By Bud L. Ellis
Three games in a row. Two games above .500. Wins in back-to-back games since the All-Star break.
The Chicago Bulls hope they are finding their stride at just the right time.
Kirk Hinrich scored 20 points to lead the way, and the Bulls continued their good work with a 100-94 win at Minnesota on Friday night.
Derrick Rose scored 19 points and Luol Deng added 18 for Chicago, which won for the fifth time in its past six games and stayed one percentage point ahead of Miami for sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings. The Bulls trail fifth-place Toronto by two games.
Minnesota led this one 58-55 at halftime and was as close as one point early in the fourth quarter. Brad Miller led Chicago with 10 rebounds.
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Friday, February 19, 2010 at 11:03 pm by bud
Tags: Brad Miller, Chicago Bulls, Derrick Rose, Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, National Basketball Association, Toronto Raptors
By Bud L. Ellis
Were the playoffs to begin today, the Chicago Bulls would be in the postseason. But the Bulls hope for far better things in the season’s final 31 games.
Chicago opens the post All-Star section of its schedule Wednesday night on the road against the New York Knicks. The Bulls are eighth in the Eastern Conference standings, holding onto the final playoff spot in the conference by one game over Milwaukee.
But with a record of 25-26, the Bulls hope they can play better down the stretch and move up in the conference standings. It’s certainly possible, given that Chicago sits just two games behind sixth-seed Charlotte, and is one percentage point behind seventh-place Miami.
The Bulls showed some signs of better play in the two weeks leading up to the All-Star break, winning six of their final 10 games. Chicago returns home Friday to play 13-win Minnesota, then plays host to 20-32 Philadelphia on Saturday.
Chicago has a chance to continue its winning ways, as the Bulls don’t see a team with a plus-.500 record until Portland comes to town next weekend.
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Tuesday, February 16, 2010 at 8:02 pm by bud
Tags: Charlotte Bobcats, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, National Basketball Association, New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers
The Chicago Bulls suspended forward Tyrus Thomas for one game, for “conduct detrimental to the team.” The Bulls did not provide further specifics.
Thomas missed seven weeks earlier in the season with a broken left forearm, in a time where the Bulls were decimated by injuries and when coach Vinny Del Negro’s job appeared on the line.
But the Bulls have rebounded as of late, placing themselves firmly in contention for the Eastern Conference playoff race. (Granted, any team with a record around .500 finds themselves “in the playoff race.”)
Thomas had been averaging 8.5 points and 6.2 rebounds over 25 games this season.
The Bulls were already short-handed in the frontcourt before Thomas’ suspension, as starting center Joakim Noah had been shut down until after the All-Star break with plantar fasciitis in his right foot.
The Bulls face the Heat on Saturday night.
Saturday, February 6, 2010 at 7:29 pm by bryan
