Nic Claxton’s hamstring tweak has put the Bulls in a spot they’d rather avoid, but it also hands them an early look at a problem they need to solve anyway: what happens at center when he’s not available?
Chicago will be without Claxton for at least the next two weeks after the injury in training camp, and that’s a real hit for a team trying to build chemistry from the jump. He isn’t expected to carry the offense, but the Bulls are counting on him to bring enough versatility to chip in as a facilitator, finish in transition, and provide real value on the defensive end - even if his effort on that side of the floor appeared to dip over his final seasons with the Brooklyn Nets.
The bigger issue is depth. Outside of Claxton, Chicago doesn’t have a center group that looks especially dependable right now.
That’s why this absence matters beyond the injury itself. Claxton’s durability record has been pretty strong, with 69, 70 and 71 games played over the last three seasons in Brooklyn.
But he has never averaged more than 30 minutes per game in his career, which means Tiago Splitter still has to account for roughly 18 minutes a night without him. If the Bulls don’t want to go fully small, they need to figure out who can handle that stretch.
Zach Collins looks like the likeliest answer as the primary backup center, but he comes with his own questions. He’s working back from a season-ending toe injury, and his defensive limitations could undercut how useful those minutes really are. He also doesn’t stretch the floor much, having hit just 33.4% from three-point range in his career, so Chicago needs more consistency before trusting him with a heavy load.
Jalen Smith offers a different kind of option. He fits better as a floor-spacing, small-ball five than as a traditional center who can soak up big minutes. The Bulls will probably need him there at times, but that’s not the cleanest long-term setup.
Then there’s Tobe Awaka, who brings rebounding and interior scoring but not yet the size or defensive polish to be a real NBA center. Whether he can grow into a rotation role during his rookie season remains to be seen.
So while Claxton’s absence is hardly ideal, it does give Chicago a useful preseason trial run. Splitter and the coaching staff have pieces to work with, and Claxton should eventually be back as the starting center. Still, the Bulls are going to spend a lot of this season sorting out how to survive when he isn’t on the floor, and that process starts Wednesday night against the Phoenix Suns.
In Other News...
Matas Buzelis Sees A Different Bulls Team Taking Shape
Matas Buzelis opened training camp sounding like a young player who has already felt the difference between a team searching for answers and one trying to build something sturdier. After a season in which Chicago was sorting through change, the second-year forward said the tone around the organization has shifted, with more intensity and a clearer sense of purpose as the Bulls move through an overhaul and into a new phase of the rebuild.
Buzelis also spoke with the patience of someone focused on the long game, stressing that his own approach is to keep improving every day and help wherever he can. For a roster trying to establish itself, that matters as much as any single skill point. The real test now is whether the early signs of order and accountability can hold once the games start to pile up. [Read more 🡒]
Michael Jordan Weighed In On A Bulls Reality Fans Know Too Well
Michael Jordans latest remarks offered a familiar kind of reminder for Bulls fans: the game has changed around the franchise, but the standard he set has not. Speaking at the SBC Summit in Lisbon, Jordan said modern sports betting and the nonstop statistical noise of todays NBA would not have altered how he approached basketball. His emphasis, as ever, was on winning, studying opponents and staying locked in on the next challenge rather than getting pulled into everything swirling around the game.
Jordan also touched on how different the current landscape would feel for players now, with social media adding a layer of scrutiny his era never had to deal with. For a franchise still measured against his shadow, the comments hit on a reality Chicago knows well, even if the details of how he would navigate todays betting-heavy environment remain his to spell out another time. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Preseason Opener Already Puts Their Rebuild Under Pressure
The Bulls are barely into preseason, and the mood around the opener against the Suns already feels more about survival than evaluation. Before the first practice even got going, Zach Collins was hurt, while Caleb Wilson and Matas Buzelis are expected to get the first look in the starting group as Chicago begins sorting through a roster that still has more questions than answers.
Chicago also moved quickly to address its depth, bringing in Jordan Hawkins to fill the last roster spot. The early injuries only sharpen the pressure on a team trying to make its rebuild look like progress, and the next few days will say plenty about how much the Bulls can learn before the games start counting for real. [Read more 🡒]