Markkanen out 6-8 weeks as Bulls catch injury bug early
On media day, John Paxson and Fred Hoiberg talked about how great it was to be heading into training camp with everyone healthy.
It didn't take long for that to change. There was mild bad news on the first day of practice when Denzel Valentine suffered a left ankle injury. He'll likely be reevaluated in two weeks.
The news got worse on Friday evening. Lauri Markkanen suffered a right elbow injury during Thursday's scrimmage and the next morning when Hoiberg spoke to reporters, the Bulls coach felt optimistic the problem was minor. But an MRI showed a high grade lateral elbow sprain and the Bulls announced Markkanen will miss 6-8 weeks.
If Markkanen is out for six weeks, he'll miss the first 12 games of the regular season. At eight weeks, he'd miss 18 games. Needless to say, this is a setback to a season where the Bulls were hoping to take a step forward. The team was counting on Markkanen to build on his impressive rookie season and show that he's a future NBA star.
The second-year forward from Finland averaged 15.2 points and 7.5 rebounds last season. He showed up for media day sporting a more muscular frame and said he put on 17 pounds since last season.
Rookie center Wendell Carter Jr. took a hard fall on his left shoulder during Thursday's scrimmage and also skipped Friday's practice session.
Valentine had a similar experience two years ago as a rookie, suffering a left ankle sprain early in training camp which set him back at the start of the regular season. Last year he appeared in a team-high 77 games.
"It's a moderate sprain, so I don't think there's too much concern and hopefully when we get him back in the next week or two, he won't have any more issues," Hoiberg said.
Valentine's injury shouldn't be a significant issue for the team. The third-year swingman should be able to catch up quickly from the missed time and the Bulls are deep at the wing positions, so this is a chance for younger guys like Antonio Blakeney and rookie Chandler Hutchison to play.
At the same time, the NBA has shortened training camp and preseason, preferring to spread out regular season games. The Bulls play the first of five preseason games Sunday against New Orleans at the United Center, and the Oct. 18 opener in Philadelphia is less than three weeks away.
"Denzel is a very important part of this team," Hoiberg said. "He's just a guy that makes the right play and he can make a shot and he's got good skill level and he knows where to be. So he's a big part of what we do. With that said, it's a good opportunity for Chandler to get out there and get an opportunity. I thought he was terrific in the scrimmage yesterday. It gives Antonio and opportunity to get out there and show what he can do."
And even with Markkanen's setback, the injury news is relative. A year ago, Zach LaVine and Jabari Parker were both recovering from ACL injuries, Parker in Milwaukee; and Cameron Payne was sidelined by foot surgery. Still, Paxson might have spoken too soon on media day.
"What's exciting is we're healthy," Paxson said Monday. "We start the year (Tuesday) and we're healthy. We feel we're deep. We've got at least two-deep at every position, so we expect training camp to be ultracompetitive, where guys will earn the minutes they get on the floor, and that is very important for us."
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