Zach LaVine feels ready to dive into the second half of the Chicago Bulls season after a trip to California — and a weekend in Cleveland for the NBA All-Star Game — but knee soreness will weigh on the guard for the rest of the season.
After playing with significant pain in his left knee and sitting out intermittently the last two months, LaVine missed the final three games ahead of the All-Star break to visit a specialist in California. LaVine’s left knee has been a point of concern since tearing his ACL in 2017.
LaVine said Saturday that the treatment included draining fluid from the knee and receiving two injections — cortisone to reduce inflammation and platelet-rich plasma to accelerate healing in his tendons and ligaments. Although LaVine said he feels “way better” following the rest and treatment, this isn’t a permanent fix.
Injections and rest might be the best option to carry the guard into the playoffs. But LaVine doesn’t expect to feel better until the offseason at the earliest.
“It will get me through the end of the season,” LaVine said. “Then in the offseason I’ll be able to take care of it, try and get myself to 100%. But this season is important enough for me personally, I’ll be able to go out there and play, do what I’m able to do still.”
The Bulls will take a measured approach to LaVine’s minutes to monitor his injury through the regular season. Coach Billy Donovan already aired the possibility of resting LaVine for one night in each of the Bulls’ final four back-to-backs of the season. LaVine could also take other nights off in the future, although the guard said he “hates” sitting out.
While the Bulls will weigh LaVine’s options to rest on a game-by-game basis, LaVine said he didn’t want to skip All-Star weekend if he felt healthy enough to play — especially as he chased a 3-point contest trophy.
LaVine couldn’t add that piece of hardware to his shelf this year. He was eliminated in the first round of the contest with a score of 14, missing all of his money-ball shots and failing to finish before the buzzer sounded.
LaVine could have become the first NBA player to win both the slam dunk and 3-point contests, but that accomplishment will have to wait for another year.
“This All-Star Game means a lot to a lot of us,” LaVine said. “If I’m healthy to play then I’m going to play. It means a lot to me. … There isn’t anybody that’s done it before, and I think I’m in a unique situation where I’ve already won the dunk contest twice. I think I have a chance to win.”
For teammate and fellow All-Star DeMar DeRozan, seeing LaVine back on the court was a relief. DeRozan averaged 38.7 points per game during LaVine’s absence and recorded a seven-game streak of scoring at least 35 points and 50% shooting that broke a Wilt Chamberlain record.
Although he joked about having to “pick up the load” when LaVine went out, DeRozan said the Bulls don’t have unrealistic expectations when the guard returns. With DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic, the Bulls have enough options to take some of the workload and weighty expectations off LaVine’s shoulders.
“I haven’t been 100% in 13 years. We’ve just got to figure out a way,” DeRozan said. “We’re going to help him through it. He don’t have to be the Zach of the last few years. So we’ve just got to figure out a way to make sure we don’t put too much load so he can be effective and it won’t weigh down on him.”