Bulls Sign Another Chicago Native Amidst COVID-19 Outbreak

The Chicago Bulls have been ravaged by a COVID-19 outbreak and they have signed 2 players to 10-Day contracts. Following the news of Stanley Johnson being added to the roster, the Bulls have also inked Chicago native Alfonso McKinnie.

The NBA.com’s transaction post read:

The Chicago Bulls announced that the team has signed forward Alfonzo McKinnie to a 10-day contract. McKinnie (6-8, 215) is being called up from the Mexico City Capitanes of the NBA G League, where he has averaged 24.1 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists over 10 games (10 starts) this season. He has four seasons of NBA experience with Toronto, Golden State, Cleveland and the L.A. Lakers with career averages of 4.0 points and 2.6 rebounds in 165 games (6 starts). In addition to the Capitanes, McKinnie also has G League experience with the Raptors 905 (2017-18) and Chicago’s G League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls (2016-17). He averaged 14.9 points and 9.2 rebounds in 50 games (34 starts) for Windy City. McKinnie will wear number 28.

NBC Sports’ Rob Schaefer had this to say about McKinnie:

McKinnie is a good shooter with positional size at 6’8”. It will be interesting to see if Donovan tries to work him into the rotation tomorrow or goes with Stanley Johnson, who was with the team in training camp & knows the plays/defensive system.

McKinnie has been shooting 43% from three-point range in the G-League and at 6’8″, he does give the Bulls some positional versatility.

When Can Some of the Bulls Start to Come Back?

While the Bulls are hoping for the best from Johnson and McKinnie, the real question is when can some of the players who are in health and safety protocols begin to return?

Schaefer recently reported this information about potential returns and the NBA process for players returning from H&SP.

Essentially, once a player has been in protocols for 10 days and/or they return two negative PCR tests within a 24-hour timeframe, they are eligible to return if they pass a cardiac screening, which is sanctioned by the NBA.

Specific to the Bulls, Coby White is scheduled to be ready for this step of the process onb December 11, which is when the Bulls play on the road against the Miami Heat. That’s a contest he’s almost certain to miss. Javonte Green will hit the 10-day mark on December 13. That’s a day before the Bulls play the Detroit Pistons at home.

While the absence of any player is troubling and potentially damaging from a competitive standpoint, playing without DeMar DeRozan for seven games is especially concerning. DeRozan has played at an MVP-caliber level this season and the Bulls need him back if they are to remain one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

The Bulls’ Next 10 Games

After the Heat and Pistons, the Bulls have the following games on their schedule. There is a chance they will be without at least a few of the players in H&SP for the majority of these contests.

• Thu, Dec 16 @ Toronto
• Sun, Dec 19 vs Los Angeles
• Mon, Dec 20 vs Houston
• Wed, Dec 22 vs Toronto
• Sun, Dec 26 vs Indiana
• Mon, Dec 27 @ Atlanta
• Wed, Dec 29 vs Atlanta
• Fri, Dec 31@ Indiana

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