(670 The Score) Bulls coach Billy Donovan believes injured forward Patrick Williams (wrist) will return by month's end.
"I don't know the exact date, but I do believe he'll be back in March," Donovan said before the Bulls visited the Kings on Monday night. "I'm pretty confident about that, unless there's some kind of setback or he doesn't feel like he's got the strength necessary."
Williams, 20, has been out since late October after tearing ligaments in his left wrist in a hard fall to the floor. He underwent surgery soon after.
Lately, Williams has been cleared for partial contact in practice but not full contact.
"He's progressing," Donovan said. "The biggest challenge for him right now is just getting to a position or a place where I think the doctors and everybody feels comfortable that his hand is position that if he takes a fall or his hand gets jerked back that he's going to be OK."
Donovan indicated there isn't concern about a significant reinjuring of the wrist as much as worry about slightly setting him back in his rehab if he was to return too soon.
"I just think they're more worried about him doing that now and then setting him back further," Donovan said. "But I don't think they're (the doctors) are worried with where he's at that he's going to reinjure it and go back to zero. No, I don't think they're worried about that at all."
Williams started the Bulls' first five games before suffering the injury, averaging 6.6 points and 2.2 rebounds while shooting 56.5% overall. He also started 71 games as a rookie in 2020-'21. He was the No. 4 overall pick in the NBA Draft in 2020.
If the Bulls are whole, Donovan's preference is to bring Williams off the bench when he returns.
"Just because he's missed so much, I don't think it would be fair to him to throw him – with the number of games he's missed and with the amount of months he's missed – to say his first game back, 'Hey, he's starting,'" Donovan said. "But I do think he can play a pretty important role for us."
In other injury news, Bulls star guard Zach LaVine will play against the Kings on Monday night, Donovan said. He had been listed as questionable with left knee soreness, which kept him out of Chicago's win against Cleveland on Saturday.
Bulls guard Lonzo Ball hasn't yet done straight-line sprinting or full-speed lateral work after undergoing left knee surgery in late January to repair a meniscus tear. Ball is running straight ahead and laterally but at a reduced speed, and the bone bruise he had on his knee is still healing as well.
Donovan is uncertain about when Ball could return until he takes the next step of going full speed in his rehab. The initial timeline the Bulls shared for Ball's injury indicated he could return in the latter half of March.
Cody Westerlund is a sports editor for 670TheScore.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.
