Bulls lose Dunleavy 8-10 weeks after back surgery

After starting 63 games for the Bulls last season, forward Mike Dunleavy will be sidelined for 8-10 weeks following back surgery on Friday, Bulls officials announced.

Dunleavy, who averaged 9.4 points last season, underwent a low back microdiscectomy procedure at Rush University Medical Center. According to Bulls officials, Dunleavy had experienced back discomfort over the summer that had recently worsened.

After other measures to relieve the discomfort failed, surgery was the next step.

"The timing is unfortunate," Bulls officials said in a statement released to the media, "but it was imperative that all conservative measures were exhausted prior to making this decision."

The Bulls open training camp on Monday, with the first preseason contest on Oct. 6 and the home opener on Oct. 27.

Dunleavy averaged 10.9 points and 4.0 rebounds per game in the playoffs in 32.4 minutes per game. He hits 48.9 percent of his 3-point attempts.