Bulls finding success without Boozer

Unless there are some surprising shifts in the NBA's balance of power and so far, New Orleans is the only unexpected team among the elite the toughest part of the Bulls' schedule is the opening seven weeks.

That happens to coincide with the time missed by power forward Carlos Boozer with a broken right hand. Boozer is hoping to practice next week, but it's questionable whether he'll be ready to play when the Bulls return home after the circus trip to face Orlando on Dec. 1.

With all this in mind, though, it might be a good sign that the Bulls are off to a 7-4 start and coming off an impressive 88-83 victory at Dallas on Friday.

“What was exciting was we're playing good basketball against an elite team like Dallas,” Joakim Noah said after the game, according to bulls.com. “To come here without one of our monsters (Boozer), our potential is pretty scary. Everyone feels it and everyone knows it. It's up to us now to live in the moment.”

The road slows down now, but it won't get any easier. After spending three off days in Los Angeles, the Bulls will begin a stretch of four games in five nights against the Lakers on Tuesday. Games at Phoenix, Denver and Sacramento finish the road trip.

By Dec. 10, the Bulls will be done with the Lakers, Oklahoma City and Denver. They'll have played six of the eight Western Conference playoff teams from last year on the road and made both trips to Boston.

After the Lakers visit the United Center on Dec. 10, 17 of the Bulls' next 18 games are against teams that were .500 or worse through Friday's action.

Winning the board battle:

The Bulls posted a hefty 59-34 rebound advantage against Dallas. Taj Gibson (18) and Joakim Noah (17) had more combined boards than the entire Mavericks team.

“We just absolutely got crushed on the glass,” Dallas star Dirk Nowitzki said, according to espn.com. “I don't actually think our defense was that bad. We forced them into tough shots.

“It seemed like they played harder. They wanted it more. Once you do that, you let a team hang around and they get some lucky bounces.”

Gibson started the road trip missing 15 of 16 shots against Houston and San Antonio. Noah, who is averaging 13.3 rebounds on the season, snapped a string of three straight single-digit rebound games against the Spurs.

“I was not happy with the way I was playing the last two, three games,” Noah said. “Sometimes I get caught up in the game. I can't go through the motions. I've got to go after the ball all the time.”

Gibson has reason to celebrate:

When Taj Gibson knocked down a stunning 3-point basket with 2:50 left in Friday's game, he spread his arms with three fingers out in sort of a Brad Miller-inspired celebration.

“It was my first ever,” Gibson said, according to bulls.com. “I had to celebrate. I remember so many players hitting 3s on me and their reaction and it (upset) me. So I had a chance and a nice moment to celebrate.

“Never had a 3-pointer at USC or in high school. Coach lets me shoot them in practice. He said one day I will have the confidence to step in and shoot one and tonight I stepped in and shot it.”

The ball arrived in Gibson's hands after C.J. Watson had his shot blocked. The shot clock was about to expire, so Gibson had no other choice but to launch from about 26 feet with Dirk Nowitzki contesting on defense.

It was Gibson's first 3-point attempt of his NBA career.