Bulls' Zach LaVine out at least week with right ankle sprain

CHICAGO -- Bulls guard Zach LaVine will miss at least one week with a sprained right ankle, the team announced Friday.

LaVine injured his ankle in the third quarter of Thursday's win over the Toronto Raptors and immediately removed himself from the game. In frustration following the injury, he threw a towel at an empty chair on his way to the bench before heading to the locker room.

LaVine briefly checked back in during the fourth quarter, but checked back out after only about two minutes of game time.

Bulls coach Billy Donovan did not have a timeline for his return when asked on Saturday afternoon.

"I don't know what it's going to end up being. It's going to be how he responds" Donovan said. "He certainly has swelling in his ankle. That's pretty clear. Like I said, he's dealt with this before. I don't want to put a timeline on him."

Donovan was not sure if LaVine would accompany the team on a three-game trip to Phoenix, the Los Angeles Lakers and Portland that starts on Monday.

With less than three weeks until the NBA's trade deadline, the injury is the latest setback for LaVine in a season disjointed by injuries. He played only seven games since coming back from a foot injury this season that cost him 17 games.

In those seven games, the Bulls saw a different version of LaVine. He averaged 15.6 points on 11.1 field goal attempts with 5.9 rebounds and 5.3 assists, the highest rebound and assist rates of his career, as well as his fewest shot attempts since his second season in the NBA in 2015-16.

The Bulls survived an extended stretch without LaVine earlier this season, going 10-7 when he went down with an initial foot injury Nov. 30.

Information from The Associated Press was included in this report.