Bulls' Butler expected to miss 3-6 weeks with elbow sprain

The Chicago Bulls have navigated through adversity all season, but the team is set to face its biggest challenge yet. 

Days after losing 2011 MVP Derrick Rose to a third knee surgery, an injury that will sideline him indefinitely, Chicago is now without All-Star Jimmy Butler.

The Bulls' shooting guard is expected to be sidelined for the next three-to-six weeks with a grade 2/3 ulnar ligament sprain and small bone impaction to his left elbow, the team announced Monday. 

Butler, who won't require surgery, suffered the injury during Sunday's loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. He ran into a DeAndre Jordan screen in the third quarter and left the game with what head coach Tom Thibodeau described as a hyperextension. 

There's a chance Butler could return before the three-week timeline, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, and he'll be evaluated on a weekly basis as he undergoes his rehab. But there would only be a couple of games remaining in the Bulls' regular season if he's forced to miss the full six weeks. 

In addition to Rose and Butler going down, the Bulls are also without power forward Taj Gibson due to an ankle sprain. 

Butler is averaging a team-leading 20.4 points and 1.8 steals over a league-high 39.2 minutes per game. He's also chipping in six rebounds and 3.3 assists, and shooting 46.3 percent from the field in what's been a career season for the 25-year-old.

Second-year guard Tony Snell could slide into a starting role while Butler is out. Snell has stepped up recently, averaging 13.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.8 3-pointers while shooting 47.4 percent from the field over his last four contests. 

Chicago enters Monday up half a game on the Cleveland Cavaliers for first place in the Central Division with a 37-23 record, good for third in the Eastern Conference. But the gap has been closing in recent weeks and homecourt in the first round of the playoffs is no longer a guarantee, as the Washington Wizards and Milwaukee Bucks are within striking distance of the injury-riddled Bulls.