In a game that has to be considered a must-win for first-year head coach Billy Donovan and the Chicago Bulls in a meeting with star point guard Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks on the road on the night of May 1, this team will still be shorthanded in part of their rotation. Star shooting guard Zach LaVine is still missing for Donovan and the Bulls, as is shooting guard/small forward Troy Brown Jr.
The Bulls haven’t seen Brown Jr. play all that much for them since landing him at the trade deadline back on March 25 from the Washington Wizards. Brown Jr. has only played in just over a dozen regular season games in a Bulls uniform since coming over to Chicago on deadline day roughly five weeks ago.
It also feels like forever since LaVine first went into mandatory quarantine due to a violation of the league’s health and safety protocol. It’s now more than two weeks that the Bulls have missed LaVine in the starting five. But it might not be too long before LaVine returns to the Bulls rotation.
Bulls list Lauri Markkanen questionable vs. Hawks with illness. Felicio is out, as is LaVine and Brown.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) May 1, 2021
Troy Brown and Zach LaVine out for the Chicago Bulls vs. Hawks
A report confirmed by K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago on the afternoon of May 1 on his Twitter timeline has LaVine still out due to the violation of the health protocol and Brown Jr. is missing with a lower-body injury. But the Bulls are set to get fourth-year power forward Lauri Markkanen back in the mix against the Hawks.
And, despite being listed on the injury report for this meeting with the Hawks, star center Nikola Vucevic is available for the Bulls. That’s good because the Bulls will need a big game out of both Markkanen and Vucevic to get a win over the much-improved Hawks this weekend.
Following yet another loss to the Giannis Antetokounmpo-less Milwaukee Bucks at home at the United Center on April 30, the Bulls hold a record of 26-37. They are now roughly three games back from the Indiana Pacers and the Wizards in the race to land the final play-in tournament spot in the Eastern Conference this season.
Tip-off time between the Bulls and the improving Hawks in Atlanta, GA, on May 1 at State Farm Arena is set for 7 p.m. CT. The Bulls will be looking to prevent their losing streak from extending to three games on this night.