From the Bulls:

Bulls G Richard Hamilton has a right shoulder contusion & mild sprain of his right shoulder. His status is day-to-day.

So that's good news.

Would a more serious diagnosis have 'forced' the Bulls to make a move before next week's trade deadline? I doubt it, but this means the chances of them leveraging some assets into a wing upgrade are diminished further.

I suppose that's fine, the Bulls have cast their lot with Rip and his creaky old self. But I think we're clearly at the point where Rip's playing status is merely 'between injuries'. And it takes quite the optimistic view to assume that one of those times will be in the playoffs.

As far as his immediate availability, Rip was on a minutes restriction for his last injury while suffering this one, and the Bulls are strangely secretive about such things in the first place, so who really knows. But knowing there's no dislocation or surgery required is a big relief.