The Chicago Bulls are preparing to begin a three-game road trip on Monday and they'll get one of the marquee members of their frontcourt back. According to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports, Wendell Carter Jr. is set to return to the lineup on Monday versus the Indiana Pacers after being sidelined for nearly a month.
Wendell Carter Jr. will play vs. Pacers, per Donovan.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) February 15, 2021
Carter hasn't suited up for the Bulls since their January 18 showdown with the Houston Rockets. Nearly a week after suffering an injury to his quad against the Rockets, Carter was diagnosed with a severe right quad contusion.
As a result, Chicago gave him a four-week timetable before they would re-evaluate him. However, Carter appears to be slightly ahead of schedule as the young center will be able to log his first minutes since January against the Pacers on Monday.
Prior to his injury, Carter was producing a career-high 12.8 points per game in 14 games. The Duke product was also contributing eight rebounds and 2.4 assists while converting a career-best 26.7 percent of his three-point attempts.
Seeing that Carter hasn't played in nearly a month, Billy Donovan will likely monitor his minutes on Monday. In all likeliness, the Bulls will keep close tabs on his minutes for the foreseeable future to avoid re-injury, and to allow Carter to get his conditioning back.
The Bulls, who are 10-15 heading into Monday's game, could absolutely use Carter back in their lineup. While Carter is going to need some time to get his feet back under him, at the least, he's able to return in a limited fashion on Monday versus Indiana.
The Bulls are in a position where making an all-out run for a playoff spot has to be weighed against the value of getting a lottery pick in the coming offseason. Getting Carter back might improve the team, but with the No. 8 team in the Eastern Conference, the Toronto Raptors, being 12-15, a playoff spot is certainly attainable.
The Bulls have to know what they want from this season.
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