Nikola Vucevic will return to the lineup Wednesday vs. Rockets

Chicago Bulls C Nikola Vucevic will be back in the lineup for Wednesday night’s game vs. the Houston Rockets. Vuce has been sidelined since Nov. 10 after being placed in Covid-19 protocols due to a positive test. Vucevic will return to the starting lineup in place of Tony Bradley. Alex Caruso (wrist) will also be back in the lineup after missing Monday’s loss to the Indiana Pacers.

Both players being back is huge for the Bulls, who had their worst loss of the season on Monday to Indiana. Chicago is still 12-6 and among the top teams in the Eastern Conference despite missing their All-Star starting center for 7 games. Caruso had been starting in place of Vucevic with the Bulls going small ball. Caruso has been a stalwart on defense and a key piece early on with Coby White out. White has since returned to the lineup, so other than Patrick Williams, the Bulls are basically at full-strength.

Fantasy basketball impact

Given the matchup vs. the Rockets, Vucevic isn’t really a great DFS play on Wednesday’s slate. He may see his minutes limited and the Bulls will likely pull away at some point. Bradley probably won’t see much run off the bench. The Bulls have gotten by with smaller lineups and Derrick Jones Jr., Troy Brown Jr., Javonte Green and Ayo Dosunmu will make up most of the bench rotation with White. Vuce being back should help out the other stars on the team, including DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine and Lonzo Ball.