Bulls' Zach LaVine: Will remain sidelined to begin season

LaVine (knee) remains ahead of schedule in his recovery from a torn ACL, but VP of Basketball Operations John Paxson said Thursday that LaVine will not be available to begin the season, Cody Westerlund of 670 The Score reports.

Analysis:

It was reported in July that LaVine could be ready in time for training camp, and while that won't be the case, he's still on track to return earlier than anticipated. LaVine tore his ACL in February, and at this point it seems realistic to expect that he'll be back on the court sometime before 2017 comes to a close. That said, the Bulls have not provided a firm timeline, so LaVine's fantasy value is somewhat in limbo. Once he returns and gets back up to speed, the UCLA product is expected to enter the starting lineup, and the shooting guard spot could open up if the team eventually buys out Dwyane Wade.