Chicago Bulls

Nick Richards

C

Richards is on the shelf for a fifth consecutive contest. His next chance to return arrives Sunday, when the Bulls square off with the Suns. Guerschon Yabusele should start versus New York on Friday and take on the majority of the center minutes, with Lachlan Olbrich likely serving as his primary backup.

Anfernee Simons

G

The combo guard has no timetable for a return due to a fractured left wrist. Simons can be tentatively considered doubtful for Sunday's matchup against the Suns.

Jalen Smith

F

With the Bulls sitting at 29-43 on the season, the team will shut Smith down so he can tend to his lingering calf issue. He put together a solid campaign, appearing in 53 regular-season contests with averages of 10.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 0.8 blocks and 1.5 three-pointers in 20.7 minutes per contest.

Zach Collins

F

Collins has not played since sustaining the injury against the Bucks on Dec. 27. He was recently reevaluated by medical staff, who determined that season-ending surgery was the best course of action for the veteran big man. Collins was limited to just 10 regular-season games due to injury and averaged 9.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 0.9 threes over 18.4 minutes per game. He will enter the offseason as an unrestricted free agent.

Noa Essengue

F

The No. 12 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Essengue's rookie season comes to an end with just two brief appearances to his name. The Bulls had a plan to bring him along slowly, to be clear, and he showed a lot of promise in four G League appearances with averages of 23.0 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.3 three-pointers.