Chicago Bulls: Season already over for rookie Noa Essengue

Coach Billy Donovan officially confirmed the news to the press: the French player requires extensive left shoulder surgery. Since rehabilitation typically lasts six to seven months, he is definitively ruled out for the remainder of the current season.

Having barely featured for Chicago so far, totaling just five minutes across two games without scoring, the twelfth pick of the 2025 Draft can effectively look ahead to his upcoming sophomore year.

The Bulls preferred immediate surgery rather than letting the injury linger into the critical offseason, potentially hindering his recovery timeline. Spending more time in the G-League than the NBA, a plan established early on, Noa Essengue will turn nineteen in just two weeks. Donovan describes him as a "development project" who needed to strengthen his physique this summer. Consequently, he was never intended to crack the rotation during his debut campaign. However, his standing could significantly change within a year.