The Chicago Bulls aren’t doing too badly since the start of the season at 10-5. While they’re adjusting to a new offensive system and rotations, they’re still waiting for Mike Dunleavy to actually get on the floor.
The 35-year old forward missed 19 games last season, his second for the Bulls, and back problems that should have been over by now keep coming back and delaying his return. The Bulls have been shuffling players at the small forward position with Tony Snell and Doug McDermott but both of them don’t give the Bulls Dunleavy’s passing and generally smart play, if he’s physically still capable of that.
According to Fred Hoiberg, Mike’s had a little setback with his back. He had a little pain this last week. He feels better after taking a couple days off. We had him seen by the doctor today, and the recommendation is for him to get off the floor and to really focus just on straight rehab for about two weeks. We’ve also consulted with some other doctors, some specialists around the country, so he’s going to see a couple of those doctors this week as well.
Dunleavy has been in the league since 2002, and with the Bulls since 2013. He has started in most of his games for Chicago, averaging 10.5 points and 4.1 rebounds while shooting 39.2% from beyond the arc since joining his team. When he returns, he’ll probably have limited minutes on the floor, at least initially, but the Bulls could make some good use of his long range shooting and game managing skills when things are a bit stuck for them, which happens quite often.