On Saturday, the Chicago Bulls were given grim news. Center Zach Collins will be out for the rest of the season. The reason is due to a lingering toe injury that will require surgery.
Prior to the game against the Detroit Pistons, head coach Billy Donovan expressed a desire to have Collins return next season. He is playing out the final year of his contract, per the Chicago Bulls.
“I think there's like two sides of it,” Donovan said. “When the guy’s in free agency, there's a financial piece of it, and then there’s the player, the make-up, the character. It’s hard for me, just not being in conversation with a lot of people, to know exactly what a guy's value is, so to speak, financially.”
“I know from my perspective, it [value] relates to winning. [When] he’s healthy and he's out there, he's a really good player for us, and I really like him. So, from that standpoint, I hope it would all work out for him to be back here next year, because I got a lot of respect for him as a teammate and a worker. Just his mentality, his toughness.”
Collins is playing out what is left of his two-year, $34.8 million contract. It was a deal he signed with the San Antonio Spurs. A deal that was later taken up by the Bulls.
Collins played ten games this season. He averaged 9.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. His last appearance was against the Milwaukee Bucks on Dec. 27. Collins came away with a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds in a 112-103 loss.
