Chicago Bulls vs Cleveland Cavaliers: Injury Report, Predicted Lineups and Starting 5s - December 8th, 2021 | NBA Season 2021-22
![The Cleveland Cavaliers will host the Chicago Bulls on December 8th [Source: Blog a Bull]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/12/feece-16389446695161-1920.jpg?w=500)
The Cleveland Cavaliers will host the Chicago Bulls at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Wednesday, December 8th.
The Chicago Bulls will head into the game on the back of a 109-97 win against the Denver Nuggets, improving to 17-8 for the season.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, on the other hand, enter the matchup on the back of a tough 104-112 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. They are now 13-12 for the season.
Chicago Bulls Injury Report
The Chicago Bulls have a number of players to mention in their injury report ahead of their road game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
DeMar DeRozan has been the Bulls' most recent addition to the injury report. DeRozan is expected to be out for an extended amount of time due to the NBA's health and safety protocols. With him potentially missing about six to eight games, the Chicago Bulls find themselves in a difficult spot.
Bulls star DeMar DeRozan remains in the NBA's health and safety protocols and did not travel with the team to Cleveland for tomorrow's game against the Cavaliers. usatoday.com/story/sports/n…
The Bulls will also miss Alex Caruso and Javonte Green from their rotation against the Cavaliers. Caruso sustained a hamstring injury last week and is due to be re-evaluated next week. Green, on the other hand, is targeting a return on December 9th from medical protocols.
Coby White will also be out of the rotation for this game against Cleveland. White recently returned from injury, but the point guard will see himself sidelined again due to health and safety protocols.
Lastly, long-term injuries will continue to keep Bulls forward Patrick Williams away from the team. He has been listed out for the season.
Cleveland Cavaliers Injury Report
The Cleveland Cavaliers will have two names on their injury report ahead of their game against the Chicago Bulls.
The Cavaliers will be missing a key player in the form of Collin Sexton. Sexton sustained a meniscus tear early in the month of November and his return to the side this season seems highly unlikely.
Collin Sexton injury update … twitter.com/cavs/status/14…
The Cleveland Cavaliers also mentioned Dean Wade in their injury report. Wade sustained a calf injury on November 27th and has been listed as questionable for the game against the Chicago Bulls.
Chicago Bulls vs Cleveland Cavaliers Predicted Lineups
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls have struggled with injuries early in the season. Primarily featuring injuries to players in their starting rotation, the Bulls have had to constantly adapt to the difficult situations they have found themselves in.
The team will now see the absence of DeMar DeRozan, who has played at an MVP caliber. With the added inavailability of Javonte Green and Alex Caruso to fill in at the forward position, the Bulls have been forced to bring Derrick Jones Jr. into the starting lineup.
The Chicago Bulls have also had to start their rookie Ayo Dosunmu because of the shorthanded roster. The young Bulls player has shown a lot of promise as he continues to develop and grow with the team.
AYO LOBS IT UP TO ZO.
@NBCSChicago | @ZO2_ https://t.co/sYLdlLw8q2
With a reliable starting backcourt pairing in Lonzo Ball and Zach LaVine, the Chicago Bulls still have enough pieces to be a competitive side in the East.
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers suffered a number of injuries earlier in the season. With the season-ending injury suffered by Collin Sexton, the Cavaliers had to make a big move to strengthen their backcourt.
Moving Ricky Rubio into the starting rotation for an extended amount of time has helped the side. The backcourt duo of Rubio and Darius Garland have emerged as a solid one-two punch.
Additionally, the side's strong frontcourt trio of Lauri Markkanen, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen were also sidelined by injury for a number of games. However, with all three healthy once again, the Cavaliers look like an extremely competitive side.
Lauri Markkanen puts in work in the low post 💪🏻 https://t.co/xefdqKMnCj
Rubio has been moved back to the bench to replace Garland in the second unit. Consequently, the Cleveland Cavaliers have opted to start Isaac Okoro at the shooting guard position.
The Cavaliers have also enjoyed seeing Kevin Love's performance off the bench. The veteran has shown that he can still contribute to the side as they find themselves in the playoff seedings.
Chicago Bulls vs Cleveland Cavaliers Predicted Starting 5’s
Chicago Bulls
G - Lonzo Ball | G - Zach LaVine | F - Ayo Dosunmu | F - Derrick Jones Jr. | C - Nikola Vucevic.
Cleveland Cavaliers
G - Darius Garland | G - Isaac Okoro | F - Lauri Markkanen | F - Evan Mobley | C - Jarrett Allen.