Chicago Bulls: 3 injury prone players that could be dealt soon
1) Chicago Bulls injury prone players who could be gone soon
Wendell Carter Jr., Center
Another key piece of the Bulls young core that the new front office regime could get ahead of the game on with potentially dealing him out before he hits the final year of his rookie contract is the third-year former Duke Blue Devils center Wendell Carter Jr. The talented but injury prone 6-foot-10 and 270 pound 270 pound Atlanta, GA, native has yet to go through a full season with at least one significant injury problem.
The combined injury issues that are presented to this Bulls team from both Markkanen and WCJ missing so much game action (this time in unison) makes it really difficult to have confidence in the current direction of the starting frontcourt. When healthy and in rhythm, Markkanen and WCJ provide for a very promising future for the Bulls frontcourt rotation.
But it’s hard to even see a month of game action go by without WCJ and/or Markkanen missing time due to injuries.
Moreover, WCJ has played in 14 games for the Bulls so far this season (starting in all of them), averaging around 27 minutes on the floor per game. And he’s averaged 12.8 points per game, 8.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 0.6 steals, and 0.6 blocks. WCJ shot 53.3 percent from the field, 26.7 percent from beyond the arc, and 72.6 percent from the free-throw line.
The Bulls have rolled with second-year center Daniel Gafford in the starting five more often than not at the five with both WCJ and Markkanen out of the lineup. Gafford is a quality backup big man to have in the mix, but he doesn’t look to be a starting caliber center. The Bulls need to find more of a long-term answer at the five with how often WCJ misses time at key points of the regular season.