(670 The Score) The outlook for Bulls forward Otto Porter Jr. to return anytime soon -- or at all this season -- is becoming more bleak with each further evaluation of his left foot injury.
After being evaluated by foot and ankle specialist Dr. Bob Anderson on Monday, Porter will be reassessed in four weeks, the team announced Tuesday. Anderson "confirmed the bone injury and healing response in Porter's left foot consistent with a small fracture that has become more clearly defined with repeated imaging over the last five weeks," the Bulls said.
Porter will continue with his period of immobilization and "progress as tolerated" over the next four weeks, the team added.
Porter has been sidelined since Nov. 6 with what was initially called a foot strain before a subsequent MRI on Nov. 19 revealed bone bruising. Last Friday, the Bulls acknowledged that Porter had bone edema, which is often a sign of a fracture and led to his trip to see Anderson in Green Bay, Wisc. The team's use of the term "fracture" was new.
The diagnosis from Anderson further casts doubt on if the 26-year-old Porter will return to action this season. There has been no indication that Porter is on track to be cleared for basketball activities in four weeks. And even if he progresses well and is eventually medically cleared, Porter would likely need a couple weeks to gradually ramp up his activity and get into game shape.
Porter had struggled quite a bit early in the season before being sidelined, averaging 11.2 points on 41.7 percent shooting in nine games. He has an injury history, dealing with nagging ailments in seasons past, including a shoulder strain that sidelined him for the final 11 games of last season. Porter also dealt with knee and neck ailments last season and had surgery on his left leg in April 2018 to address what the Wizards called compartment syndrome.
Wary of Porter's injury history and their lack of depth at wing, the Bulls met with him near the end of last season and again in training camp to formulate a plan for his workload. They settled on roughly a 30-minute limit for Porter and the possibility of him resting on one end of back-to-back sets. Porter was under or just over the 30-minute mark in each of his first nine games, and he did play in both ends of the Bulls' first two back-to-backs.
The Bulls have started Chandler Hutchison, Shaq Harrison and Kris Dunn in Porter's absence. The Bulls have struggled, opening the season 8-17.
Cody Westerlund is a sports editor for 670TheScore.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.
