Deng Still Not 100%, Set To Miss Time With Great Britain

Ugh. Yet again, reports have surfaced that Luol Deng is still not ready to play organized basketball after suffering a right-leg stress fracture back during the Carter administration (okay, it was actually back in February, but it seems like it has been that long). The Bulls have their first preseason game on October 6th against Utah, and Deng won't risk playing for Great Britain's national team before then.Deng says he's "almost there"in terms of being able to run and play at top speed, so I suppose it's good that he's willing to be patient and recover fully. The Bulls need Deng to be at his best, especially now that John Salmons - who did an impressive job filling in for Deng at the end of last season - will have to play shooting guard since Ben Gordon (who will also miss out on time with the Brits as he adjusts to his new team) has left for Detroit. While Deng played well in January before the major injury setback, he still looked a step slow on defense. Deng played solid defense prior to his injury-riddled 08-09 season, and the team needs him to return to that form now that they have chosen to focus on becoming a more defense-oriented unit.Once regarded by many as a future All-Star, Deng averaged 18.1 points on 51.7% shooting along with 6.8 rebounds per 36 minutes back in the 06-07 regular season, when he started all 82 games. Then, in the summer of 2008, Deng signed a huge 6-year extension, and the big bucks turned his bones to glass. Since that stellar 06-07 season, Deng has missed a total of 52 games in two seasons, and the injuries have completely halted his progress. Deng will likely be a little rusty once he returns, but if he has recovered fully and stays healthy, I expect him to play a key role for the Bulls this season. If he gets hurt again, though, I'm going to go all Reagan smash on my keyboard as I complain about how we're paying him 8 figures a year to watch his bones snap, crackle, and pop.