PROTECT THE PAINT

Luol Deng has been on a tear of late, albeit playing with a fracture in his left thumb, shining brightly for an otherwise abysmal Chicago Bulls team. He has been putting up the numbers that were expected of him when he signed his 6-year $71 million contract.

Deng has been averaging 21.8 PPG, 8 RPG, and 3 APG over his last 5 games. His increased production has come at a strange time. It was announced yesterday that Deng has been playing the past week with a hairline fracture in his thumb that he sustained in practice.

Fortunately, the fracture is on his non-shooting hand. However, Deng states there are drawbacks in his game because he feels pain while dribbling or anytime he is grasping the ball:

“It hurts a lot. It affects me a little when I dribble and drive, but I want to play through it.”

Deng announced that he plans to play through the pain. This might not be the smartest move from a medical standpoint, his motivation for playing with the injury is justified after his leg injury and the bad rap the press gave him last year.

The injury was a fractured right tibia, and  his season as a whole was a disappointment for Chicago. He played 49 games and was shut down for the playoffs. Deng was unhappy people did not believe the severity of his injury.

The media’s mindset stemmed from the fact that after he was shut down for the year Deng was still able to play for Britian’s national team during the summer. Bad timing for him to get healthy when viewed through the looking glass of the media.

Dribbling is a painful process for Deng. (Credit: picapp.com)

This is likely a strong influence as to why Deng is playing through injury now. He wants to silence his critics while simultaneously proving his toughness. He is putting up solid numbers and making a healthy (no pun intended) contribution for the Bulls on a nightly basis.

Deng is the leading scorer for Chicago, and he is now leading the way with his toughness. If he helps the Bulls to some wins while battling through his painful injury, he might even win over some love from the media this season.

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