Bulls' Taj Gibson To Miss Game Against Mavericks With Sore Left Ankle
By Cody Westerlund--
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Bulls starting power forward Taj Gibson will miss Tuesday's home game against the Mavericks as he deals with a sore left ankle.
Coach Fred Hoiberg wasn't sure when the ankle started bothering Gibson. It's the same ankle that Gibson had surgery on in June 2015, but Hoiberg said this soreness wasn't in any way related to that. He was hopeful Gibson could return Friday at Atlanta, as Chicago has two off days waiting before that game.
"It's something that kind of popped up," Hoiberg said. "I don't know exactly the time. He did have a little bit of soreness in the game. Again, it's not to the point where you're saying this is something that holds him out a while. Again, we hope to sit him tonight, have a couple days off to rest and get him back in the lineup in the next one. We felt it was best to hold him out tonight."
Gibson is averaging 12.0 points and a team-high 7.3 rebounds. Rookie Paul Ziper is expected to start in his place, as the Bulls want to be cautious with fellow forward Niko Mirotic, who's returning after sitting out with an illness.
