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Bulls’ Zach LaVine (knee) to miss season opener vs. Heat

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1:31 PM ET

  • Jamal CollierESPN

Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine will miss the team’s regular-season opener against the Miami Heat on Wednesday night with left knee injury management, according to Bulls public relations.

LaVine told reporters after shootaround on Wednesday morning in Miami that his absence was not tied to a setback but rather load management for his knee.

He was not sure of his status for Friday’s game against the Washington Wizards, the front end of a back-to-back before the team’s home opener against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday.

LaVine, who signed a five-year, $215 million max contract this past offseason, played through lingering soreness in his knee during the second half of the 2021-22 season before undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery in May. However, he and the Bulls have continually expressed confidence in his health from the start of training camp, and LaVine played in the team’s first three preseason games, averaging 21.8 minutes per game before sitting out the finale.

As recently as after practice Friday, LaVine once again reiterated confidence in his health exiting the preseason.

“I just feel good,” he said then. “I think that’s been the main thing is not having any aches and pains and being able to go out there and really play without limitations in my own mind. … I’m just happy I feel better.”

LaVine has made the All-Star team the past two seasons and averaged 24.4 points on 47.6% shooting in 67 games last season. The Bulls are already without point guard Lonzo Ball to begin the season while he recovers from knee surgery near the start of training camp.

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Chicago Bulls, Zach LaVine agree to 5-year, $215M max contract extension

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The Chicago Bulls and Zach LaVine have agreed to a five-year, $215 million max contract extension, Klutch Sports announced Friday.

LaVine, 27, has blossomed into a two-time All-Star in Chicago, where he arrived in the trade that sent Jimmy Butler to the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2017, and — along with DeMar DeRozan — was the cornerstone of Chicago’s return to the Eastern Conference playoffs for the first time in five years this past season.

That also marked the first time in LaVine’s career that he had reached the postseason.

Now, he and the Bulls will look to continue that success moving forward, thanks to the two sides sitting down and hammering out a maximum contract extension to keep LaVine in Chicago through his prime.

Since coming to the Bulls in the Butler trade in 2017, LaVine has become a terrific offensive power at every level. He has averaged at least 23.7 points per game each of the past four seasons while being both a high-volume and quality-percentage 3-point shooter, in addition to his explosiveness going to the rim, steadiness at the free throw line (at least five attempts and over 80% shooting the past four seasons) and ability to create for others (at least four assists per game).

This past season — coming off winning a gold medal with Team USA in Tokyo last summer — LaVine averaged 24.4 points, 4.5 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game, all while shooting 47.6% from the field and 38.9% from 3-point range despite being hampered by a left knee injury that required surgery shortly after the season ended.

LaVine suffered a torn ACL in that same left knee in 2017, before being traded to Chicago later that same year alongside the No. 7 pick in that year’s draft, which became Lauri Markkanen and guard Kris Dunn.

Still, LaVine’s growth since arriving with the Bulls led to him making an All-Star appearance in each of the past two seasons.

And LaVine’s signature on a new deal is the culmination of a year-plus effort by Arturas Karnisovas, the team’s executive vice president of basketball operations, to construct a team around LaVine good enough to make Chicago a factor in the East again — and to persuade the star to remain with Chicago.

As a result, the Bulls were busy last spring and summer. They acquired DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic and Lonzo Ball via trades and Alex Caruso in free agency and hired former Oklahoma City Thunder coach Billy Donovan to coach the team.

The sum total of those moves pushed Chicago to the top of the Eastern Conference for much of last season before a series of injuries — notably to Ball, Caruso and second-year forward Patrick Williams — saw the Bulls fall down the standings. They eventually entered the playoffs as a 6-seed, losing in five games to the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the East playoffs.

ESPN’s Jamal Collier contributed to this report.

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Chicago Bulls’ Zach LaVine to see specialist for ailing left knee

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Chicago Bulls All-Star guard Zach LaVine is traveling to Los Angeles to get further evaluation on his left knee but still hopes to participate in next Sunday’s All-Star Game, sources told ESPN.

LaVine has been experiencing discomfort in the knee for several weeks, and although a January MRI showed no structural damage, there’s certainly a level of concern within the organization, sources said.

LaVine was chosen to the second All-Star Game in his career and is averaging 24.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists so far this season. LaVine and Bulls teammate (and fellow All-Star) DeMar DeRozan have been the league’s highest-scoring team duo this season, averaging 52.3 points, according to ESPN’s Stats & Information.

LaVine appeared to struggle through Friday’s victory over Minnesota, shooting 5-of-14 and noticeably wincing on the floor. LaVine sat out Saturday’s victory over Oklahoma City, and he missed consecutive games against Indiana and Philadelphia on Feb. 4 and 6. He will miss games on Monday and Wednesday ahead of the All-Star break, sources said.

The Bulls are withstanding numerous injuries to the backcourt this season, including Lonzo Ball (meniscus tear) and Alex Caruso (fractured wrist), who are out several weeks after undergoing surgery. The team also lost forward Patrick Williams to a wrist injury early in the season, although he’s expected to return this year.

Through it all, the Bulls are 36-21, one game behind first-place Miami in the Eastern Conference standings.

ESPN NBA reporter Jamal Collier contributed to this report.

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Chicago Bulls’ Zach LaVine ruled out vs. Golden State Warriors after injuring left knee

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8:40 PM ET

  • Jamal CollierESPN

CHICAGO — Bulls guard Zach LaVine exited Friday’s 138-96 loss to the Golden State Warriors in the first quarter with a left knee injury and did not return.

LaVine will get an MRI on Saturday, but there’s initial confidence that he hasn’t suffered a serious injury, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

LaVine appeared to begin laboring after grabbing an offensive rebound with just under nine minutes remaining in the first quarter. On the next play, he took an intentional foul on Warriors guard Stephen Curry before taking himself out of the game.

He immediately walked toward the Bulls’ locker room with a team trainer, but LaVine was able to move under his own power.

LaVine is averaging 25.6 points on 49% shooting (41% from 3), 4.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 37 games for the Bulls this season.

The Bulls are already without guard Alex Caruso (health and safety), Derrick Jones Jr. (knee), Javonte Green (groin) and Tyler Cook (ankle).

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Chicago Bulls players have cleared NBA’s COVID protocols and are eligible to play

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CHICAGO — All Bulls players have cleared health and safety protocols and will be available to play in the team’s next game against the Indiana Pacers, coach Billy Donovan said Thursday.

The Bulls had as many as 10 players in the league’s protocols at the start of last week, which led to the NBA’s first two postponed games of the season. Chicago had a third game postponed Wednesday night against the Toronto Raptors because Toronto did have enough available players, which gave the Bulls an opportunity to get whole after their roster was depleted by COVID-19.

“Hopefully we have herd immunity coming back and we won’t have any more guys go down in the later months,” Bulls guard Zach LaVine said after practice Thursday. “I’m just thankful everybody is OK and everybody’s families are OK. Now we can get things rolling again as a full group.”

LaVine rejoined the team for practice Thursday after completing his mandatory 10-day quarantine. He remained asymptomatic during his stint in the league’s protocol, but checked into a hotel room to isolate from his wife for a week full of video games and Netflix.

LaVine, who also missed 11 games last season in the league’s health and safety protocol, said he was able to maintain a workout routine this time and gained six pounds during quarantine. He returned to the court for individual work earlier this week.

“It’s frustrating, but it’s the world we’re living in now,” LaVine said. “A lot of guys and teams are dealing with it. I’m just thankful I only missed two games.”

Devon Dotson, who entered health and safety protocols on Tuesday, had two negative PCR tests in 24 hours and practiced with the team Thursday.

Ayo Dosunmu, Troy Brown Jr., Matt Thomas and Alize Johnson also were cleared to play.

The only players not available for Chicago’s next game are Alex Caruso, who the team plans to reevaluate in 7-10 days after spraining his left foot during Monday’s game, and Derrick Jones Jr., who injured his left hamstring during Sunday’s game.

The Bulls signed two players — Ersan Ilyasova and Mac McClung — to a 10-day contract via hardship exception before Wednesday’s game got postponed. Once players who exit the league’s health and safety protocols are cleared medically to play, the hardship exception is terminated for that replacement player, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks. The player will still receive the full 10-day salary.

“We’re starting to get a little bit more whole,” Donovan said. “We went from trying to add players to our team to looking at what our roster is going to look like going forward. … You’re thinking you don’t have enough roster spots and 24 hours later, you have maybe too many roster spots. We’ll have to figure all that out.”

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Mavericks’ Tim Hardaway Jr. says ‘Bulls are back,’ but Alex Caruso believes improved Chicago not quite there yet

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CHICAGO — After the Chicago Bulls racked up yet another quality victory Wednesday night — the latest, a 117-107 triumph over the Dallas Mavericks at the United Center that moved them to 8-3 on the season — their opponent took note of the way this new-look team has meshed so quickly.

“All I can say is, the Bulls are back, man,” Mavericks guard Tim Hardaway Jr. said.

After beginning the season 4-0 against teams that missed the postseason a year ago, the Bulls have continued their fast start as their schedule has toughened. This week they’ve won back-to-back games against the Brooklyn Nets and Mavericks and are currently tied with the Washington Wizards for the best record in the Eastern Conference.

And although Bulls guard Alex Caruso said he thinks it’s too early to make any grand proclamations himself, he still is encouraged by the way they’re taking care of business.

“We have games here and there where we’re just kind of finding ways to win, and I think that’s the sign of a good team,” said Caruso, who won a title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2019-20. “I think we have a lot of ways to get better. That’s probably the most encouraging thing for me.

“Eleven games into the season, I don’t think you can say anybody’s back, especially for the prestige of the Bulls. They won three championships in a row twice. Being back, that’s a big statement.”

But the Bulls, who have not made the postseason since the 2016-17 season, are routinely making big statements on the court. They put an exclamation point on this game near the end of the fourth quarter with a highlight-reel, 360-degree dunk from Zach LaVine after a crosscourt, overhead pass from Lonzo Ball on a play started after one of Caruso’s career-high-tying six steals.

“Zo’s an incredible passer, QB1 throwing that pass up to Zach,” Caruso said. “And then Zach did what he does.”

Chicago shot 50.6% from the field and 48.4% from 3, with 26 assists to just 11 turnovers.

Even though the Bulls’ leading scorer, DeMar DeRozan, struggled from the field and ended up with just 17 points, the rest of the team stepped up around him. LaVine scored 23 points. Ball had 21 and made 7 of 10 of his 3-point attempts. Their defense held Mavericks star Luka Doncic to just 6-of-18 shooting for 20 points.

The Bulls are in the middle of a grueling stretch against teams that made the postseason last year and will begin a five-game West Coast road trip on Friday against the Warriors, who are an NBA-best 10-1.

But as the Bulls keep notching quality wins, they continue to receive respect from their opponents.

“We’re moving in the right direction,” Ball said. “It’s a brand-new team. Trying to build a new culture here; 8-3 is not too bad.”

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Tom Thibodeau could be eyeing Knicks reunion with Zach LaVine

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As president/coach of Minnesota, Tom Thibodeau once dispatched Zach LaVine to Chicago in a 2017 trade for Jimmy Butler.

But the Knicks coach sounded like he wouldn’t mind reuniting with the current Bulls shooting guard, noting his improvement. There’s speculation the Bulls would put LaVine on the trading block before he becomes a 2022 free agent. That could be before March’s trade deadline, this summer or at the next trading deadline.

The Knicks need more scoring and LaVine is a sniper — one of the best dunkers in the NBA. He’s averaging 26.8 points and 5.3 assists. SNY reported over the summer LaVine would be on the Knicks’ radar.

The biggest edge the Knicks would have over many teams interested is they have $18 million in cap space to absorb a big contract without giving away much salary. He’s one of many players on the Knicks’ radar, sources contend. Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf could be hesitant to deal LaVine to Thibodeau considering his Bulls’ breakup was ugly.

Before Monday night’s 110-102 loss to the Bulls, in which LaVine scored 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting with five rebounsd, Thibodeau was asked about LaVine’s progression since he dealt him out of Minnesota. Ironically, Butler’s addition to Minnesota created friction with the young players and led to Thibodeau’s dismissal two years ago.

Zach Lavine
NBAE via Getty Images

“He’s continued to grow I think each year,’’ Thibodeau said. “I think sometimes we tend to forget the steps that players take to get to the point to where they are today. and for Zach, he started off, I think he scored around 13 or 14 points a game his first year. Then there was another four-point jump. Now he’s up to 26, 27. He’s shooting 50, 40, 90. He’s an elite shooter. He’s a great athlete. … But he’s a great guy, a hard worker. So you knew he would continue to improve. He’s playing at a very high level.’’

The Knicks also have a trove of draft picks to deal, including two first-round picks this year.

Bulls first-year coach Billy Donovan recruited Julius Randle when Donovan was at Florida. Randle chose Kentucky. Now, Randle is having a career year and shooting well from the 3-point line (37.5 percent) and may be on the verge of making his first All-Star team.

“Thibs is putting him in situations playing to Julius’ strengths,’’ Donovan said. “He’s a handful in the low post. He’s got great feet and ball-handling ability. He’s worked hard on his shooting. He’s shooting the ball much better. Earlier in his career he’s a guy you left alone and try to jam the paint. Now he’s making midrange, 3s, puts it on the floor. He’s a heckuva driver…. He continues to evolve and grow as a player.’’

Donovan coached Knicks backup center Nerlens Noel the last two seasons at OKC. Like Randle, he also recruited Noel but lost him to Kentucky. Noel, who signed a one-year, $5 million deal with the Knicks in November, missed his second straight game with knee soreness.

“I loved him,’’ Donovan said. “I recruited him coming out of high school. A lot of these NBA guys I never got. He’s a terrific teammate and love the way he plays the game with great shot-blocking ability. He sees the floor well for a big guy. He was great for us at OKC. He gave us an incredible two years there — all about the team.’’

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