Veteran center Nic Claxton, who’s said to be close to making his season — and Bulls — debut, was a full participant in Sunday’s practice, head coach Tiago Splitter told reporters, including K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network (Twitter link).

It’s been 13 days since Splitter said Claxton would likely be out two more weeks, with Chicago’s next game set for Monday in Philadelphia. The Bulls have not yet released their injury report for that road game against the 6-1 Sixers.

Claxton suffered a left hamstring strain during training camp in early October. The 27-year-old has been ramping up his activity in recent days, and Sunday’s practice is further evidence that he’s inching closer to returning from his injury.

Here’s more on the Bulls:

• Caleb Wilson and several of his teammates were disappointed in Chicago’s lackluster effort during Friday’s lopsided loss in Boston, the team’s second blowout defeat to the Celtics in five days. After Sunday’s practice, the fourth overall pick reiterated that he doesn’t want bad habits to impede his — or the team’s — development. “I know that this is gonna be the most I lose in my life. I’m in the NBA now, and we’re not the team that we want to be in the future,” Wilson said, per Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic (Twitter link). “… I mean, losing games doesn’t make you a loser, but your approach to losing games and your approach to basketball, how you play, is what makes you a loser.”
• When asked by Lorenzi whether he feels an obligation to be a leader in the locker room, Wilson didn’t hesitate (Twitter link). “For sure. I feel like there’s a lot of things that I do that rookies aren’t expected to do either,” Wilson said. “On the court, rookies aren’t expected to play the way I do, or do a lot of the things that I do. Don’t have the expectations and pressure that I do. So me being a leader is a beautiful opportunity to afford to me. But nothing that I do, I feel like, is typical.”
• Splitter was pleased with the intensity Wilson brought in the second half Friday after the team struggled in the first two quarters, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “I think his will to play well, to be effective, was contagious,” Splitter said. “He took some tough shots, but he made those. He was just trying to be effective and aggressive, especially to start the third quarter. He’s a winner; he wants to win. He wants to do the right thing.”
• Rebounding, particularly on the defensive end, has been an issue for the rebuilding Bulls amid their 1-5 start to 2026/27, according to Julia Poe of The Chicago Tribune. Point guard Josh Giddey has seen his rebounding numbers drop this season in a small sample size, and he says he’s still getting used to Splitter’s scheme, which requires him to box out more than he has in the past. “I’ve always been a guy that has tried to just hunt the ball down off of our misses, so I’m just adjusting to a different rebounding scheme,” Giddey said. “Before I’ve always been a guy to just go and hunt it.”