CHICAGO — Chicago Bulls forward Javonte Green will undergo an arthroscopic debridement of his right knee, the team announced Tuesday afternoon, and will be re-evaluated in approximately two weeks.
The procedure is scheduled for Wednesday and there is optimism Green can return to the lineup about a month later, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Green has missed the past five games with right knee soreness, the same issue that caused him to miss five games in December. Green returned to play three games in between those stretches, but his knee continued to bother him and was not responding to the team’s treatment plans.
Green was in the starting lineup for most of last season with Chicago, starting 45 games while Patrick Williams, the No.4 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, recovered from early season wrist surgery. He still made an impact as a reserve this season, averaging 5.9 points and 2.9 rebounds while shooting 58.7% from the field and 38.2% from 3 (both career-highs) in 28 games.
Despite averaging only 16 minutes per game, Green has also been one of the team’s best and the league’s peskiest defenders, averaging 5.0 deflections per 36 minutes, according to NBA.com, 11th best in the league.