The hits keep coming for the now 11-15 Chicago Bulls.
In the second quarter of Sunday's 123-122 overtime loss to the Atlanta Hawks, second-year guard Ayo Dosunmu exited due to an abdominal injury and did not return.
The injury occurred on a freak play where Dosunmu drove to the basket, but Hawks guard Trae Young slid in front to successfully draw an offensive foul. As both players tumbled to the floor, Young's knee inadvertently struck Dosunmu in the midsection, leaving Dosunmu in apparent pain for a few minutes before exiting to the locker room.
The television broadcast showed Dosunmu rejoin the Bulls' bench just before the start of the third quarter, but exit again to the locker room before the second half began. Billy Donovan told reporters after the game that Dosunmu wanted to reenter, but the Bulls' medical staff felt it best to hold him out.
In turn, Javonte Green started the second half in Dosunmu's place, and Coby White saw increased run down the stretch. White authored one of his best performances of the season, tallying 12 points, six rebounds and four assists, making four of the Bulls' seven 3-pointers as a team (including a game-tying jumper in the final minute of overtime), and punching out a steal from Hawks rookie AJ Griffin with less than 10 seconds left in regulation that led to the Bulls tying the game.
Still, Dosunmu's loss was significant, especially because the Bulls were already without Alex Caruso, who suffered a tailbone contusion in the first quarter of Saturday's win over the Mavericks and did not travel to Atlanta, instead receiving additional treatment in Chicago. Lonzo Ball, of course, also remains out indefinitely, meaning three of the Bulls' best perimeter defenders were sidelined.
The statuses of Dosunmu and Caruso moving forward have yet to be updated by the team, so stay tuned on that front. The Bulls next play Wednesday, when they host the New York Knicks at the United Center.
