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Jamal Collier, ESPN
MILWAUKEE — Chicago Bulls forward Patrick Williams will miss at least next week as the team waits for inflammation in his surgically repaired foot to subside, coach Billy Donovan said Wednesday.
Williams was limited to 43 games last season before undergoing season-ending foot surgery in February. He first appeared on this season’s injury report on Monday, but played 31 minutes in a win over the Detroit Pistons in the second straight game.
“In the game [Monday]mentioned that he felt [discomfort] “More at halftime,” Donovan said before the Bulls lost to the Bucks 122-106 in Milwaukee. “After the game, he started to feel a lot more pain than he had before.”
Williams remained in Chicago rather than traveling with the team on Wednesday to receive more images of his foot. Donovan said the team believes the injury occurred due to a heavy early schedule after Williams was unable to play five-on-five for most of the summer while rehabbing.
Williams, the fourth pick in the 2020 draft, is averaging 9.9 points and 5.0 rebounds while starting 15 games for the Bulls this season.
The Bulls will also be without guard Lonzo Ball for at least another week as he continues to rehab a sprained right wrist. Ball tried some on-court activities during a road trip to New York last week, but experienced discomfort catching passes and hasn’t been able to progress beyond shooting.
Donovan says Ball will try to ramp up again next week to see how his wrist responds to the increased activity.
“He’ll need more time for that,” Donovan said. “I think he will handle the ball more, he will shoot more, he will do more. So that he really is at a level such that we can see [how he responds] “I would say over the weekend and into the middle of next week, hopefully I can do a lot more.”
