CLEVELAND – In Denver last week, Bobby Portis got the starting nod.
Against Miami, and then Cleveland on Monday, it was Robin Lopez’s turn.
Welcome to the Bulls starting center position, where it will remain fluid from matchup to matchup, game to game … or at least until the Bulls can find a trading partner for Lopez.
“It’s just decisions,’’ coach Jim Boylen said, when asked how he will handle the vacancy in the starting lineup left by Wendell Carter Jr. “I’ve laid it out for the guys that’s how it’s going to be. I do like Bobby’s energy and competitiveness off the bench. He can be a difficult matchup for a backup in the post and his ability to spread the floor. All those things kind of go into it. We’ll make those decisions as we go.’’
What works out well for Boylen is the two players involved. Both Lopez and Portis are team-first guys, so while each may have a preference, those egos are checked at the door without a second thought.
“I think the role that I started in with this team was off the bench,’’ Portis said of the situation. “I know there’s a coaching decision that goes into starting one player or the other, but I would just rather have Robin start, so that I can just come off the bench and do what I do, do what I’ve been used to. I like that for now.
“I get a chance to sit there and evaluate the game, see how they’re defending certain things we’re doing, so I look at that as a way to see where I can score the ball, be a difference. I’ve always felt that being useful for me. Obviously everybody wants to start, everybody wants to hear their name called at the beginning of the game, but on teams you have to play a role.’’
That role could change yet again for Portis if the Bulls find a deal for Lopez. The problem is right now the market has cooled on that front, but a lot can happen between now and the Feb. 7 trade deadline.
Heck, Portis is even in play as a possible trade candidate, considering he and Lauri Markkanen play the same position and Portis will be a restricted free agent this offseason.
Portis reiterated last week that he feels like he will stay a Bull when negotiations start up again this summer, but considering how the Bulls have played this season, this is a roster that should have no untouchables on it.
The Bulls do have other options in that middle spot if push comes to shove, with Markkanen able to switch over when Boylen wants to go small. And then there’s always Cristiano Felicio, who has fallen out of the rotation these days.
Speaking of Carter Jr.
The seventh-overall pick made it official on Monday, as the Bulls announced after the win over the Cavs that Carter Jr. had successful surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament of his left thumb. The surgery was performed by Dr. John Fernandez at Midwest Orthopedics at Rush.
Carter Jr. suffered the injury last week in Loa Angeles, and after second and third examinations showed that there was a torn ligament, surgery was recommended as the best path. A path that the rookie took, with his recovery time eight-to-12 weeks, which could be the remainder of this season.
Old faces
There were some familiar faces sitting on the home bench Monday, with both Cameron Payne and David Nwaba now on the Cavs roster.
Nwaba (illness/ankle) did not dress, but Payne, who just signed a second10-day contract with Cleveland, played significant minutes off the bench.
