third quarter but did not play in the final eight minutes of the contest.

    Damon Plant @itsDamonPlant

    I really want Billy Donovan to get fired. Drummond changed the whole game and you bench him. I don't understand how this man thinks.

    David Chasanov @DavidChasanov

    Billy Donovan should've stuck with Andre Drummond. +8 tonight.

    Billy Donovan Ripped by Fans After DeMar DeRozan, Bulls Eliminated with Loss to Heat
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    The Bulls will now miss the playoffs for the second time in Donovan's three-year tenure as head coach.

    Byron @ByronUFM

    Billy Donovan just isn't a good NBA coach. Drummond and White should've been in the game down the stretch. They were excellent the 2nd half of this game.

    AyoDosTres @AyoDosTresSunmu

    Fire Billy donovan right now

    me @ksea43

    Billy Donovan is the reason the Bulls lost!

    Tracey @TraceyOmar5

    Billy Donovan may be cool coach with the players but his rotations are abysmal. Time to go

    Trill Wennington @killthisguy

    And with that, my NBA season is over. Fire Billy Donovan immediately.

    Lanso_3 @Lanso_93

    Billy Donovan gotta go

    DeMar DeRozan put up 26 points and nine assists for the Bulls in the loss. He was just named a finalist for the NBA's new Clutch Player of the Year award.

    So was Jimmy Butler, who tied Strus' 31 points.

    Drew Stevens @lookwhatdrewdid

    With this game as tight as it is and both Jimmy Butler and DeMar DeRozan on the floor, the NBA should just go 'head and put the title of "Clutch Player of the Year" on the line tonight.

    That's not the only similarity between Butler and DeRozan. DeRozan moved from shooting guard to power forward after leaving the Toronto Raptors, a similar role change to what Butler has been going through with the Heat.

    Friday's matchup showed how those changes helped bring both teams to the brink of the playoffs. Both Butler and DeRozan were hard at work inside the three-point line as the minutes ticked down in a neck-and-neck fourth quarter.

    Weiss @ZackaryWeiss_

    You just knew Jimmy Butler vs. DeMar DeRozan was gonna be great.

    Carter Rodriguez @Carter_Shade

    Isn't it nuts that demar DeRozan and jimmy butler were the starting power forwards in this game and nobody even mentions it<br><br>Those guys were playing EXCLUSIVELY shooting guard like 7 years ago

    Ryan Leach @Leach24

    I don't know how we can make it happen and I definitely don't want it to be in Miami, but a team with Jimmy Butler and Demar DeRozan would be the ultimate lunch pail team. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayIn?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayIn</a>

    In the end, it was Butler who might have earned the title.

    The game was tied at 85 after Butler fed Strus for a layup with just five minutes left in the fourth quarter.

    Tension rose in arena as the teams traded points—until the Heat began to pull away with fewer than two minutes left on the clock.

    A 26-foot Strus jumper off another assist from Butler put the Bulls in a five-point deficit with just over one minute left. Without Diar DeRozan in the crowd to assist, Miami added six free throws to seal the victory and end Chicago's season.

    The eight-seeded Heat will now get ready to face the No. 1 Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday at Fiserv Forum.