Coby White

Central Notes: McClung, White, LaVine, Green, Rollins

October 29th, 2025 at 10:12am CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on 107.5 The Fan in Indianapolis on Tuesday (Twitter video link), Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said that Mac McClung was the most impressive participant in a three-player free agent workout the team hosted on Monday, earning him a non-guaranteed deal. According to Carlisle, the Pacers believe the three-time dunk contest champion is a more well-rounded player than his limited NBA résumé suggests.

“He can score, he’s a hard-playing guy,” Carlisle said. “For all the things we did in the workout, he didn’t dunk the ball once. … We need a guy that has energy, can go hard, is healthy – I think ‘is healthy’ is probably the number one thing – and that can play a couple of positions. He can play point, he can play off the ball.”

McClung’s contract with Indiana is a two-year, minimum-salary deal that includes a team option for 2026/27, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). He has a cap hit of $2,283,168 for the current season, but would only be assured of earning that full amount if he remains under contract through January 7.

Here’s more from around the Central:

Although Bulls guard Coby White is scheduled to be reevaluated next week, there’s no guarantee he’ll be cleared to return at that time from what head coach Billy Donovan refers to as a “tricky” calf strain, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “Just talking to the medical, here’s the problem: Like (White) doesn’t have any pain at all with what he’s doing,” Donovan explained on Monday. “He’s on the court shooting, he’s able to jog, but what ended up happening and what became a problem when we were playing competitively in practice were those stops, starts, quick explosiveness that maybe he’s not doing a lot of that in individual workout.”
Wednesday’s game between the Bulls and Kings will mark the first time Zach LaVine returns to Chicago as an opponent since being traded to Sacramento in February. Bulls center Nikola Vucevic wants to see his former teammate get a warm reception from fans at the United Center. “I hope Bulls fans give him the welcome he deserves,” Vucevic said, per Paul Sullivan of The Chicago Tribune. “He gave a lot to the Bulls organization throughout the years. I know people criticized him at times, but it wasn’t always fair. He’s a great guy, always competed, played hard, tried his best and cared and wanted to do what’s right for the organization. He didn’t win, but I don’t think he always had the pieces (around him). And when we did, it didn’t work out for all of us.”
Newly signed to multiyear contracts, A.J. Green and Ryan Rollins have played important roles in the Bucks‘ 3-1 start this season, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Green has knocked down 3.3 three-pointers per game at a 59.1% clip, while Rollins has stepped in as the starting point guard following Kevin Porter Jr.‘s ankle injury and is averaging 15.3 points, 4.3 assists, and 3.0 steals per contest. Green signed a four-year, $45MM extension earlier this month; Rollins received a three-year, $12MM contract as a free agent in July.

Coby White Out At Least Two Weeks Due To Calf Strain

October 20th, 2025 at 11:41am CST by Dana Gauruder

Bulls guard Coby White will miss at least two weeks of action due to a calf strain, the team’s PR department tweets.

“Coby White has resumed on-court basketball activities and continues to make progress in his ramp up phase for a right calf strain,” the Bulls said in a statement. “White will be reevaluated in two weeks.”

The Bulls open their season on Wednesday with a home game against the Pistons. They’ll also play at least five more games within the next two weeks.

Whilte has been battling a calf strain since August and didn’t play in any preseason games this fall, though he “looked good” after going through most of the contact portions of Saturday’s practice, according to head coach Billy Donovan. Donovan added at that time that White would go through additional contact work on Monday after taking Sunday off.

White hinted on Saturday that he might miss the season opener, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network tweets. The announcement on Monday suggests to club wants White to be fully healthy when he returns so there are no setbacks.

White is headed to unrestricted free agency next summer. He’s reportedly informed the Bulls that he doesn’t plan on signing an extension this season due to limitations on what they can offer him.

White averaged a career-best 20.4 points, 4.5 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game last season.

Injury Notes: Queen, White, Brown, Raptors, Rockets, More

October 18th, 2025 at 2:08pm CST by Rory Maher

Rookie big man Derik Queen has been medically cleared to participate in full basketball activities, the Pelicans announced today (via Twitter).

Head coach Willie Green said Queen was a full participant in Saturday’s practice, tweets Will Guillory of The Athletic. While the team wants to get Queen up to speed, Green said New Orleans will be careful not to rush the process after a lengthy layoff.

Queen has been rehabilitating from July surgery to address a torn scapholunate ligament in his left wrist, an injury he sustained at Summer League in Las Vegas. He was a limited participant during New Orleans’ training camp due to the injury.

Queen was selected with the 13th overall pick in June after the Pelicans sent Atlanta this year’s No. 23 selection and an unprotected 2026 first-rounder (the most favorable of New Orleans’ and Milwaukee’s picks) for the right to draft the Maryland big man, who was highly productive in his lone season with the Terrapins. In 36 games last season, the 20-year-old forward/center averaged 16.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.1 blocks in 30.4 minutes per contest.

We have several more injury notes from around the NBA:

Bulls guard Coby White, who has been battling a calf strain since August and didn’t play in any preseason games this fall, “looked good” after going through most of the contact portions of Saturday’s practice, according to head coach Billy Donovan (Twitter links K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network). Donovan added that White would go through additional contact work on Monday after taking Sunday off. For his part, White said he was encouraged by today’s session, though he cautioned he’s still working on regaining his conditioning and rhythm. “We’ll see. It’s in the works,” White said of potentially playing in Chicago’s season opener, per Johnson.
Celtics star Jaylen Brown sustained a left hamstring injury in Wednesday’s preseason finale. As Jay King of The Athletic writes, head coach Joe Mazzulla didn’t say whether Brown would be active for next Wednesday’s season opener, but the injury doesn’t sound serious — Brown is considered day-to-day, per Mazzulla.
Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic expressed optimism that lottery pick Collin Murray-Boyles could be ready for Wednesday’s season opener in Atlanta after the former South Carolina forward sustained an arm injury last week, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. According to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter links), Murray-Boyles is day-to-day with a right forearm strain.
Although Raptors center Jakob Poeltl missed time during preseason with lower back stiffness and exited Friday’s preseason finale with the same injury, Rajakovic clarified after the game that the Austrian big man was pulled for precautionary reasons (Twitter links via Lewenberg). Poeltl is under contract through 2029/30 after signing a lucrative long-term extension in July.
Forward Jae’Sean Tate, who underwent offseason ankle surgery, went through contract drills in Saturday’s practice, per Rockets head coach Ime Udoka (Twitter link via Danielle Lerner of The Houston Chronicle). The team remains optimistic that Tate will be available for Houston’s season opener, but Dorian Finney-Smith probably won’t be, according to Udoka. Finney-Smith, a free agent addition, is recovering from June ankle surgery.
Former Alabama forward Grant Nelson was originally expected to sign an Exhibit 10 deal with the Nets shortly after Summer League in July, but the signing was delayed until a few days ago due to an otherwise unspecified “stress reaction from overworking,” he told Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “It was like a small, little minor injury that held me out of training camp. And then I feel like I did everything I could. I caught the injury really early, so I wasn’t out long. But it worked out perfect. So now I’m back healthy, feeling 100 percent.”
Backup Lakers center Jaxson Hayes exited Friday’s preseason finale with a right wrist contusion, the team announced (Twitter link via Dan Woike of The Athletic). Head coach JJ Redick said after the game that X-Rays on the wrist were negative, with another update on Hayes expected to come on Sunday, as veteran NBA report Mark Medina relays (via Twitter).
Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija experienced upper back stiffness on Thursday in Utah, causing him to exit Portland’s preseason finale, per the team (Twitter link). It’s unclear if Avdija will miss additional time as a result of the injury.

Bulls Notes: Okoro, Vucevic, Williams, Dosunmu

October 17th, 2025 at 9:46am CST by Luke Adams

Entering the preseason, it seemed obvious that Josh Giddey, Coby White, Matas Buzelis, and Nikola Vucevic would be part of the Bulls‘ starting lineup, but the fifth spot in that unit remained up for grabs. As Julia Poe of The Chicago Tribune (subscription required) wrote when she explored the topic earlier this week, Isaac Okoro, Kevin Huerter, Ayo Dosunmu, and Tre Jones all looked like candidates for the role.

Now that the Bulls’ preseason has wrapped up, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times believes Okoro is the frontrunner to be the team’s fifth starter, and head coach Billy Donovan acknowledged that he’d be comfortable having the newly added forward defending the opponent’s best perimeter player. However, Donovan also stressed that he doesn’t necessarily plan to lock in a lineup and rotation and stick with that group indefinitely.

“I’ve talked to these guys about it, and it’s not probably necessarily conventional just from the perspective of we’ve got to get out of the old-school NBA mindset of, ‘Here’s my rotation, here’s my guys that go in the game and here’s how many minutes they play,'” Donovan said. “I just don’t know if we’re going to be able to do that.

“Probably over 82 games, there will be a consistent group that starts, but maybe some nights we have to change the starting lineup. In my opinion, we have to change starting lineups based on who we’re playing and what the matchups look like for us.”

Here’s more on the Bulls:

Although Vucevic will turn 35 next week and is entering the final year of his current contract, he’s not thinking about the end of his playing career at this point, as Poe relays for The Chicago Tribune (subscription required). “Retirement is not something that’s at all on my mind,” Vucevic said. “I’m just trying to enjoy it — as long, as much as I can.”
With the start of the season around the corner, Poe poses five questions facing the Bulls, including whether Buzelis is on an All-Star trajectory, whether White (calf strain) will be available for opening night, and how often the club will use a two-big lineup featuring Vucvic and Jalen Smith.
After a disappointing fifth year, expectations will be lower for former No. 4 overall pick Patrick Williams as he enters his sixth NBA season, according to Cowley. However, the forward is feeling as healthy as he has in a while and will be focusing on producing more consistently for the Bulls, writes Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic. Donovan, who said he believes Williams can still “carve out a really good niche for himself as an NBA player,” noted that he has seen growth from the 24-year-old but stressed the need for him to be able to string together several good games in a row. “As it relates to Patrick, his minutes and stuff like that, a lot of it will be how consistent he’s playing,” Donovan said. “If it’s not going well — for anybody — we may have to go with someone else.”
Dosunmu has played well in the preseason and appears well positioned for a strong contract year, Cowley writes for The Sun-Times. For his part though, the fifth-year guard isn’t thinking about potential 2026 free agency or what an extension would look like, he recently told reporters. “My main focus is just taking it one day at a time, not worrying about next July or whenever it is, because that’s going to happen when it’s going to happen,” Dosunmu said. “Just stay in the moment.”

Bulls Notes: Ball, Jones, Williams, White

October 11th, 2025 at 8:37pm CST by Arthur Hill

When Lonzo Ball signed a team-friendly two-year extension with the Bulls in February, he knew that he’d probably be in a different uniform before it expired, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. A $10MM annual salary with a club option in 2026/27 made Ball extremely attractive to contenders, and the Cavaliers were the first to pounce, sending Isaac Okoro to Chicago in a July trade.

Ball is happy to be with a contender in Cleveland, and he believes both teams benefited from the deal.

“I think teams trade to try to get better, so Chicago did what was best for them, and I think Cleveland did what they thought was best for them,” Ball said. “So all I can control is where I’m at and who I’m playing for, and that’s the Cavs right now. Go out there and give them my all.”

Ball completed a remarkable comeback last season, appearing in 35 games after missing two and a half years due to recurring knee issues. Cowley expects the Cavs to be cautious with him — limiting his minutes and not using him on both nights of back-to-backs — in order to keep him healthy for the playoffs.

Ball is still a beloved figure in Chicago, and he received a tribute video when Cleveland visited the United Center on Thursday.

“Just thankful, man,” he said. “I made a lot of good relationships here on and off the court. Loved the city of Chicago, and, as you can see, the fans still rock with me, so a lot of love to them. But coaches, man, even my teammates, it’s always great seeing them and hope the best for them moving forward, for sure.”

There’s more on the Bulls:

Re-signing Tre Jones was an offseason priority after acquiring him from San Antonio in a February trade, Cowley adds in a separate story. Cowley believes the addition of Jones made it easier for the Bulls to part with Ball. “He just kind of makes things happen,” coach Billy Donovan said. “He finds guys on cuts, back cuts. He gets to the basket. He’s very calm, got a good IQ, and, yeah, I kind of said it last year — he’s got that ‘it’ factor. He just makes plays.”
After five mostly frustrating seasons with the team, Patrick Williams recognizes the need to improve, per Julia Poe of The Chicago Tribune. He focused on dropping weight during the summer with a high-cardio workout routine that included running through sand dunes in Los Angeles. He hopes the increased mobility will make him more versatile on defense. “I always wanted to be strong and fit, be able to guard fours, guard fives, guard ones, guard twos, guard threes,” Williams said. “That was kind of the mindfulness of it — not wanting to be too slim where I can’t guard different positions, but also being slim enough where my joints and stuff aren’t just aching after games. Not just taking that constant beating and pounding with however many pounds of weight driving on them each and every day. (These are) things that over time you just become mindful of after you deal with a few injuries.”
Coby White remains sidelined with a calf strain he suffered in August, Poe states in another piece. There’s still hope that he might be ready for the October 16 preseason finale and the October 22 regular season opener, but Donovan said the team is being careful not to bring him back too early due to the strain of playing in an up-tempo offense.

Central Notes: White, Jackson, Allen, Hunter

October 9th, 2025 at 8:15pm CST by Earnest Marshall

Coby White has added motivation to return swiftly from a calf strain that’s plagued him ahead of the 2025/26 season, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. White is on track to be an unrestricted free agent next summer and will be looking to build on the best two years of his career.

According to Cowley, early indications are that both the Bulls and White are interested in getting a deal done next summer. Both sides are expected to proceed with caution when it comes to his return from his calf injury.

With White sidelined in Chicago’s preseason opener on Tuesday, Kevin Huerter took the bulk of his minutes and started in his stead. If White is to miss any regular season time, Huerter would be the prime candidate to assume a larger role.

We have more from the Central Division:

After missing all but five games last season due to an Achilles injury, Pacers center Isaiah Jackson seems to have the inside track to the starting center role, according to Dustin Dopirak of IndyStar, who details the big man’s recovery and conditioning process. “I can use my weight,” Jackson said. “I was always physical but I couldn’t move guys how I wanted to. I couldn’t play my brand of basketball. I’d get up to the offensive rim and I’d have to go straight up. Now I can bump people and move people out the way and I don’t really affected by it. Strength wise, I can play defense a little better. I can hold my own.“
The tandem of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley has proven to be effective, but Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated speculates that Allen could be a name to watch at the deadline depending on how the Cavaliers open the season. According to Mannix, most evaluators view Mobley as a long-term center, so there’s a sense that the team could be open to moving Allen at some point for the right return.
De’Andre Hunter had his most successful NBA season in 2024/25 across stints with the Hawks and Cavaliers, averaging a career-high 17.0 points per game and finishing fourth in Sixth Player of the Year voting. He looks poised to carry over that momentum this fall and take another step forward, having recorded 17 points and seven rebounds in Cleveland’s preseason opener. In a subscriber-only piece, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com examines why Hunter’s teammates are expecting a “huge year” from the forward and why head coach Kenny Atkinson has referred to him as the club’s “offseason MVP.”

Bulls Notes: Okoro, White, Buzelis, Kawamura

October 8th, 2025 at 7:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Bulls acquired Isaac Okoro from Cleveland over the summer to help them build a new defensive identity, writes Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic. The 24-year-old swingman’s skills on that end of the court were his calling card during five seasons with the Cavaliers, but his role was starting to deteriorate. Lorenzi notes that Okoro averaged a career-low 19.1 minutes in 55 games last season, and his playing time dropped to 14.2 minutes per night in the playoffs.

“I think for both parties, (Cleveland) probably wanted to change. … For me, I wanted to change,” Okoro said. “Of course, it was hard for both of us to be apart, because that’s where I was drafted to. But in this business, changes happen. Things like this, I look at as a blessing because I’m able to rebrand myself. (It’s) a new chance for me to come to this team and bring a leadership that I’ve learned (from) five years in Cleveland and try to help the team with the things I’ve learned throughout the years.”

Bulls management liked Okoro enough to send veteran guard Lonzo Ball to the Cavs in return. Coach Billy Donovan said the teams have different needs and he believes they both benefited from the deal, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times.

‘‘When I spoke to the front office about (the trade), it was, ‘Hey, this is an opportunity, and what do you think about Isaac?’ ’ Donovan recalled. ‘‘I think the trade, in my opinion, was good (for both teams). We needed some physicality, and Isaac brings that to the table. Where (the Cavaliers are) as an organization now in terms of trying to make a deep playoff run, they had some (backcourt) injuries last year, and this shores up their backcourt a little bit more.’’

There’s more on the Bulls:

Coby White is still recovering from a calf strain he suffered in August, Cowley adds in a separate story. Donovan said White has been running and shooting, and there’s hope he can be ready for the final preseason game on October 16 and the regular season opener six days later. ‘‘The problem is when they all came back after Labor Day, the calf issue was bothering him,’’ Donovan added. ‘‘Treatment, rehab, all that stuff. And then every time they kind of ramped him up a little bit, it kind of always got to a place where he felt tightness. It wasn’t pain, but every time they got to this threshold, he felt tightness. So they basically just shut him down.’’
Matas Buzelis showed no fear in attacking Cavaliers big men Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, Lorenzi observes in a recap of Tuesday’s preseason game. Buzelis finished with 19 points and eight rebounds in 18 minutes, and Lorenzi believes he may be ready for a huge second season.
Two-way point guard Yuki Kawamura was also impressive against the Cavs, handing out five assists in a little more than 14 minutes of action, according to Julia Poe of The Chicago Tribune. Kawamura is the shortest player in the league at 5’8″ and there are plenty of guards ahead of him in the rotation, but he believes he’s a perfect fit for the Bulls’ fast-paced attack if he gets a chance to play. “I feel like it fits me,” he said. “I love the system. That’s why it didn’t take me a long time to adjust to the Bulls’ offense.”
Former NBPA director Justin Jackson – not to be confused with former NBA first-round pick Justin Jackson or former second-round pick Justin Jackson – has been hired as assistant general manager for the Bulls’ Windy City G League affiliate, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.tv.

Players Seeking Paydays This Season

October 5th, 2025 at 5:03pm CST by Eli Cohen

While some players are still hoping to finalize rookie scale extensions before the season begins, the majority of contract situations around the league have been settled at this point. But business never sleeps in the world of the NBA, and many players will enter this season hoping to impress executives and land their next big payday.

Zach Harper of The Athletic details the top names playing for new deals this season, excluding the aforementioned rookie scale extension seekers.

One player not on a rookie-scale deal but still extension-eligible is Michael Porter Jr., whom the Nets recently acquired to add some scoring pop to the starting lineup. Porter’s deal runs for two more seasons and will pay him $38.3MM this year and $40.8MM in 2026/27.

The Nets’ roster remains a major work in progress, making future projections tricky, but at just 27 years old, Porter is in position to have a big year in Brooklyn and boost his stock entering a contract year next summer. The biggest question, according to Harper, is whether Porter’s next deal would remain in the range of the $40MM+ he’ll earn in 2026/27 or if he would take a modest pay cut to secure a longer-term contract.

Harper takes a look at three big men who could hit the open market next summer: Kristaps Porzingis, the Hawks‘ new starting center, longtime Bulls veteran Nikola Vucevic, and the Knicks‘ on-and-off starter Mitchell Robinson. All three have question marks surrounding them — for Porzingis and Robinson, those questions center around health, though Robinson could also be a cap casualty on New York’s increasingly pricey roster.

Vucevic has been in trade rumors for years, and with the Bulls taking more steps to embrace a youth movement than they have in the past, his time in Chicago could be coming to an end. Harper predicts an annual value of around $21MM for Vucevic on his next deal, which is about what he’ll earn in 2025/26.

Another group of players Harper looks at is a trio of high-scoring guards who will be free agents in 2026: Anfernee Simons and Norman Powell, who were acquired this summer by the Celtics and Heat, respectively, and Coby White, who has grown into a talented combo guard over his six seasons with the Bulls. Harper predicts a deal around $20MM annually for Simons, $75MM over three years for White, and a two-year, $50MM contract for Powell.

The 2026 free agency class will also be impacted by the decisions made by veterans with player options, such as Zach LaVine (Kings), Bradley Beal (Clippers), and Austin Reaves (Lakers). Cam Thomas (Nets) and Quentin Grimes (Sixers) will also reach unrestricted free agency after accepting their respective qualifying offers and will be looking to recoup the money they passed on this offseason.

Finally, Harper singles out four role players who could be coveted next season, depending on their performance this season: Rui Hachimura (Lakers), Tyus Jones (Magic), Keon Ellis (Kings), and Georges Niang (Jazz). The 25-year-old Ellis has broken out over the last two seasons and could command his first real payday of his career if he has a strong season off the bench in Sacramento. Harper speculates he could be in line for a deal similar to the three-year, $27.6MM contract Ty Jerome signed with the Grizzlies this summer.

Bulls Notes: Giddey, White, Jones, Williams

October 2nd, 2025 at 5:31pm CST by Rory Maher

While the negotiations dragged into September, Josh Giddey confirmed this week that his contract talks with the Bulls were never contentious, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. The Australian guard re-signed with the Bulls on a four-year, $100MM deal as a restricted free agent.

“When you hit free agency — I was a restricted [free agent] — rumors will start to circulate, and I let my management and agent handle that side of things with the front office here,” Giddey said. “So I tried to stay out of it. When there was something to know, I knew. My agent would tell me. Other than that, there were never any bad feelings. It’s a negotiation, and that’s how it goes. It’s kind of the nature of the business.

“When the season ended, I knew that was going to happen. . . . This is where I always wanted to be, and now I’m locked in for another four years.”

According to Cowley, Giddey said he’s relieved he won’t have to think about a new deal for multiple years.

“Everyone wants to play for that second contract; it’s part of being an NBA player,” Giddey said. “You want to extend your career. I was no different. The fact that it’s locked in and I have four years where I don’t have to think about it is a pretty big weight off my shoulders because it was always kind of lingering.”

Here’s more from Chicago:

Due to the limitations of what they can offer, Coby White has reportedly informed the Bulls he isn’t going to sign an extension before he hits unrestricted free agency next summer. The 25-year-old guard said he’s focused on the present rather than the future, as Cowley relays. “I’m thinking about now and how I can help my team win and become better in every aspect of the game,” White said. “I’m blessed and fortunate to be in this situation, but I always say that I love being here, I love the front office, I love the relationship that I built with Coach (Billy Donovan), and me and my teammates are super close, so I’m enjoying every moment.”
Backup point guard Tre Jones was determined to return to the Bulls instead of exploring external options in free agency, per Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic (Twitter video link). “I definitely wanted to be back. I didn’t wanna think about going anywhere else,” said Jones, who re-signed with Chicago on a three-year, $24MM contract.
Sixth-year forward Patrick Williams lost weight and added lean muscle over the summer in an effort to improve his game, tweets K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network. Williams wasn’t wasn’t pleased with his performance in ’24/25. “I need to be better,” he said of his offseason approach.

Bulls Notes: Buzelis, White, Dosunmu, Jones, Expectations, Giddey

September 30th, 2025 at 9:32pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Bulls forward Matas Buzelis averaged 8.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 18.9 minutes per game while appearing in 80 contests as a rookie. He’s aiming for a major award this season, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times.

“I want to win Most Improved Player this year,” Buzelis said. “That’s what I’m striving for. This is a team sport, and everything is about the team. The individual stuff will come if you win, so I’m worried about winning.”

Here’s more on the Bulls:

Coby White‘s ability to play by the season opener is somewhat in doubt. Bulls executive VP Arturas Karnisovas indicated that White will be limited in camp by a calf strain he suffered in August, K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network tweets. “Hopefully, we can see him by end of preseason,” he said.
Ayo Dosunmu and Tre Jones are “back from injury and ready to play,” according to Karnisovas (Twitter link via Johnson). Dosunmu underwent shoulder surgery in March. Jones dealt with a left foot sprain late last season.
Isaac Okoro, acquired in the Lonzo Ball deal, was mainly used as a defensive stopper with Cleveland. He’ll look to do the same with his new team, according to Cowley. “At the end of the day, you look at every team in the NBA there are guys on winning teams that have to sacrifice,” Okoro said. “Everyone in this league wants to score 20, they probably can score 20. They’re coming from being the best player on their high school team, college team, but people have to make sacrifices. In Cleveland I played my role of guarding the best player on the other team, being the hustle guy, and I don’t mind that. At the end of the day I want to win, so if that’s sacrificing that’s the role that I will play.”
Karnisovas considers player development, rather than wins, as the primary goal in Chicago this season, Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune writes. “This is the way we have to do it,” Karnišovas said. “We have to be patient. We have to do it the right way. We can’t skip steps. For this team next year, we’ve got to show growth.”
It took a while but restricted free agent Josh Giddey signed a four-year contract this month as a restricted free agent. He never believed he’d wind up elsewhere, according to Poe. “I never had any worries I wasn’t going to be here,” Giddey said. “This was where I wanted to be. They embraced me from day one when I first got here — teammates, front office, fans — and it felt like home really quickly. Right from the jump, I made sure my agent knew this is where I wanted to be. I want to be here long term.”

Load More Posts