Bulls' Jalen Smith: Shut down for season
The Bulls announced Thursday that Smith will miss the remainder of the season after aggravating a right calf injury in Wednesday's 157-137 loss to the 76ers.
Smith has been plagued by injuries to his right calf throughout the past two months. Since initially straining the calf Jan. 29, Smith has appeared in just 12 of the Bulls' last 24 games while recovering from setbacks related to the injury or for maintenance purposes during back-to-back sets. With the Bulls sitting at 29-43 on the season, the team won't look to rush Smith back to the court over the final two-plus weeks following his latest aggravation. Smith will finish his sixth NBA season with averages of 10.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.5 three-pointers, 1.2 assists, 0.8 blocks and 0.5 steals in 20.7 minutes per game over his 53 appearances. His absence should open up more minutes in the frontcourt for Nick Richards (elbow), Guerschon Yabusele, Patrick Williams and Leonard Miller.
