Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng will switch his focus to this summer’s Olympic Games in London now that his NBA season is over, with the 27-year old now set to captain the British team. The 6ft 9in star will have to once again play through the pain barrier after struggling for much of the year with a torn ligament in his left wrist.
The injury wasn’t enough to stop Deng being selected in the 2011-2012 NBA All-Star Defensive Second Team following another impressive season for the Bulls. Deng has admitted he may need to undergo an operation before the new season gets underway.
However, with NBA betting tips tipping him to have an impact in London this summer, Deng admits that the Olympics is now the only thing on his mind and all thoughts of his injury have been banished for now.
“It’s the toughest thing I’ve ever done in my career so far. It’s been hard, but I’m proud to have pushed my limits,” Deng admitted.
“I still don’t know if I’ll need a surgery. It will depend on how my wrist feels in the next few weeks. But right now, my mind is only focused on the Olympics.”
The Bulls would definitely prefer it if their influential forward wasn’t about to embark on an Olympic Games campaign, however, Deng has always made it clear he is determined to captain Team Great Britain at the London Games. Punters who bet on basketball feel that home advantage will give the British side a real boost and could see hem perform much better in basketball then they have done in recent games.
An operation following this summer’s tournament may have an impact on Deng’s pre-season training, or at least that will be the fear of the Bulls management.