as was explored yesterday

That the Bulls have one of the East's best records is no surprise. How it has happened is a little more interesting. Signing free-agent center Ben Wallace seemed to push the young Bulls into the category of contenders, but Wallace's new deal has been a bust thus far. Wallace's averages of 6.5 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game are all his lowest marks since signing with Detroit and emerging as a star six years ago. More damning is that the Bulls have been a much better team with Wallace off the court. With Wallace on the bench, Chicago has outscored opponents by 10.6 points per 100 possessions. That's a dramatic change from last year, when Wallace's net plus-minus rating was the best on the Pistons.

If Wallace is not the difference, what explains Chicago's improvement? The third-year breakout. Chicago's pair of picks in the 2004 lottery, guard Ben Gordon and forward Luol Deng, have emerged as the team's best players in their third seasons. Gordon, the Sixth Man Award winner as a rookie, is now starting and has maintained his prodigious scoring pace over more minutes. He's averaging 21.5 points per game while shooting 46.2% from the field - a huge improvement over his 41.1% and 42.2% marks his first two NBA seasons. Gordon's True Shooting Percentage (58.3%) is virtually identical to that of fellow UConn alum Ray Allen (58.2%). Deng seemingly has no weakness at small forward; he's averaging 17.8 points and 6.8 rebounds and shooting 52.3% from the field. (OK, shooting with range is a weakness - Deng has only one three-pointer all year.)

Behind Deng and Gordon, the Bulls have improved at the offensive end of the court. Playoff trips the last two seasons were based almost entirely on defense, as Chicago ranked 26th and 23rd, respectively, in the NBA in Offensive Rating. The Bulls still aren't even average on offense, ranking 18th in the league in per-possession scoring, but they are good enough to take advantage of their elite defense. Chicago is second in the league in Defensive Rating, and the Bulls are rare amongst elite defensive teams in that they play at a fast pace (fifth-fastest in the NBA) and make a living by forcing turnovers - more per possession than anyone else in the NBA.

Chicago has the opportunity to solidify its status as a contender on its current West Coast road trip. The Bulls have come West for seven games, though just two of them are against the elite group of the top seven teams in the conference. The trip got off to a slow start Wednesday, when Chicago faltered down the stretch in a 110-98 loss to the Clippers. The Bulls were without Wallace in that game because of a left knee contusion suffered last weekend, and he is not expected to return until tomorrow night at the earliest. Journeyman forward Malik Allen started up front with veteran P.J. Brown in Wallace's absence.

The Seattle SuperSonics return home as part of a strange schedule that sees them play at KeyArena tonight before heading back out East for a lengthy road trip to Washington and Indiana. Before Sunday's stunning blowout defeat at the hands of the Clippers, the Sonics had built momentum at the Key even as they struggle to snap their road losing streak. Allen, who had 68 points in the Sonics' two-game trip to Texas, continues to play outstanding basketball, though it wasn't enough to earn him a spot on the Western Conference All-Star team. Nick Collison has been the other cornerstone for the Sonics, finishing with 25 points and 17 rebounds on Wednesday for his seventh double-double in January.

KEY MATCHUP
	With the emergence of Deng and Gordon and the addition of Wallace, Kirk Hinrich has been something of a forgotten man in Chicago. Statistically, there's no explanation for that - Hinrich is putting up virtually identical numbers to his last two seasons (15.7, 15.9 and 15.5 points per game; 6.4, 6.3 and 6.3 assists per game). He's taken a slightly smaller role in the offense, but has improved his efficiency, shooting a career-best 44.3% from the field. Hinrich is also an excellent defender who will likely be called upon to match up with Allen. The Sonics point guards, Earl Watson and Luke Ridnour, seemed to get going in Texas, combining for 18 points and 12 assists.

Playing the second game of a back-to-back without guards Allen and Watson, the Sonics were overmatched in losing to the Chicago Bulls 99-84 on Wednesday. The Bulls took control early, breaking the game open with a 20-3 run. The Sonics would not get within double-digits the rest of the game as Chicago cruised.

Wallace played his best game since joining the Bulls this summer as a free agent. Wallace dominated the paint, finishing with 15 points, 20 rebounds and five blocks - all season highs. Gordon came off the bench to pour in a game-high 27 points and the Chicago defense forced 20 turnovers.

For the Sonics, Johan Petro's play was a positive. Petro came off the bench to post a career-high 16 points on 8-for-12 shooting, adding 10 rebounds for his third career double-double. Fellow Frenchman Mickaël Gelabale also scored a career high with 10 points. Rashard Lewis (18 points, 13 rebounds) posted his fourth double-double of the season, and Damien Wilkins had 16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, though he also committed eight turnovers.

INJURIES

Sonics - Forward Rashard Lewis (tendon surgery, right hand) and centers Danny Fortson (sprained left foot) and Robert Swift (torn right ACL) are out.

Chicago - Center Ben Wallace (left knee contusion) is doubtful.

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For more analysis before tonight's game, listen to the Sonics Pregame Show starting at 7:00 on KTTH 770 AM and Sonics Radio Network stations.