Chicago Bulls: 3 goals for Jabari Parker in 2018-19 NBA season
1. Avoid injury bug
It is nearly impossible for any player to be in top form for an entire season as attrition catches up with everyone during the 82-game marathon. For Parker, though, injuries have a played a major role in his four-year career.
In 2014-15, Parker sustained an ACL injury just 25 games into his rookie campaign that forced him to miss the remainder of the season. He bounced back in Year 2, posting averages of 14.1 points and 5.2 rebounds per contest in 76 appearances.
Things appeared to be trending upward for Parker during his third NBA season, his best thus far, as he posted averages of 20.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per contest.
The bad news is he sustained a second ACL injury, which kept him off the court for the remainder of the 2016-17 season along with the first 50 games of last season.
All in all, Parker has missed 138 out of a possible 328 games, which essentially means he has spent a substantial amount of time away from the court nursing injuries since he entered the league.
For obvious reasons, the Bulls are hoping that Parker’s body can hold up for the entire season.
Not only would Parker avoiding another major injury be good for the Bulls, but it could also be the first step to resurrecting a career that began with so much promise.