Nets-Bulls Preview

By JEFF BARTL
Posted Jan 23 2012 2:12PM

The Chicago Bulls have been rolling despite a rash of injuries to key players. They may be without their two best ones when they host the New Jersey Nets on Monday night.

Derrick Rose could miss his fifth straight game while Luol Deng will likely sit out as the Bulls look to improve the best record in the NBA with their fourth win in a row.

Rose said Monday that his sprained left big toe "is never going to be right this year," though he "felt decent" during the shootaround. That's apparently not the case with Deng, whom coach Tom Thibodeau said probably wouldn't play against the Nets due to a sprained left wrist.

Key absences have hardly affected Chicago this season, though. Despite Rose, Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and John Lucas III being sidelined Saturday, the Bulls (15-3) defeated Charlotte 95-89.

Carlos Boozer scored a game-high 23 points and Deng added 22 for Chicago, which also got a season-high 20 from Richard Hamilton.

"We'd like to be healthy, but we do a good job of stepping up when we have guys out," Boozer said. "We have a lot of guys that can play on this team. I think we're the deepest team in the league."

The Bulls have won three straight after getting blown out 102-86 by Memphis on Jan. 16, the first game Rose missed.

Thibodeau said he thinks Noah will play Monday, while Lucas will be a game-time decision. He ruled out Gibson, who has a sprained ankle.

"We have the right guys," Thibodeau said. "No matter who is out, we have enough to win with. These guys play for each other and they play to win."

Rose last played Jan. 14, when he scored 18 points and had 11 assists in a 77-64 win over Toronto.

New Jersey (5-12) is also coming off a victory over the Bobcats, 97-87 on Sunday. Deron Williams narrowly missed his first career triple-double, finishing with 19 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists as the Nets won for the second time in three games.

"It was close. I've been close a number of times," Williams said. "It will happen someday."

Williams lifted a team that shot a season low-tying 31.0 percent in an 84-74 loss to Oklahoma City on Saturday.

MarShon Brooks scored 20 points and Anthony Morrow added 19 off the bench against Charlotte.

"We played pretty good offense overall. The goal was to try and get to 100 points," coach Avery Johnson said. "We figured that (the) first team to 100 would really have a chance to win."

With Brook Lopez's injury leaving a hole inside, the Nets have attempted a league-high 440 3-pointers. They've hit only 10 of 50 attempts over their last two games, however.

Brooks attributed his strong game Sunday to him being more aggressive from inside the arc.

"I've been shooting a lot of 3s. I've been hitting a lot of them so I find myself settling for that shot," Brooks said. "I need to be a little bit more efficient."

Williams missed the most recent meeting with the Bulls on April 13, won 97-82 by Chicago at home despite Rose shooting 5 of 13 and recording one assist.

New Jersey has won three road games this season after winning five in 2010-11.

Hamilton, Rose lead Bulls over Nets 110-95

By ANDREW SELIGMAN
Posted Jan 23 2012 11:58PM

CHICAGO (AP) Derrick Rose had fans gasping in anticipation as he took off on the break, and they were breathless again seconds later as a similar scene unfolded.

Both times Rose took it easy on his sore foot. Otherwise, he showed no mercy.

Rose and Richard Hamilton each scored 22 points to lead the banged-up Chicago Bulls to an easy 110-95 victory over the New Jersey Nets on Monday.

"I was scared to dunk like that, but other than that, chasing (Deron Williams) around, I didn't feel anything," Rose said.

That was probably the best news on a night when the Bulls simply dominated the overmatched Nets.

Hamilton set season highs in points and assists (10). Rose added eight assists and hung with Williams after missing four games with a sprained left big toe.

Joakim Noah chipped in with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and the cruised to their fourth straight win even though they're hardly a picture of health at the moment.

Rose seemed hobbled at times but was able to stick with one of the game's best point guards, hours after he said the injury could be an issue the rest of the season. That doesn't necessarily mean he expects to miss more games.

"I didn't mean it that way," he said. "If someone steps on it, it's going to hurt. You never know. It might go the whole year and nobody touches it."

Rose said the decision to play ultimately rests with him, and he was feeling well enough Monday to return to the lineup.

He got plenty of help from Hamilton, who delivered another strong performance after scoring 20 against Charlotte on Saturday. That's two strong performances for a veteran who has been limited by a groin problem in his first season with the Bulls, and while the scoring is nice, what really stood out is what he did when he wasn't putting the ball in the net.

"He makes the right play," coach Tom Thibodeau said. "When he's open, he shoots. When he's guarded, he makes the right read."

Noah came up big, too, after missing a game with a sprained left ankle. Carlos Boozer had 14 points and nine rebounds, and Ronnie Brewer (11 points) filled in nicely with Luol Deng sidelined by a sprained left wrist.

Williams had 16 points and 10 assists for New Jersey. Jordan Farmar scored 22. Anthony Morrow added 15 points starting for MarShon Brooks (sore right Achilles tendon), but the Nets simply were simply overwhelmed playing their third game in as many nights.

"When the Bulls are energized and they get Derrick Rose back, they can score 110 on a lot of teams," New Jersey coach Avery Johnson said.

The Bulls led by as much as 17 in the first half and went to the locker room up 59-43 with Rose and Hamilton leading the way.

Rose scored 14 in the half even though he appeared to be hobbling a bit. That didn't stop him from hitting two 3-pointers in the half, from finding Hamilton with a neat feed for an alley-oop layup in the first quarter or from wrapping two breakaway dunks around a steal during one 15-second stretch in the second quarter, although he went up easy on those jams.

"You can see he was a little tentative," Williams said. "Usually he'll attack a little bit more. But he didn't have to."

Hamilton was active from the start, whether he was converting layups or burying jumpers. Brewer provided an early spark, too, with nine points in the first quarter, and even seldom-used backup Brian Scalabrine had his moments in the first half.

That included a neat driving reverse layup and feed from underneath to Omer Asik for another layup.

The Bulls did all that even though they were missing one of their best players in Deng, who was injured Saturday and might miss a few more games. Thibodeau said Deng is day to day and didn't completely rule out surgery even though the coach doesn't think it will be necessary.

He said Deng is "still consulting some doctors." Losing him for an extended period would be a big blow even though the Bulls believe they have the depth to withstand injuries.

"It's tough to see him hurt like that," Noah said. "We know that we need Lu to be right."

Notes: Brooks was a late scratch for New Jersey and will be examined on Tuesday. ... New Jersey's Shawne Williams and Hamilton each got technicals for a scuffle early in the fourth quarter, after Hamilton threw an elbow at Larry Owens. ... Bulls F Taj Gibson hopes to be back by the end of the week after missing his second straight game with a sprained left ankle.

Notebook: Bulls 110, Nets 95

By Kent McDill, for NBA.com
Posted Monday January 23, 2012 11:38PM

THE FACTS: The Chicago Bulls made the game-time decision Monday to let Derrick Rose (sprained toe) and Joakim Noah (sprained ankle) play at the United Center, and it worked out. Rose scored 22 points and Noah had 16 points and 10 rebounds as the Bulls whipped the New Jersey Nets 110-95. Rip Hamilton had 22 points and 10 assists, giving the Bulls two double-doubles on the night. Deron Williams had 16 points and 10 assists for the Nets, who also got 22 points from Jordan Farmar off the bench.

THE FACTS II: The Bulls played the game without starting forward Luol Deng, who suffered a sprained wrist in the Bulls' last game. The extent of the injury was not immediately revealed by the team. Reserve forward Taj Gibson missed his second straight game with an ankle sprain. The Nets, meanwhile, were playing their third game in three nights, and played without starting guard MarShon Brooks, who had a sore Achilles' tendon. The decision to keep him out of the game was not made until right before game time.

QUOTABLE: "I'm the only one who knows if I'm ready to go out."
-- Rose talking about the decision to play Monday

THE STAT: The Bulls had a season-high 33 assists on 43 baskets.

THE STAT II: In a matchup of Turkish centers, Bulls reserve center Omer Asik outplayed Nets starter Mehmet Okur. Asik had 10 points and four rebounds in 10 minutes while Okur had seven points and one rebound in 22 minutes.

THE MOMENT: Playing before an audience worried about his physical condition, Rose offered up back-to-back perfect assists on baskets by Noah and Hamilton midway through the first quarter. Then, with three minutes left in the quarter, Rose missed a 3-pointer, Ronnie Brewer got the rebound, missed the putback, Hamilton got the rebound and with Rose screaming for the ball, Hamilton sent the ball back outside to the MVP who hit the 3-pointer for a 23-11 Bulls lead.

INJURY UPDATE: Brooks was a game-time scratch from the Nets' lineup because of a sore Achilles' tendon. Rose played with his sprained big toe, and Noah played despite his sprained ankle. Deng's situation is very uncertain, and he is seeing numerous doctors. Gibson is listed as day-to-day but also remains an uncertain contributor for a while.

HOT: Hamilton made 10 of 16 shots for his 22 points. He had four rebounds to go with his 10 assists.

NOT: Bulls guard Kyle Korver continues to be ice cold from the field at home. He is 2-for-14 in his last four home games.

QUOTABLE II: "Then he's week-to-week."
-- Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, after being asked how Deng's "day-to-day'' status would change if his wrist injury proved to be serious.

GOOD MOVE: With Deng and Gibson out, Thibodeau used popular bench forward Brian Scalabrine as his first sub. Scalabrine had five points, three rebounds and four assists in 23 minutes.

NOTABLE: With his first basket of the game, Hamilton became the 120th player in NBA history to score 15,0000 points.

NOTABLE II: With their game Monday, the Bulls became the first team this season to play 19 games. But the rest of the league catches up this week as the Bulls play every other day this week and do not have a back-to-back until Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. However, after Friday's home game against Milwaukee, the Bulls play nine consecutive road games, eight of them against Eastern Conference opponents.

UP NEXT: For the Bulls, Wednesday vs. Indiana, Friday vs. Milwaukee, Monday @ Miami. For the Nets, Wednesday vs. Toronto, Friday @ Indiana, Saturday vs. Detroit.

• Nets: James, Lopez, Williams
• Bulls: Gibson

• Nets: Williams
• Bulls: Hamilton

• Lead Changes: 2
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: United Center, Chicago, IL
• Officials: #14 Ed Malloy, #35 Kane Fitzgerald, #70 Brent Barnaky
• Attendance: 21572
• Duration: 2:08