The Chicago Bulls have spent most of the season stuck in neutral, and injuries continue to be the common denominator.
Chicago enters mid-January as the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference at 19-21, struggling to generate momentum amid a revolving door of availability issues. Over the past 10 games, the Bulls have gone 4-6, and while several absences have contributed to that slide, none has been more damaging than the loss of Josh Giddey.
Giddey has been sidelined since Dec. 29 after suffering a left hamstring injury against the Minnesota Timberwolves. At the time, the Bulls announced he would miss at least two weeks. More than two weeks later, Chicago has been forced to adapt without its offensive engine with mixed results. That stretch has not been kind to the standings as they have loss 4 of their last 6 games.
On Jan. 14, Bulls head coach Billy Donovan offered a cautiously optimistic update, confirming that Giddey has begun ramping up his activity. The ramp-up period is expected to last roughly a week, putting a potential return on the table before the start of February, if there are no setbacks.
"This is going to be a big week for him," Donovan said Wednesday, via the Chicago Sun-Times. "I'm a little hesitant to say that will happen because I don't think they've really stretched him out to sit there and say. But the plan is, if everything goes well over the course of the week, he should be back relatively soon after that."
Before the injury, Giddey was putting together the most complete season of his career. He's averaging 19.2 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 9.0 assists, numbers that reflect not just production, but responsibility. The ball has lived in his hands, and Chicago's offense has been shaped around his tempo, vision, and ability to impact the game without scoring being the lone focus. That absence shows up clearly in the numbers.
As the Eastern Conference Play-In race tightens, Chicago's margin for error continues to shrink. The Bulls don't need Giddey rushed back, but they do need him healthy, steady, and capable of restoring some structure to a season that has lacked continuity. If his ramp-up continues without issue, that stabilizing presence may not be far off.
Newsweek