Markkanen should make quick recovery for Bulls from ankle injury
The Bulls received some good news on the injury front.
Rookie Lauri Markkanen left Saturday's loss at San Antonio with an ankle injury. On Monday, he could be seen working on the elliptical machine while teammates began practice, but coach Fred Hoiberg believes Markkanen could be ready to play by Wednesday when the Bulls visit Oklahoma City.
“He doesn't have much swelling in there, so hopefully get him back on the court tomorrow,” Hoiberg said.
Guard David Nwaba was shooting around before practice began and may also return to the court on Tuesday. He has been out since suffering a sprained right ankle on Nov. 4 against New Orleans.
Before the injury, Nwaba had a successful three-game run in the starting lineup. He scored a season-high 16 points when the Bulls won at Orlando on Nov. 3.
Four losses and counting:
The Bulls have lost four in a row, the last two games by a combined 57 points. There will be many more difficult days ahead in this rebuild, but coach Fred Hoiberg hopes to restore some confidence before Wednesday's trip to Oklahoma City.
“Right now we're playing harder in practice than we are in games,” Hoiberg said. “That's going to have to change. A big thing, I look at that second quarter against San Antonio the other night, we scored on 15 out of 18 possessions, which cut a 23-point lead down to 10, had a chance to cut it even further with missed free throws.
“So I know it's within us. But the things that we have to do, we have to find a way to go out and compete on the defensive end when the ball's not falling and we're going through a rough stretch on offense. We have not done that the last couple games.”
Bulls not very offensive:
The Bulls' offense is off to an especially poor start this season. Through Sunday's games, they ranked last in the league in points scored (93.6), field-goal percentage (. 409), offensive rating, which is points scored per 100 possessions (93.8) and pace. One category where they don't rank last is 3-point percentage (. 318) — 29th, one spot ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers.