Deng slowly improving; doubtful for Game 4
As practice ended at the Berto Center on Sunday, Luol Deng sat on a chair and watched his teammates shoot around.
Deng said he's willing to play 5 or 10 minutes if it would help the Bulls, but so far, he hasn't been able to sustain any activity. He's still suffering the aftereffects of a spinal tap administered on May 2 and is very unlikely to play in Monday's Game 4 against Miami.
“(The headache) is not as bad as it was before,” he said. “I tried to practice (Saturday), do some individual work and I just started throwing up a little bit, couldn't finish the workout. I tried to practice with the team today and the same thing. My system is just not reacting well to anything I'm doing right now.”
Deng estimated he might have put back 2 pounds after losing 15.
“I'm just trying to get back to how I do things normally,” he said. “It hasn't been that easy. It's easier not eating solid food.”
When his condition will improve is anyone's guess. Deng not only suffered from severe flu symptoms, but after the spinal tap, his body continued leaking spinal fluid. It's up to his body to replace the fluid.
“I've been trying to read up on it and trying to get info back. You hear different stuff about it,” Deng said. “I guess everybody's body is different. Some people go through it and it's worse (than this).”
Asked if he thought his medical care was handled correctly, Deng declined to make any judgments.
“I'm not here to talk about that. The main thing for me right now is try to get better,” he said. “It just (stinks). It's not like an injury where you can play through it and it kind of slows you down a little bit. It's just one of those things. Not even (just) basketball-wise, doing regular stuff is harder.”
Kirk Hinrich shot around, rode the bike and walked on a treadmill Sunday. His status for Game 4 is questionable at best with a left calf injury.
Thibodeau fined for critique:Rip the referees after a game and the NBA will act. Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau was well aware of that fact and he was docked $35,000 by the league office for his comments following Game 3.The fine was announced after Thibodeau met with the media. He declined to comment through a team spokesman.Center Nazr Mohammed did not hear anything from the league office. No one with the Bulls expects Mohammed to be suspended for his two-handed shove of LeBron James in Game 3, which resulted in an ejection.Mirotic, Madrid fall short:Bulls draft pick Nikola Mirotic had 7 points and 3 rebounds Sunday while his Real Madrid squad lost to Olympiakos 100-88 in the Euroleague championship game in London.Former Bulls guard Acie Law produced 20 points and 5 assists for Athens-based Olympiakos, which won its second straight title. The 6-foot-10 Mirotic, 22, averaged 13.3 points and 5.3 rebounds during the season. He's not expected to join the Bulls until 2014 at the earliest.No Sales28572017Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau yells to his team during game 3 of the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals at the United Center on Friday.Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.comNo Sales