Chicago

Bulls

White and Vučević were held out of Saturday’s win over the Heat, with the former still having his workload managed due to a lingering calf injury. Both will be back in the starting lineup for Sunday’s rematch. While Vučević’s situation is straightforward, as his return pushes Patrick Williams to the bench, White’s is not. Kevin Huerter (back) is questionable; if he can play, either Red Velvet or Ayo Dosunmu will be replaced by White.

Smith will miss both ends of the Bulls’ road back-to-back in Miami as he continues to deal with right calf tightness. With Nikola Vučević (rest) also out on Saturday, Patrick Williams moved into the starting lineup and played 34 minutes. Vooch is not on the injury report for Sunday, so Williams will return to the bench.

Huerter, who started and played 22 minutes in Saturday’s win over the Heat, is dealing with lower back spasms. With Coby White removed from the injury report after not playing on Saturday, he’ll be in the starting lineup regardless of Huerter’s availability.

With the Kings acquiring De’Andre Hunter from the Cavaliers, a third team was needed to make the money work with Dennis Schröder and Keon Ellis heading to Cleveland. Enter Chicago, which willingly took Šarić while receiving two future second-round picks for their trouble. Šarić was out of the rotation for most of the season in Sacramento, but injuries may change that in Chicago, at least in the short term. While Nikola Vučević missed Saturday’s win over the Heat to rest, Jalen Smith has missed the last two games with a calf injury. This won’t make Šarić fantasy-relevant, but he may get the chance to contribute that wasn’t there in Sacramento. To open up a roster spot for the veteran forward/center, the Bulls are waiving Jevon Carter.

Dosunmu’s late scoring barrage, which included baskets on four straight possessions in the final three minutes, helped Chicago stave off a late rally from Miami. The speedy 26-year-old guard has been excellent of late, averaging 18.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.5 blocks across eight games over the past two weeks. The Bulls have a three-game week coming up that features matchups against the Bucks, Raptors and Nuggets.

Buzelis delivered a couple critical baskets in the closing moments of regulation, including a three-pointer with 39 seconds left that gave Chicago a commanding five-point advantage. The dynamic 21-year-old has been a bit inconsistent from a scoring standpoint but he’s averaging 15.1 points through 49 games. He’s topped 20 points in six of 16 games since the start of January.

The Bulls are severely shorthanded for Saturday’s game, with the absences creating three starting spots. Dosunmu, Huerter and Williams will start, filling in for Josh Giddey, Coby White and Nikola Vučević, and the Bulls are also without Jalen Smith. Of the three replacements, Dosunmu offers the highest ceiling, while managers can afford to leave Williams on the waiver wire.

Including Saturday’s matchup with the Heat, Giddey has missed Chicago’s last two games. And he’s unlikely to be available for Sunday’s rematch, as Bulls head coach Billy Donovan said the guard won’t return until the tightness in his left hamstring subsides. With Tre Jones (hamstring) also out, Ayo Dosunmu takes on added importance within the Bulls’ rotation.

Vučević joins the long list of Bulls rotation players who won’t play on Saturday. His absence opens up a spot in the starting lineup, with Patrick Williams and Julian Phillips being potential replacements. There should also be rotation minutes available to Lachlan Olbrich, but none of these players are worth the streaming risk.

White joins Josh Giddey and Tre Jones on the sidelines, leaving the Bulls without their top three ball-handlers. Expect to see a lot of Ayo Dosunmu and Kevin Huerter, with the former offering a higher fantasy ceiling.