Chicago Bulls: Bobby Portis In, Joakim Noah Out?

Joakim Noah of the Chicago Bulls is set to come back from his injury any day now, but what role will he have?

Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah has not played in a game since Dec.21, when the team lost 105-102 to the Brooklyn Nets. He left in the third quarter, after feeling his shoulder pop out and although the X-ray was negative, a MRI later revealed a sprain. More than two weeks later, Noah is gearing up for his return, but what exactly will his future hold?

Many Bulls fans were worried about the success of the team, when it was ruled that the big man would be out for at least a couple of weeks. However, Chicago did just fine. In fact, they seemingly did not miss him at all.

Having won seven of eight games without Noah, the Bulls are 22-12 as of Friday morning. This puts them at the No. 2 spot in the Eastern Conference, 2.5 games behind the Cleveland Cavaliers.

So what will the organization do when Noah is ready to come back?

Well, they have three options.

The first is the most simple: go back to the rotation they were playing with before. In other words, sit rookie Bobby Portis.

The problem with this is that Portis has been doing very well.

In Chicago’s 108-81 win over the New York Knicks on Jan. 1, for example, Portis hit plus-30 when he scored 16 points (on 6-of-9 shooting, including 2-of-3 from downtown and a perfect 2-of-2 in free throws), 10 rebounds and 2 assists.

And according to head coach Fred Hoiberg, the Bulls have no plans to count Portis out from now on.

"“We’re going to continue to find minutes for Bobby and there’s no doubt about it. He’s playing too well, he’s playing with so much confidence. He rebounds the ball, he plays with a toughness and a swagger, and that’s what you want. We’ve talked all along; Bobby’s not going to back down from anybody and he continues to show that night after night.’’"

Of course, the Bulls could look into trading Noah, something that the media was already reporting on earlier in the season.

In late December, the organization said they would be taking calls on their prized center, as well as Pau Gasol and Taj Gibson. And unfortunately, although technically Noah’s trade value may have declined since his injury, Chicago now has more reason than ever to want to move him.

The last option is to have the players share the court.

The two athletes have not had much time playing together, but have obviously done their fair share of work with one another during practice, the good news being that according to Hoiberg, they seem to have chemistry.

"“Jo with his role as a playmaker with that second group, being our second leading assist player, you can run things through Jo. Bobby is versatile enough where he can score from the outside if Jo gets by his man, even dribble-handoff type actions. Bobby should be able to pin-down on a shooter, whether it’s Doug [McDermott] or Tony [Snell], into a dribble handoff for Jo. It’s just a little different dynamic when Jo is out there because he’s such a unique player because you can put the ball in his hands.’’"

Plus, Nikola Mirotic can always play small forward.

This year, Noah is averaging 4.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game, while Portis it totaling 8.3 points and 5.3 rebounds a game.

More hoops habit: Are The Bulls True Contenders This Season?

Only time will tell what will happen with Noah, but the good news is, at least the Bulls seem to be starting 2016 off right.

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