A prominent figure might return today for the Chicago Bulls as center Joakim Noah may play versus the Washington Wizards, possibly his first game since suffering a left shoulder injury last month.

Noah had a tear in his left shoulder in a loss to the Brooklyn Nets back in Dec. 21 and has since then been sidelined. 

Despite missing Noah, the Bulls thrived, winning seven of their last nine games. However, they are coming off a loss to the Atlanta Hawks last Saturday. 

Before the defeat to Atlanta, Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg said about Noah, according to ESPN, "Hopefully we'll get him back on Monday."

Hoiberg continued, "He's doing some activity today. We'll get him doing some live stuff [Sunday]. Hopefully he'll get through a full practice. That's the biggest thing with him right now, just getting through a live practice. Hopefully we'll get him back Monday."

Meanwhile, in a report by the Chicago Sun-Times, Noah remained positive about the injury and his current status with the team. 

"It feels good," the 30-year-old veteran said Sunday about his possible return, according to the report. 

"Just being on the bike on the side of practices for a couple of weeks, it's as humbling as it gets for a player to be injured. I think we've been playing really good basketball, and I just want to help our team," he added. 

This season, Noah's numbers are on a decline since he is playing limited minutes while also coming off the bench. 

Because of this, his name has been in the trade rumor mill recently and the injury just intensified the talks about him being dealt to another team. 

In Noah's absence, rookie Bobby Portis emerged and most likely because of this, the veteran will see a much reduced role once he comes back this season. 

According to ESPN, Hoiberg "reaffirmed" that Portis will stay in Chicago's rotation even with Noah coming back. 

The Bulls are currently second in the Eastern Conference standings with a 22–13 record, four games behind the conference-leading Cleveland Cavaliers (26–9).