The basketball gods officially hate the Chicago Bulls.
According to Bulls PR, Zach LaVine has entered the NBA’s Health and Safety Protocols with Game 5 a little over 24 hours away. The Bulls are down 3-1 to the Bucks, meaning a loss at the Fiserv Forum tomorrow night will officially end their season.
Zach LaVine has entered health and safety protocols, per Bulls PR
— Jamal Collier (@JamalCollier) April 26, 2022
Zach LaVine is expected to miss Wednesday's Game 5 vs. Bucks in COVID-19 protocols, sources said. https://t.co/WDxP09qxCF
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 26, 2022
LaVine obviously won’t travel with Bulls when they bus to Milwaukee today. Team/LaVine will follow league procedure for follow-up testing in advance of Game 5. Obviously, LaVine’s availability is in serious jeopardy.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) April 26, 2022
LaVine is now expected to miss tomorrow’s contest alongside defensive stopper Alex Caruso, who suffered a concussion in Game 4 due to an inadvertent elbow from Bucks’ guard Jevon Carter.
This now marks LaVine’s third time entering protocols while with the Bulls. The organization also had two assistant coaches in Maurice Cheeks and Damian Cotter away from the team at the start of the series due to positive tests.
With two-straight blowouts at the United Center, it already felt like an uphill battle for the Bulls to steal another game in this series. Take away LaVine – who arguably played the team’s best game with 24 points and 13 assists in Game 4 – and the road to a Game 5 win only becomes that much steeper.