Bulls' Taj Gibson playing through ligament tear in left hand

Chicago Bulls forward Taj Gibson isn't going to let a hand injury derail his season.

Gibson, who was forced to the shelf earlier this season with an ankle issue, told reporters after the Bulls' win over the Phoenix Suns on Saturday he's been playing through a stage two ligament tear in his left hand for the last four weeks.

"I said, 'Doc, whatever it takes, just bandage me up. I’m going to get my treatment and do what I can on the court,'" Gibson said, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. "No excuses."

The hand injury could help explain why Gibson's scoring and field goal percentage have dipped over the last two months. After scoring in double figures and shooting above 50 percent from the field in November and December, Gibson has averaged under double-digit scoring while shooting roughly 45 percent.

Gibson added:

I've never been a guy focused on shots, I've never been a guy focused on minutes. I'm about winning and trying to win a championship. It was a lot of speculation saying that he's frustrated. I'm not that kind of guy. Whatever team I'm on, whatever teammates I got, I'm not that kind of guy. I'm team-first. Whatever the team needs, I'm going to put the team first.

Gibson's ankle injury, meanwhile, won't be fully healed until the end of the season, he said.