The Chicago Bulls won their play-in game against the Atlanta Hawks 131-116 on Wednesday night, but they may have lost something important in the process: Alex Caruso, who sustained an ankle injury.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Caruso has a left foot sprain that’s severe enough to put his availability for Friday’s final play-in game against the Miami Heat in jeopardy.
Chicago Bulls guard Alex Caruso has a “significant” left ankle sprain and his availability vs. Miami on Friday with the 8th-seed on the line is in doubt, source tells ESPN. Andre Drummond stepped on foot vs. Hawks in Play-In victory tonight. pic.twitter.com/Lo8RMz5Kbh
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 18, 2024
Caruso’s injury happened in the second quarter, when his teammate, Andre Drummond, essentially trucked right over him while running down the court, stepping on Caruso’s left foot.
Caruso left the game but eventually returned in the third quarter, only to be taken out a second and final time because he was in such obvious pain. He played 17 minutes total, shooting two three-pointers for six points with two assists, two rebounds and one steal.
While the Bulls may be cautious with Caruso’s injury, Caruso himself is ready to give it his all.
“I do until I can’t,” Caruso said about whether he expects to play Friday, via ESPN. “We’ll see how it goes the next couple days, but my mindset would be to play until my body tells me I can’t.”
The Bulls may have caught a little break, though. Jimmy Butler injured his knee during the Miami Heat’s loss to the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday night. It seems likely that he’ll be out when the Heat and Bulls meet on Friday, so the Bulls will have one less thing to worry about as they attempt to gain a spot in the playoffs.
Source Agencies
