The Chicago Bulls are 11-6, which is one of the best records in the Eastern Conference, yet they have still felt a bit underwhelming to some people. While the record is nice they haven't been without their problems as star center Joakim Noah is frustrated with his lack of playing time and Fred Hoiberg's offense hasn't been as good as expected. Another player frustrated by his playing time is rookie Bobby Portis but he has reportedly had a good attitude about it and Hoiberg says that his time is coming very soon, according to Cody Westerlund of CBS Chicago.
Portis was the Bulls first round pick in this past draft (22nd overall) and he was extremely impressive in training camp and preseason games. Due to how well he played there was a thought that Portis might have forced his way into the Bulls rotation but that hasn't happened because the Bulls are deep in the frontcourt. Pau Gasol and Nikola Mirotic are the starters while Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson have been the bench bigs leaving no time for the rookie.
Portis has appeared in just three games for a total of 22 minutes so far this season and hasn't seen any action since playing two minutes on November 27th. Portis is fully healthy so these are all DNP- coaches decisions but Hoiberg insists he will get Portis some playing time very soon.
"He's very active and engaged, he pushes the heck out of our guys in practice. A great attitude, great spirit. He's doing all the things he has to do to keep himself ready for when that time comes and his name is called, which again, will happen at some point this season and most likely sometime soon. He'll play important minutes this year. There's no doubt about that. He knows he's got to be patient, we talk about it, but he'll be ready when his name is called. I'm confident," said Hoiberg.
Hoiberg has said this before, earlier in the season, and used the same "important minutes" line but he has yet to find a spot in the rotation for the 20 year old so these comments should be taken with a grain of salt. The reality is that Hoiberg doesn't really have anyone to take out of the rotation. Mirotic, Gibson and Noah have all been below average so far this season but it is hard to imagine any of them being benched so unless there is an injury or a trade Portis may be stuck as a bench warmer for the rest of this year. Noah and Gasol are both likely to be free agents after this season though so no matter what Portis will likely have a shot to play a big role next season.
