Noah apologizes for ejection

Joakim Noah went straight for the pre-emptive apology Sunday after being ejected the previous night against Toronto.

“I just want to apologize to the referee,” Noah said at the Berto Center. “I was wrong. I was frustrated about the call and I overreacted.”

Three things happened in rapid fashion with 1:28 left in the second quarter. Noah was called for a foul while contesting a driving shot attempt by Raptors forward Andrea Bargnani.

Noah reacted angrily and was quickly given a technical foul by referee Derrick Collins.

As Collins walked toward the scorer’s table to signal the foul, Noah threw a two-hand chest pass, sending the ball in the direction of Collins. Another referee, Scott Foster, saw this and immediately signaled for the ejection, which is automatic after two technical fouls.

“I just feel bad for what happened, and I just want to apologize to the ref for coming at him like that,” Noah continued. “It was wrong of me. I was just frustrated, and I just hope he reads this and accepts my apology.”

Noah figures to draw a fine, but it’s not clear if this offense will draw a suspension from the league office.

Noah did throw the ball toward a referee in disgust, but since Collins was walking toward the scorer’s table, the ball never came close to hitting him. Noah also left the court quickly when the second technical foul was handed down.

After the game, coach Tom Thibodeau said he wasn’t happy with the ejection, since the Bulls already were down two starters because of injury. Asked Sunday if he’s worried about a suspension, Thibodeau provided an opinion of the incident.

“That will be (up to) the league,” he said. “Again, I thought it was minimal. Just some frustration on (Noah’s) part.”

Another ref toss:

Late in Saturday’s game, Toronto guard Jose Calderon threw the ball at referee Courtney Kirkland while arguing for a foul call on a play when he saved the ball under the basket.

The save attempt went right to Bulls guard C.J. Watson, who hit an easy lay-in to tie the score at 90-90 with 1:14 left in the fourth quarter.

Kirkland simply caught the ball and threw it back to Calderon.

The Bulls won 102-101 in overtime when Luol Deng redirected a blocked shot from Watson into the hoop at the buzzer.

Still waiting to heal:

Derrick Rose (groin strain) and Richard Hamilton (bruised right shoulder) were both on the floor for Sunday’s practice. Both probably are a few days from playing in a game.

“It was a light practice,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “They did what everyone did, but it was very light. Non-contact.”

Rose is shooting around after practice but still hasn’t been running full speed. The injury happened March 12 against New York. “He’s at the next phase. Just starting off with running on the treadmill,” Thibodeau said.

Practice makes perfect:

Coach Tom Thibodeau on what the Bulls need to work on after 2 narrow wins against Toronto.

“Getting our focus back. Just being ready to play,” he said. “You’ve got to be careful not to shortcut things. Be ready at the start of the game, play 48 minutes, get our defense established, sustain our spacing on offense.

“All the little things that make you a good team. We just have to clean some things up.”