DENG'S NIGHTMARE SEASON CONTINUES
04/08/2009

GB star Luol Deng could miss Game On at the O2 arena in August after sufffering another setback in his bid to return from injury.

The Chicago Bulls Small Forward has already missed 18 games this season and began to experience some discomfort this week whilst stepping up his recovery from a stress fracture of the shin.

"I increased the workout a little bit and had a great deal of pain." Deng revealed.

This latest bump in the rocky road to recovery is not expected to keep Deng from representing GB in EuroBasket this summer, but could disappoint fans who were hoping to see the Brixton-raised star in action on his home turf.

Deng would no doubt be just as disappointed as his fans if forced to miss the event, but his immediate concerns remain with the Bulls as they look to secure their spot in the post season.

"Even if I'm capable of being back for five or 10 minutes, so guys can sit down a little bit because guys are playing a lot of minutes, I can help out. But now I can't even scrimmage for five minutes, let alone go and play.

"If early next week it feels great, even though I haven't played in a while, I don't think it would be a bad idea to get on the floor for a few minutes and give it a go.'' he added.

Bulls Coach Vinny Del Negro is obviously keen to get one of his key men back on the floor, but will not rush into any decision he makes.

"We're just day-to-day, week-to-week and see where we're at. If there's a way to get him back, we'd love to have him back. But we also want to be smart about it."

The rookie coach seems to be following through on this plan too having just re-signed Linton Johnson III, after he was released on a ten day contract just last week.