The Chicago Bulls have ruled out second-year power forward Lauri Markkanen for Wednesday's game against the Portland Trail Blazers, per K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.
Markkanen exited Tuesday's game versus the Toronto Raptors by halftime due to “extreme fatigue.” According to the team's update, the Finn forward still needs to undergo further evaluation to determine his condition, effectively forcing him out of the match-up with the Blazers.
Lauri joins point guard Kris Dunn, shooting guard Zach LaVine and small forward Otto Porter Jr. on the Bulls' injury report.
Lauri Markkanen is indeed out vs. Trail Blazers, per Bulls updated injury report. He joins the holdovers (Carter, Valentine, Hutchison, LaVine, Porter, Dunn) as out. Bulls are calling up 2-way players Rawle Alkins and Brandon Sampson even though Windy City Bulls have playoff gm.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) March 27, 2019
Chicago is 21-54 on the season. They are in the 13th spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
After missing the first 23 games of the season with an elbow injury he suffered in training camp, Lauri Markkanen has played in 52 consecutive games. That streak will end on Wednesday.
Markkanen is averaging 18.7 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game for the Bulls. The 21-year-old is shooting 43.0 percent from the field, 36.1 percent from beyond the arc and 87.2 percent from the free-throw line.
Lauri has 20 double-doubles on the season.
The Bulls are looking to build the franchise around Markkanen, LaVine, Porter Jr. and Wendell Carter Jr. Assuming Chicago can get a top pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, they should be more competitive next season.
The Blazers are one of the best teams in the Western Conference. And while they are extremely shorthanded with injuries to CJ McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic, they still have their best player in Damian Lillard.
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