Chicago Bulls: Deng Won't Come Back Sunday and Why It's a Good Thing

Reports earlier this week stated that Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng was targeting a return date from his injured wrist this Sunday against LeBron James and the Miami Heat. 

Chicago Tribune's K.C. Johnson took this claim to Twitter pointing out Deng's intention to play Sunday:

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"Deng is shooting, dribbling, still on track to play Sunday vs. Heat. No guarantee but that's been his target all along."

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Thankfully, Deng denied these rumors today on Bulls.com Special Access with Chuck Swirsky stating: 

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“I’m not really sure where that (rumors of a return on Sunday) came from. I really said if I could go tonight, I would. If I am able to go on Sunday I will, whatever game I can...I don’t know where that date (Sunday) came from; I’ve never really put an exact date on it.”

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This is a huge relief. 

Not because I do not want Deng to be healthy, I absolutely do.

Deng is the key to the Bulls defense in the playoffs and will need to be 100 percent for the Bulls to win an NBA championship this season. 

The key for Deng is to be healthy when it matters most.

Granted, Sunday's game against the Heat will be perceived as a big game on the schedule, it will be largely meaningless come playoff time. 

This is why I would like Deng to rest his wrist as much as he needs. Regular-season games in late January do not matter for a team the caliber of the Bulls, Deng and the team need to focus on late May. 

Returning too quickly from injuries is always a concern. This year alone, we have seen Richard Hamilton return too quickly from his groin injury.

Hamilton missed two games then returned to face his old team—the Detroit Pistons.

Rip played a spirited 31 minutes, scoring 14 points, but reaggravated his groin and proceeded to miss the next eight games. 

Deng has struggled in previous seasons with returning too early from an injury. Back in 2009, Deng was the centerpiece of much controversy about his knee. It got so bad that the fans began to wonder if Deng was simply not playing through the pain:

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First, it's just a light injury. Then it's serious. Then it's a small thing, and the organization starts cryptically indicating that they think Deng could be playing, but is choosing to loaf instead.

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Deng missed eight games in late December before being thrust back into playing due to the aforementioned rumors.

Deng played well for 13 games until his knee began acting up to the point where he was completely ineffective in late February.

Deng was shut down for the rest of the season and missed the crucial Bulls playoff series against the Boston Celtics. 

The series could have turned in the Bulls favor with a healthy Deng. Unfortunately, we will never know.

The lesson to be learned is allowing Deng his rest.

Even if the Bulls lose a few games along the way as a result, the organization, players and fans need to be looking ahead.

While Sunday may seem like a big game in the short term, it is not. It is all about May.