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Wade Working Out In Hopes Of Playoff Return

March 29th, 2017 at 8:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

Dwyane Wade is making an effort to be ready if the Bulls reach the postseason, writes K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.

Wade, who has a small fracture in his right elbow, has been shooting and participating in non-contact drills, coach Fred Hoiberg told reporters today. However, he cautioned that it’s too early to tell if Wade might receive medical clearance.

“He got a really good sweat in [today],” Hoiberg said. “Just continue to try to increase his workload and hopefully he responds well. He just has a little bit of soreness and stiffness after [shooting], but they want him out there testing it. It’s a work in progress.

“He’s a true pro. He’s working every day. He’s in the weight room, he’s on the treadmill, he’s doing everything that he possibly can. And again, he’s upping his activity on the basketball court. That’s a good sign.”

It has been two weeks since Wade suffered the injury, which will sideline him for the rest of the regular season. The team has gone 3-3 without him and remains in a tight Eastern Conference playoff race, just one game behind eighth-place Miami coming into tonight.

Wade’s teammates are confident the 35-year-old can be ready if they secure a postseason spot.

“We truly believe that,” Nikola Mirotic said. “We see him every morning working, stretching, doing his treatments, sweating. You can see that he really wants to get back, too. It’s important.”

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Rondo, Mirotic Playing Some Of Their Best Ball Of Season

March 29th, 2017 at 4:16pm CST by Luke Adams
  • There were times this season when Rajon Rondo and Nikola Mirotic found themselves on the outs in the Bulls‘ rotation, but they’re playing some of their best ball of the season as of late, writes Sam Smith of Bulls.com. Rondo has a partially guaranteed salary for 2017/18, while Mirotic will be a restricted free agent, so both players are increasing their value at the right time.
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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 3/29/17

March 29th, 2017 at 3:33pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Wednesday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • Point guard Cameron Payne is back with the Bulls, having been recalled from the D-League following Windy City’s win on Tuesday, the club announced today in a press release. Payne was instrumental in last night’s win, scoring a team-high 20 points to go along with nine assists, five rebounds, and five steals.
  • The Rockets have sent Troy Williams and Isaiah Taylor to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle, who notes (via Twitter) that rookie big man Chinanu Onuaku will stay on the NBA roster to start the team’s road trip.
  • The Raptors have recalled Bruno Caboclo and Pascal Siakam from their D-League affiliate, the team announced today (via Twitter). Neither the Raptors nor the Raptors 905 are in action until Thursday, so we’ll see if the duo sticks with the NBA club for that game.
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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 3/28/17

March 28th, 2017 at 10:07pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Check out Tuesday’s D-League assignment and recalls from around the league:

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Bulls Notes: Rondo, MCW, Mirotic

March 27th, 2017 at 4:51pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Rajon Rondo‘s first season with the Bulls didn’t get off to a great start. The point guard clashed with coach Fred Hoiberg and the team benched him for five games as a result.

“I tried to stay away from milking what was going on. I didn’t want anybody to feel sorry for me,” Rondo said (via K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune). “It didn’t break me down. I didn’t need sympathy calls. People did call and care and send texts. But if you know me, it’s going to be hard to break me.”

Rondo has since re-joined the rotation and he’s been starting over the last eight games. The point guard said he and Hoiberg talk more now than they did earlier in the season. “He’s telling me a lot of positive things. Fred’s a great guy,” Rondo said. “We didn’t talk much when I wasn’t playing. But I was still studying him as a coach. I was watching his moves, when he called timeout, his substitution patterns. I wanted to continue to stay positive and learn a different aspect of the game versus sitting there feeling sorry for myself.”

Here’s more from Chicago:

  • Rondo’s salary for the 2017/18 campaign, which is worth slightly under $13.4MM, will become guaranteed if he remains on the roster on July 1. Only $3MM of that amount is guaranteed should the Bulls decide to waive him before that date. Rondo isn’t paying attention to the financial situation, but instead, he’s focusing on getting the Bulls to the postseason, as Johnson relays in the same piece. “I can’t worry about next season,” Rondo said. “I just want to do what I can for this team this season, lead the young guys and make a push.”
  • Michael Carter-Williams, who will be a free agent this offseason, wants to remain with the Bulls, according to Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times (Twitter link). Woelfel adds that MCW hasn’t ruled out returning to the Bucks.
  • Nikola Mirotic will be a restricted free agent this summer and it’s not out of the question that he re-signs with the Bulls, Johnson writes in a separate piece. Earlier in the month, Mirotic found himself out of the rotation, but he’s played well since earning more minutes.
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Central Notes: Bucks, Pacers, Lopez, James

March 25th, 2017 at 12:48pm CST by Milo Taibi

The Bucks are going to be without John Henson for the next few games, as Chris Haynes of ESPN reported Henson would be sidelined for a week with a left thumb sprain (article link). According to Haynes, Henson sustained the injury at some point during Milwaukee’s match-up against the Trail Blazers on Tuesday.

While Milwaukee will be short-handed for at least the next two games, Michael Beasley appears close to returning. Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Beasley could come back by next week, if not by the end of the season (Twitter link). Beasley has been out since February 27 with a hyperextended left knee.

Other goings-on around the Central…

  • Robin Lopez knew he was going to receive a suspension when he threw a punch at Serge Ibaka, Vincent Goodwill of CSN Chicago writes. Fortunately for the Bulls, Lopez received a light one-game suspension following a “pretty straight-forward” deliberation process from the league. “I mean, that’s what the league gave. I’m going to stick with it,” Lopez said, adding, “I didn’t change my story.” In his return from the suspension, Lopez went 0-for-6 from the field over 18 minutes.
  • The Pacers snapped their bizarre streak of 15 games alternating wins and defeats last night, taking a 125-117 loss to the Nuggets. Several players and coach Nate McMillan voiced frustration following the game, sensing a lack of urgency. “We’ve got to play like our life is on the line like it is,” Jeff Teague told Nate Taylor of Indy Star. “We’ve got to be aggressive and leave it all out there. Every game from now on is a must win for us. We’ve got to play like it. This was a bad loss at home and we didn’t come out to play. We just didn’t have the effort.” Despite falling to .500, the Pacers maintained their spot as the Eastern Conference’s seventh seed.
  • LeBron James suffered a corneal abrasion of his right eye during Friday’s match-up with Charlotte, Dave McMenamin of ESPN reports (article link). James, who is questionable to play tonight against the Wizards, told reporters his vision was blurry following the injury. “Just took a hard foul — a hard fall, I’m sorry. And I just got up and made my free throws, I think I made them,” said James. “I was just trying to put pressure on the rim, so, if coach decides to give me a game off, it’s not because I’m resting. It’s because I’m banged up.”
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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 3/24/17

March 24th, 2017 at 10:22pm CST by Milo Taibi

Here are Friday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

10:22pm:

  • The Warriors recalled forward Kevon Looney from their D-League affiliate earlier today, the team announced in a press release. Looney, who put up 10 points and eight boards in just 13 minutes for Santa Cruz on Thursday night, is back with Golden State for tonight’s game against Sacramento.

11:50am:

  • The Bulls recalled Cameron Payne from Windy City, the team announced via press release. Payne has made nine NBA appearances since being acquired from OKC, scoring 54 points on 33.9% shooting in that span. In his most recent D-League stop, Payne scored 14 points with eight assists and seven rebounds in a win over the Iowa Energy.
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Bulls Could Pick Up Rajon Rondo’s Option

March 24th, 2017 at 3:33pm CST by Milo Taibi

Bulls.com beat writer Sam Smith addressed several topics in his most recent mailbag, including the status of veteran point guard Rajon Rondo (article link). Interestingly, despite Rondo’s tumultuous season in Chicago, it is “no longer ridiculous” to envision the Bulls picking up Rondo’s $13.397MM option for 2017/18. Rondo has “remained and emerged as the one true point guard on the roster,” Smith notes, while serving as a great mentor for younger players.

Rondo’s contract is partially guaranteed for next season, meaning Chicago could create an additional $10MM+ in cap room by cutting him. If the Bulls decide to part ways with Rondo, they’ll want to make that decision by June 30, as they’ll only be on the hook for $3MM of his contract. Smith points out that Rondo could serve as a useful stopgap before the team receives a big payroll for free agency in 2018.

The Bulls are still very much in the playoff picture- just one game behind Miami for the eighth seed- thanks in part to Rondo’s quality play of late. The 31-year-old has posted 12.8 points on 49.2% shooting with 7.7 assists over his last six games, a sharp improvement from his rocky start to the season.

Along with Rondo’s production comes his baggage, of course. This season Rondo has publicly aired out teammates Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler, saying “my vets [on the Celtics] didn’t pick and choose when they wanted to bring it” (link). Additionally, Ken Berger of Bleacher Report asserted that Rondo “just flat-out blows off” coach Fred Hoiberg‘s play calls.

Rondo spoke with K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune in mid-March, refusing to focus on his contract during the team’s playoff chase.

“I’ll visit that in the offseason. I’m just focused on trying to make the playoffs and do what I can for this team to help us win each game,” Rondo said. “I tried to stay positive throughout the entire thing. I’m not going to point fingers or say anything toward the organization. They gave me the opportunity to play for the Chicago Bulls and that was the goal from the jump.”

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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 3/23/17

March 23rd, 2017 at 9:41pm CST by Dana Gauruder
  • The Cavaliers recalled center Larry Sanders from their D-League affiliate, the Canton Charge, the team announced on its website. Sanders signed with Cleveland on March 13th after Andrew Bogut suffered a leg fracture. Sanders made a brief appearance in one game with the Cavs last week and also played a game with the Charge before his recall.
  • The Thunder assigned forward Josh Huestis to the Oklahoma City Blue, according to a team press release. Huestis is averaging 14.0 PPG and 6.3 RPG for the Blue, who play the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on Friday.
  • The Bulls assigned point guard Cameron Payne to the Windy City Bulls, according to the D-League team’s Twitter feed. Payne played against the Iowa Energy on Thursday and had 14 points and eight assists in 26 minutes.

 

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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 3/22/17

March 22nd, 2017 at 10:54pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Here are Wednesday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • The Nuggets have assigned Malik Beasley to their D-League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, according to a team press release. This will be Beasley’s sixth assignment this season.
  • The Bulls have recalled Cameron Payne from the Windy City Bulls, according to a team press release. Payne played for Chicago’s D-League affiliate on Tuesday, scoring 22 points in 25 minutes.
  • The Raptors have recalled Pascal Siakam from their D-League affiliate, the Raptors 905, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Siakam is one of several 2016 first-rounders whom have been sent to the D-League this season, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors details.
  • The Cavaliers have assigned Kay Felder to the Canton Charge, according to the team’s website. Felder has appeared in nine games for Cleveland’s D-League affiliate, scoring 30.4 points per game.
  • The Warriors have assigned Kevon Looney to the Santa Cruz Warriors, according to the team’s website. Looney has appeared in three games for the Warriors’ D-League affiliate this season.
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