Chicago Bulls rookie Denzel Valentine is slated to miss at least two weeks of action due to a sprained ankle, head coach Fred Hoiberg told reporters today.
Valentine suffered the ankle injury during the team’s preseason opener Monday night against Milwaukee.
Valentine had scored four points, dished two assists, and grabbed one rebound in 11 minutes of action before the injury.
“It is a setback,” coach Fred Hoiberg said (via K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune). “Hopefully we’ll get him back for the last couple exhibition games. I want to play him with the ball in his hands as a primary ballhandler. We’ve been doing that with him some in practice, and he’s done a nice job with it. He’s one of our better instinctive passers, and we’ll miss that element.
“Just from a game standpoint, for rookies in this league this is when you start getting comfortable.”
Valentine has suffered the same ankle injury on the same foot before, and knows what it takes to make a quick, successful return.
“I know the steps to take to get back,” he said. “I’ll lose a little bit of time. But with all the great equipment and staff and trainers that we have, I know they’ll get me back as quickly as I can. If I have to play catch-up, then I’ll just have to play catch-up. It is what it is now, no point in stressing.”
The good news for Denzel Valentine, who the Bulls selected No. 14 overall in the 2016 draft, is that he’ll only miss the bulk of the preseason. With the regular season set to tip off later in the month, Valentine has time to make a full recovery and will likely be ready to go for the Bulls’ season opener.
