Chicago Bulls forward Nikola Mirotic says he’s forgiven Bobby Portis for his role in their skirmish before the season began. Mirotic has also gone through a rehabilitation assignment with the Windy City Bulls in the G League. The next step for Mirotic remains making his season debut, which may be mere days away.
According to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, Mirotic has some key practices to get through this week in order for Bulls brass to make him available for games. Mirotic, for his part, is “itching” to get back into the lineup, something coach Fred Hoiberg is hoping he can accommodate soon:
Discussing the news that Mirotic is “itching to return,” Hoiberg said, “I think it’s great. He’s a guy that had a really good preseason heading into this, so to get past everything that’s gone on is very important.”
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In preparation for his season debut, Mirotic will go through another lengthy practice Tuesday. If he comes out of it with no setbacks, he would join the Bulls on their two-game road trip. And while he’d be doubtful for Wednesday night’s game in Indiana, Friday in Charlotte looks like a possibility.
“[We’ll] communicate to see how he’s doing with his body, with his soreness,” Hoiberg said. “The one thing you don’t want is Niko to come back and have some type of setback with a hamstring or a lower back.
“He really wants to be out there. I know that for a fact.”
Nikola Mirotic will not play Wednesday at Indiana. Friday at Charlotte a possibility. Zach LaVine will not travel with the team on this trip. He’ll stay back and practice with Windy City. #Bulls #BullsNation
— Darnell Mayberry (@DarnellMayberry) December 5, 2017
