Bulls guard Zach LaVine to undergo season-ending foot surgery

Bulls guard Zach LaVine to undergo season-ending foot surgery

A day after Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan announced that guard Zach LaVine would be sidelined through the Feb. 8 trade deadline, it was announced on Saturday that he will undergo season-ending foot surgery, NBA insider Shams Charania of The Athletic was among the first to report.

Bulls say Zach LaVine, in consultation with team and Klutch Sports Group, has elected to undergo season-ending surgery on his right foot.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 3, 2024

The team confirmed the report, stating that he will miss the next four-to-six months. The surgery is expected to take place next week.

Injury Update: Zach LaVine will undergo surgery on right foot as the next step in his recovery process.

LaVine will be out 4-6 months.

➡️ https://t.co/sINnQhiMj4 pic.twitter.com/wNpsZxkm0j

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) February 3, 2024

LaVine, 28, has missed 24 of his team’s first 49 games due to this plaguing foot injury, including the last six games. He finishes the season averaging 19.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists, shooting 45.2 percent from the floor, 34.9 percent from 3-point range and 85.4 percent from the free-throw line.

It marked one of LaVine’s least productive years on a per-possession basis. He was tallying his fourth-fewest points, shot attempts and assists per 100 possessions, despite hauling in his most rebounds.

LaVine previously stated that the foot injury was related to the fifth metatarsal, which connects to the little toe in a foot.

“You really don’t want to start messing around with that, that fifth metatarsal area and it gets more and more irritated,” he said on Dec. 7. “It’s just smart to calm it down now to where I can get back to 100% and hopefully finish the season strong and help everybody out.”

Who could the Bulls trade trade if they blow it up?

According to injury analyst Jeff Stotts, these surgeries are “relatively common” in the NBA, citing multiple players–such as Kevin Durant, Zion Williamson and Aaron Gordon–have dealt with these issues in the past.

Re: Zach LaVine: He's previously mentioned the area of concern involved his 5th metatarsal. Surgery to issues in this bone are relatively common in the NBA. Multiple players, including Kevin Durant, Zion Williamson, & Aaron Gordon have missed time with 5th metatarsal injuries.

— Jeff Stotts (@InStreetClothes) February 3, 2024

The Bulls remain one of the NBA’s most interesting deadline teams–in part because there’s been plenty of speculation about what would happen with LaVine. This surgery all but shelves those trade discussions until the summer; he will be owed roughly $138 million over the next three seasons with a $49 million player option in 2026-27, according to Spotrac.

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This is a breaking news story. Stay tuned for updates.

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