Bulls will get to face Isaiah Thomas again vs. Lakers this weekend

We’re now just two days away from when the Chicago Bulls are set to resume game action during the 2021-22 regular season in the midst of a large outbreak of COVID-19 cases for players on the team. Second-year head coach Billy Donovan was down more than half of his 15-man roster. At one point this week, the Bulls reached double-digits in terms of the number of players in the league’s health and safety protocol.

The next outing for Donovan and the Bulls is set to come on Dec. 19 at home at the United Center against the Los Angeles Lakers. This game will be the first for the Bulls since they had two games postponed due to the lack of players available on the team this week.

The first game that the Bulls had postponed this week due to all of their players in the health and safety protocol was supposed to come against the Detroit Pistons on Dec. 14. And then, the Bulls were supposed to face the Toronto Raptors on Dec. 16. Those were the two games postponed for the Bulls this week.

When the Bulls face the Lakers on Dec. 19, it will be interesting to see how it plays out since both teams have a plethora of players in the health and safety protocol heading into the weekend. The Bulls are likely still going to be missing four or five players due to the health and safety protocol in this game.

The same might be said for the Lakers at this point.

Chicago Bulls will face Isaiah Thomas as a new member of the Lakers

That is partly why the Lakers went out to sign the veteran former Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics one-time All-Star point guard Isaiah Thomas to a 10-day contract this week. A report from Marc Stein on Twitter on Dec. 16 confirmed that the Lakers were calling up Thomas from the G-League and signing him to a 10-day contract.

Thomas last played an NBA game with the New Orleans Pelicans down the stretch last season. He played in three games with the Pelicans last season on a 10-day contract. His first game action this season is set to come on the night of Dec. 17 with the Lakers as they battle the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The second time Thomas will be taking the court with the Lakers this season will come against the Bulls in Chicago on Dec. 19. It will be fun to see a former rival of the Bulls (mostly during his time playing for the Cavs and Celtics) face them as a member of the Lakers.

There are 22 times where Thomas faced the Bulls, most of which came when he was playing for the Celtics. He holds an all-time record of 11-10 against the Bulls between his outings in the regular season and the playoffs.

The last time that Thomas faced the Bulls was as a member of the Washington Wizards two seasons ago.

Thomas could get a good amount of playing time when the Lakers face the Bulls this weekend. The Lakers look to be missing almost half of their rotation this weekend, partially due to those players in the health and safety protocol. Some of the players that are likely to be missing when the Lakers face the Bulls this weekend are star point guard Russell Westbrook, guard Kendrick Nunn and wing Talen Horton-Tucker.

The Bulls are set to carry a record of 17-10 into their meeting with the Lakers on Dec. 19. Tip-off time between the Bulls and Lakers at the United Center on Dec. 19 is set for 7 p.m. CT.