The Bulls best player to start the season, Lauri Markkanen, wasn’t on the court for the final 3:22 of action against the Warriors on Sunday night (what would have been?). Instead, he had to check out of the game due to a calf contusion, according to head coach Billy Donovan, and will undergo further evaluation on Monday as the team prepares to head to Washington D.C.
(Skip ahead to the 2:20 mark).
LIVE: Head Coach Billy Donovan takes questions from the media after tonight's loss to Golden State https://t.co/EDwc4721F8
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) December 28, 2020
The fourth-year big man dropped 23 points (7-13 FG%, 4-7 3PT%) and grabbed 7 rebounds in his 29 minutes of action. There is no telling whether or not his presence at the end of the game would have changed the outcome, but it is hard to avoid the fact that the Warriors went on a 14-7 run after Markkanen left the floor.
The Bulls coaching staff has made it a clear priority to get Markkanen more involved from the jump, as we’ve seen him take at least 13 shot attempts over the last two games and get to the line for at least 7 free-throw attempts.
While the preseason left some room for concern, Markkanen has shown Bulls fans that he is fully comfortable in head coach Billy Donovan’s new system over the first three games of the regular season. The question now is whether or not he will continue to feel that way after a minor bump in the road. Fortunately, it doesn’t appear as though this injury is a major concern, but we should not jump to any conclusions until the Bulls give him a closer look today. If Markkanen does have to miss some time, it will surely be a concern for this 0-3 Chicago team. Not to mention, for Markkanen, who will have to make sure another injury doesn’t break apart his newfound confidence.