The Chicago Bulls Zach LaVine is headed to Los Angeles to receive further evaluation on his left knee from a specialist, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
LaVine had 12 points, four rebounds, and six assists in the Bulls’ 134-122 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves Friday night, but he did not play in the team’s win over Oklahoma City Saturday night.
“He’s obviously dealing with knee soreness. We want to manage that as best we can,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said before Saturday’s game, per NBC Sports. “We had basically talked about trying to limit his back-to-back opportunities to kind of give his knee a chance to rest. But we’re probably going to end up going day-to-day with him just to see how he’s feeling. We’re gonna certainly be cautious with him and see how he responds to treatment.”
The 26-year-old has been playing with knee soreness for several weeks; however an MRI in January revealed no structural damage.
This is the same knee LaVine tore his ACL in 2017.
LaVine, in his seventh year in the league, is averaging 24.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 4.5 assists.
Despite concerns over his knee, LaVine is still hoping to participate in the All-Star Game next Sunday.
This would be the second All-Star game of his career, his first coming last season in which he scored 13 points.
After their best start in 25 years, the new-look Bulls have struggled with injuries.
Derrick Jones Jr. finally returned Friday night after being out with a fractured finger, but Alex Caruso is out six to eight weeks with a fractured wrist, and Lonzo Ball is out at least six weeks for knee surgery to repair “a slight meniscus tear.”
Plus, Patrick Williams is out with torn wrist ligaments.
In spite of all their injuries, the Bulls are 36-21 and just one game behind Miami for the top spot in the east.
They have home games against San Antonio and Sacramento before the All-Star Weekend break.