White getting closer, but return date still in limbo
The Bulls said they expect injured guard Coby White to return to full activity in November. So where do things stand?
"He actually started to do a little bit of contact against the player-development guys," coach Billy Donovan said before Monday's game. "Certainly he's not cleared to go into contact with practice, but they've been cleared to do some things with him, obviously very, very controlled.
"I don't know what that timetable is from him doing a little contact with the player-development guys to, 'OK, here's a date, we know he can practice.' But I think he's getting closer to that date."
The other question is what will the Bulls do with White when he's fully recovered from left-shoulder surgery and does return to the court. Last year, he started at point guard. This season, the Bulls have Zach LaVine, Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso playing heavy minutes at the guard spot.
"Performance is obviously going to tell us how much he's going to play," Donovan said. "He's still got to get his timing back. The one thing he brings to our team is he brings shooting, especially if he's coming off the bench with that second unit we can use some extra shooting out there. He'll really kind of boost that group."
That point is true. One clear need for the Bulls early this season has been a consistent scorer off the bench, or anyone outside of the Big Four, since Caruso is more of a defender and do-everything guy than a scorer.
"I'm not 100% sure of what that's going to look like, but I do want (White's) playmaking, his creativity, be aggressive, and I'm obviously looking at a point of where he was at the end of last year hoping he can get to that place," Donovan said.
Alternative uniform revealed:
The Bulls released this year's city edition uniform, which is generally based on the debut season of 1966-67, but has elements from other eras.
The side stripe and number are from the 1970 jersey worn by Jerry Sloan and Bob Love, it has a script Chicago across the chest, which was used through 1984, while the off-color logo on the shorts will be on a background of black with red pinstripes, a look worn in the 90s.
The Bulls are planning to debut the city uniforms on Nov. 27 against Miami and will wear them once per month for a total of six home games.
Bulls notes:
Lonzo Ball is hosting a trick-shot challenge. Participants can post their shot on Instagram or TikTok, tagging @Zo and the sponsor, @C4Energy. ... Heading into Monday's action, the Bulls led the NBA in points off turnovers and were third in turnovers created.