Caruso could start shooting in 7-10 days
Coach Billy Donovan couldn’t provide an updated timetable for Alex Caruso’s return from a broken right wrist, but he could at least identify the next important step.
Caruso was injured by Bucks guard Grayson Allen on Jan. 21 but was able to start his conditioning fairly quickly after surgery.
Now it’s time for a little basketball activity, Donovan said.
“I know it was a break,’’ Donovan said Wednesday. “He’s doing well. He’s on the floor doing total conditioning and running. He’s not able to lift. There will be a point where in maybe a week to 10 days he can start dribbling and shooting. He’s not at that level yet, but he’s at the level where he can do a lot of physical training runningwise, so I don’t know the extent of what the whole procedure was other than he broke it, and they went in there and repaired it.’’
The original timetable for Caruso was six to eight weeks before he would be reevaluated. He’s more than three weeks into that timeframe, so that puts him on track to get the wrist looked at again during the second week of March.
But being able to shoot soon is a good sign that the Bulls’ best defender is on the mend.
As long as there are no setbacks, Caruso could return by mid-March, giving him 12 to 15 regular-season games to find his rhythm and get reacclimated.
If Caruso can get back by March 22, he’d be able to play against the Bucks in Milwaukee, the teams’ third meeting of the season. The Bulls and Bucks close the season series April 5 at the United Center.
Connection
There’s a reason why rookie Ayo Dosunmu and veteran Nikola Vucevic have clicked since Dosunmu took over as the starting point guard.
Both are high-IQ players, but it’s more than that. Dosunmu is one of the more decisive guards on the team, and that works well with Vucevic.
“When [the guards] are decisive, it helps ‘Vooch’ make a decision whether to short roll, long roll to the rim or to pop based on how he’s being covered,’’ Donovan said. “Ayo is aggressive. He’s a downhill player; he’s an attacker. So when
he’s attacking, ‘Vooch’ can find spots. Now I think one of the things that our guards have to do a good job of is when they are decisive and they are going downhill, they have to recognize, is their man pursuing in pick-and-roll? Is Vucevic’s man playing it? Do I have two on the ball? Does the ball need to be thrown back?’’
Free to thrive
DeMar DeRozan seems to be playing with so much confidence this season because Donovan has provided a free environment for him to take advantage of his strengths.
“It’s not just points,’’ DeRozan said. “I think it’s the comfort of being the player that I am in my 13th year, the confidence, the feel. [It’s the] teammates that I have, the organization. Just taking heed to that. That’s one thing that sits well with me. Not just the scoring. I’ve been a scorer. It’s being able to be free and still play at a high level.’’