Bulls won't use fatigue as an excuse

Fatigue would have been a suitable excuse for the Bulls after losing to Charlotte 83-82 on Tuesday night at the United Center.

This was their four game in five days and also completed a stretch of playing 10 in 15 days. The Bulls haven't had a genuine practice day since Jan. 3.

“I'm never going to admit to that,” Luol Deng said. “This is the NBA and you can't think of fatigue. Once you guys keep mentioning it, we're going to start thinking about it, and we're really trying not to. I feel like we've got a deep enough team.”

“It's all part of the NBA,” coach Tom Thibodeau added. “I've said all along I like the quality of our bench. When one guy's out, the next guy steps up. I think we have a deep team.

“For us, we don't change the way we play. So whoever is playing we know is capable.”

Triple threats:

Derrick Rose's triple-double Monday was just the sixth by a Bulls player since the championship era ended. There were two by Kirk Hinrich and one each from Chris Duhon, Jalen Rose and Jay Williams.

Michael Jordan holds the franchise record with 29 triple-doubles, followed by Scottie Pippen with 19. Third on the list is center Tom Boerwinkle with 5.

Nate Thurmond recorded a rare quadruple-double in the very first game he played for the Bulls on Oct. 18, 1974. He finished with 22 points, 14 rebounds, 13 assists and 10 blocks against Atlanta.

Boozer remains questionable:

Carlos Boozer missed his second straight game with a sprained left ankle, but coach Tom Thibodeau didn't make any predictions regarding Boozer's availability for Thursday's date with Dallas.

“The swelling's down. He's moving around without a limp,” Thibodeau said before the game. “He's a lot better today than he was yesterday. You just want to be smart about it and make sure he's completely healthy.”

Unintentional assist:

Kurt Thomas might have pulled off one of the all-time savvy veteran moves. With the clock about to expire in Monday's win at Memphis, he tipped an offensive rebound straight into the arms of Derrick Rose, which is exactly what he needed to complete his first career triple-double.

“I had no idea, just trying to be aggressive, trying to run down a loose ball,” Thomas admitted. “I knew I couldn't get it, so I tried to tip it to a teammate. I didn't have any idea he was that close to a triple-double.”

Bull horns:

Derrick Rose was named Eastern Conference player of the week after averaging 27.3 points and 6.8 assists. Russell Westbrook won in the West. … Tickets are on sale for the annual FestaBulls fundraiser, which will be held Jan. 31 at the United Center. Visit bulls.com for more information.