The excitement was obvious in the Bulls’ locker room after their first win of the season Wednesday against the Hornets.
But it came with a cost.
Energetic big man Bobby Portis limped off the court in obvious pain midway through the fourth quarter before crumbling to the ground in an aisle by the stands of the United Center. He eventually walked off the floor with some help from trainers, but an MRI conducted Thursday showed he had a sprained right medial collateral ligament and will be sidelined for four to six weeks.
At least he’ll have company in the trainer’s room.
It has been a rough week. The suddenly depleted Bulls, who already were without Lauri Markkanen (right elbow) for possibly another month and Denzel Valentine (left ankle) for an undetermined amount of time, lost Kris Dunn (MCL left knee) after Monday’s game for the next four to six weeks.
One would think that with all the bad luck so far, the law of averages would swing the Bulls’ way and protect them from further injuries. Not the case.
Portis, who became a starter near the end of the preseason when Jabari Parker was moved to the bench, was off to a relatively slow start compared to how dominant he looked in preseason games.
Through the first four regular-season games, Portis was playing 28.3 minutes a night, averaging 10.5 points and 10 rebounds. He was struggling from outside, however, shooting just 27.3 percent.
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The significance of the Portis injury has some layers to it, considering Portis and his representation opted to turn down a contract extension near the end of camp.
That means that Portis will become a restricted free agent this summer, leaving his price tag to an open market and the Bulls having the final say to match or pass.
Portis was more than comfortable with that, having watched former teammate Nikola Mirotic go through it in 2017 and Zach LaVine this offseason.
Mirotic never received an offer to match, but the Bulls opted to match the four-year, $78 million offer the Kings made to LaVine in July.
“Normally, that’s how it goes,’’ Portis said. “But with me, I couldn’t see myself in no other jersey. Obviously, I got Bulls’ DNA. Me and the city have a love connection somewhere. At the same time, I just enjoy playing for the Bulls. Hopefully in the spring things can work out.’’
Maybe, but the Bulls have to worry about the now with Portis sidelined, and that means playing more roster musical chairs.
Parker would be the logical choice to return to the starting lineup and Portis’ four-spot, but Hoiberg has really liked what the former Simeon standout has brought to the second unit.
Cristiano Felicio saw his first real action off the bench against the Hornets, so that’s another option, albeit a reach since he’s more of a tweener and better suited to be Wendell Carter Jr’s backup in the middle.
Either way, all the injuries have forced the Bulls to go into “developmental mode,’’ with the next step being full-on tanking.
That was evident by not only Felicio getting the nod off the bench ahead of veteran Robin Lopez, but also rookie Chandler Hutchison getting a significant run for the first time, scoring eight points in 13 minutes.
