Dangerous foul
Alex Caruso still played the equivalent of one full quarter after a flagrant 2 foul was deemed to have been committed on him midway through the third period of the Bulls’ match against the Bucks the other day. The contact was far from incidental; in fact, it was downright ugly, with Grayson Allen catching his arms not once, but twice, toppling him parallel to the maple hardwood. After a while, though, he appeared none the worse for wear — save for soreness that made shooting the ball difficult, as evidenced by two missed free throws immediately thereafter and five of six field goal attempts the rest of the way.
The Bulls lost by four, but the ignominious start to a threegame road trip was reflected more by the play than the outcome. Subsequent tests revealed Caruso to be suffering from a wrist fracture that requires surgery and up to eight weeks of convalescence. To argue that he will be missed is an understatement; he’s not fifth on the team in minutes played per outing, and with starters Zach LaVine and Lonzo already out due to knee injuries, he has been expected to fill in the slack even more. Which, in a nutshell, was why head coach Billy Donovan, normally a picture of calm in his post-mortems, could not help but unload on Allen for committing the “dangerous.”
Needless to say, Bucks counterpart Mike Budenholzer thought otherwise. And, not surprisingly, reactions from those on the outside looking in likewise depended on perspective. That said, the referees did throw Allen out of the match after repeated reviews of the play, with the National Basketball Association front office looking into it further. How things go for the fourthyear guard remains to be seen, although it must be noted that any penalty, if at all, will take into consideration the intent and not the outcome.
Speaking of intent, Donovan referenced Allen’s “history” of questionable contact. Yet, it bears noting that said transgressions occurred back when he was still in college. Since being chosen 21st overall in the 2018 draft, he has had just one misstep — made during a preseason set-to in his rookie year. Don’t tell that to Caruso, though, and don’t tell that to the Bulls, who will need to navigate the next third of their schedule without a vital cog. They may be able to welcome him back in two months, but it’s small
consolation under the circumstances.