The Chicago Bulls All-Star PF Luol Deng may be going against many fans' wishes this offseason, but he has little doubt he is making the right choice. Deng is foregoing offseason surgery on his injured wrist so that he can participate in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
According to Deng, his decision to delay the surgery was not only for the Olympics, but the better of the Bulls:
"My whole thing is, when I had the wrist injury I really didn't want to do the surgery because I felt we had the team -- and I still think we did -- to win it all," Deng said. "Unfortunately, things just didn't go right. We had a lot of injuries throughout the season. When I had my injury I told the Bulls I was going to hold off from surgery because I felt like we had a chance to win but also that I still wanted to play in the Olympics."
And for Deng, playing in the Olympics was the only way he pay back England, the nation that gave his family asylum when they fled Sudan, without diverting from his charity work from Sudan -- making the Olympics a one-of-a-kind opportunity for Deng:
"Much as I wanted to please Chicago and Chicago Bulls fans, I just hope they understand if I don't play in these Olympics, it will haunt me for the rest of my life. Giving something back is something that comes from my family."
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