Chicago Bulls star Zach LaVine should consider sitting out All Star Game

It took Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine seven years before he finally made his first NBA All Star Game, but the hard work paid off.

The man has gone from being known as a dunker, to being a guy who can win you basketball games. LaVine’s transformation into a star has been nothing short of special, and now he’s on his way to his second-straight All Star Game next this weekend.

However, a recent setback with his knee injury is going to cause LaVine to miss the Bulls’ final two games before the All Star Break.

Exactly a month ago, early in a contest against the Golden State Warriors, LaVine hurt his knee. The injury only caused him to miss five games, thankfully, but over the last couple of weeks he’s admitted that he’s still experiencing discomfort. He recently missed the Bulls’ win over the Oklahoma City Thunder and now appears set to sit a while longer.

With the Chicago Bulls experiencing many injury woes this season, should Zach LaVine sit out the 2022 NBA All Star Game?

LaVine was not only chosen to represent the Eastern Conference as an All Star, but he will participate in the three-point contest as well. LaVine has been scorching from beyond the arc, shooting 39.9 percent this season.

But, with this knee discomfort, LaVine should act cautiously. Sitting out the final two games before the break is a smart move on his part, but if he’s not 100 percent by this weekend, what’s the use in trying to give it a go in a pretty meaningless weekend of events?

Sure, the off-chance that LaVine wins the All Star Game MVP or even wins the three-point shootout would make it worth playing for the 2-time All Star. But, the Bulls have had some serious injury concerns this season. LaVine is not a guy the team wants to risk getting further injured before making a deep playoff run.

Already this year, the Bulls have played several games without starting point guard Lonzo Ball, starting power forward Patrick Williams and lockdown wing Alex Caruso. Chicago has also been without Nikola Vucevic, Derrick Jones Jr. and Javonte Green for big chunks of time.

This is a team that, when healthy, can still be the best team in the Eastern Conference. Despite the blockbuster trade going down involving James Harden and Ben Simmons, these Bulls have proven to be one of the best defensive teams in the game when healthy. They have the perfect mixture of defense and offense to be NBA Champions.

LaVine has to take this as seriously as possible, even though missing an All Star Game would be disappointing. He and DeMar DeRozan are the two most important players on this team, and must be healthy together for the Bulls to make a run.

Hopefully, the discomfort is gone by the weekend and LaVine can use the festivities as a time to get his body some work in, get loose and find even a little more motivation being around the league’s best.