Chicago Bulls forward Lauri Markkanen has been out of commission since late September due to an elbow injury, which he sustained in practice. Now, however, it sounds like the Finnish-born star has recovered enough to participate in non-contact drills, according to a report from K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.

Initial MRI scans revealed that Markkanen suffered a high grade lateral elbow sprain. He was expected to miss up to eight weeks of action, but he'll probably miss a bit longer than that as the Bulls are being cautious in their approach to his return.

Markkanen proved to be a valuable asset for the Bulls last season. In his 68 games played (all starts), the 2017 No. 7 overall pick racked up averages of 15.2 points on 43.4 percent shooting from the field (36.2 percent from beyond the arc), 7.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 29.7 minutes per outing.

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Last week, Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg noted that Markkanen is still one or two weeks away from contact. He'll likely spend portions of his rehab process with the Windy City Bulls, according to a report from Kevin Anderson of NBC Sports.

The Bulls are off to a shaky start to this season. In fact, Chicago is currently holding a 4-13 overall record, which is good for the No. 4 spot in the Central Division. Their next shot at victory comes on Wednesday night, when they'll welcome the Phoenix Suns to the United Center. Tip-off is set for 8:00 p.m. EST.