Josh Giddey saw his injury status upgraded on the Chicago Bulls' injury report ahead of Wednesday night's road game against the Phoenix Suns, suggesting that he was nearing a return from an ankle injury. The Bulls have since announced that Giddey will play after missing each of the last three games with this ankle sprain.

While he has not played since spraining his ankle during a Mar. 10 win over the Indiana Pacers, Giddey returns at a pivotal time for the Bulls, who are 29-39 and tied with the Miami Heat for the 9-seed in the Eastern Conference.

Josh Giddey returning from extended absence

Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey (3) reacts after his three pointer against the Philadelphia 76ers during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center.
Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Giddey has had an encouraging season after joining the Bulls in an offseason trade that sent Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

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The former No. 6 pick has averaged 13.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 6.7 assists on 46.2 percent shooting over 60 appearances. He's improved substantially as a three-point shooter, a glaring weakness of his game with Oklahoma City, shooting 37.6 percent on 4.0 attempts per game. Both of these marks are currently career highs.

Giddey, Nikola Jokic, LeBron James, and Domantas Sabonis are the NBA's only players averaging 13-plus points, seven-plus rebounds, and six-plus assists while shooting over 45 percent from the field and 35 percent from three. The Bulls guard is set to hit restricted free agency this summer and should be in line for a substantial payday.

The Bulls have won two of their last three games with Giddey sidelined, as well as four of their last five overall. This has resulted in the Bulls moving ahead of the Heat in the East with 14 games remaining by virtue of a tiebreaker. As of now, Chicago would host Miami in the play-in tournament for a chance to face the loser of the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic in the eighth-seed game.

The Suns have posted a 5-5 record over their last 10 games entering Wednesday's Bulls matchup. Phoenix is also fighting to secure a Western Conference play-in spot.