The Chicago Bulls face their first test in Dwyane Wade’s absence with his elbow injury. A fractured elbow keeps him out for the remainder of the season. How will the team fare moving forward?
Next: Dwyane Wade out for rest of regular season
In Wednesday’s loss against the Memphis Grizzlies, Dwyane Wade suffered an elbow injury in the second half that sidelined him the remainder of the game. The primary fear with such injury was whether or not he would be able to finish the rest of the regular season on a solid note.
Well, any flicker of hope in that regard was lost.
Thursday’s MRI results indicated this, per K.C. Johnson:
MRI showed small fracture in Wade's elbow. He's out for regular season.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) March 16, 2017
Wade finishes his (quite possibly) 57-game lone season with the Chicago Bulls averaging 18.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game. He also shot the ball at a 43.4 percent clip, complemented by a career-high 31.5 percent 3-point average.
The Bulls are faced with their first test without Wade against the third-seeded Washington Wizards this Friday.
You know what this Wade injury means for Fred Hoiberg? More rotation changes to see who starts at the shooting guard position. Yay us!
Hoiberg: "Its a tough blow." Said they're debating between 3-4 guys for Wade's starting role.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) March 16, 2017
You can expect to see more indecisiveness from Hoiberg for the rest of the year. This will be exactly like the irreverent point guard “experiment” that leaves every other point guard with a ‘DNP’ status each game.
With that being said, don’t be surprised if Hoiberg decides to start Anthony Morrow, then Denzel Valentine, or maybe even pull Cameron Payne off the injured reserve list to start at the two-guard position – 10 minutes before tipoff.
The primary question is this – how will they get it done on Friday?