CHICAGO — Bulls guard Jaden Ivey will sit out at least the next two weeks with left knee soreness and center/forward Zach Collins will undergo season-ending right toe surgery, the team announced Saturday before hosting the league-leading Detroit Pistons.
Ivey, 24, was acquired from Detroit on Feb. 3 as part of a three-team deal just before the trade deadline as Chicago rebuilt its roster. The Bulls hoped Ivey would regain the explosive form he showed before season-ending surgery for a broken left fibula in January 2025, then an arthroscopic procedure on his right knee in October 2025 that kept him out of the Piston’s lineup for the first 15 games this season.
In four games with the Bulls, Ivey was averaging, 11.5 points, four assists and 28.9 minutes. In 33 games with Detroit this season, he averaged 8.2 points, 1.6 assists and 16.8 minutes.
Bulls coach Billy Donovan said Ivey was cleared to play the added time when he came to Chicago and didn’t complain about knee soreness. Now Ivey will use the next two weeks to build up his leg strength then be re-evaluated.
«Certainly when he came here and, you know, he started getting more minutes — in the first few games his minutes were in the 30s — you could just see he wasn’t like stopping, starting. He didn’t have that explosiveness that you saw when you watched him play.»
Donovan said the Bulls’ medical staff ran tests on Ivey and determined they’ve «just got to get him a lot stronger.»
«I think there’s a feeling that if he can get some of the strength back, then he can get back to where he was athletically,» Donovan said.
Collins has played in just 10 games this season with Chicago, averaging 9.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 18.4 minutes. He missed the first 21 games with a broken bone in his hand, then suffered the toe injury in late December.
«I think it’s been really hard for him personally,» Donovan said. «I think he did everything he wanted to go. Surgery is always the last resort.»
