Lots for Bulls to sort out after break

As the NBA season reaches the all-star break, the Bulls would gladly accept the current standings as final.

They sit third in the Eastern Conference, which would mean Milwaukee in the first round of the playoffs, with the Toronto-Charlotte winner a possibility in the second round. Atlanta, Cleveland and Washington would be on the other side of the bracket.

The Bulls' 113-98 victory over Cleveland was the only game on Thursday's NBA schedule, so it was easy to fall in love with the idea of the Bulls and Cavs representing the East power base. After the game, TNT analyst Charles Barkley maintained the Bulls are still the team to beat in the East.

Barkley's statement may turn out to be true, but there are a couple of problems with that scenario. For one, Atlanta has thoroughly dominated the East so far. Some people point to a lack of playoff experience, but the Hawks are going to make their eighth straight postseason appearance, the longest streak in the conference.

Also, nothing is guaranteed with the Bulls, especially perfect health. They beat good teams, lose to bad ones and are struggling to perfect a delicate chemistry on both ends of the floor.

Thursday's game wasn't much of a playoff predictor. The Cavaliers had played the previous night and were missing forward Kevin Love due to a corneal abrasion.

Love was missed, especially when center Timofey Mozgov left with foul trouble. The Cavs couldn't guard the Bulls' second big man with 36-year-old Shawn Marion, so coach David Blatt turned to a small lineup featuring former Miami 12th man James Jones. It didn't go well.

The Bulls played without Jimmy Butler because of a right shoulder strain, but it's tough to say he was missed when his replacement, Tony Snell, knocked down 9 of 11 shots for 22 points and helped force LeBron James into 8 turnovers.

Actually, Snell might be the biggest question mark heading into the second half of the season. How long can he keep this up and is coach Tom Thibodeau ready to give Snell some of the Kirk Hinrich minutes permanently?

The past two games have been the best of Snell's pro career. He scored 24 and 22 points, while hitting 9 of 12 shots from 3-point range. Over the last four games, he's averaged 18.5 points and shot 60 percent from long range. Snell's surge began to show in January. In the last 11 games, he's at 12.2 points, so there are signs this is a trend, not a fluke.

The biggest take-away from Thursday's game, though, is this hopeful theory: Derrick Rose is better than Kyrie Irving and would dominate a playoff matchup against the Cavs.

Rose was on top of his game at the United Center, tossing in 30 points while hitting 12 of 24 shots. He had 7 assists and finally ended a string of 76 minutes without a turnover by tossing a couple of inconsequential bad passes in the fourth quarter.

Rose was similarly dominant against the Cavs back on Oct. 31 in the home opener, scoring 20 points in 25 minutes. But he couldn't finish that game because of a sprained ankle, and none of the Bulls played well in a loss at Cleveland on Jan. 19.

At this point, nothing is guaranteed for Rose or the Bulls. In theory, Rose could outplay Irving, Pau Gasol could be better than Love, while Butler and Snell could hold their own against James in a playoff series — but that's a long way off.

With 28 games left in the regular season, the Bulls would be better off following Thibodeau's advice and focus only on the next practice.

Or in this case, their all-star break vacations.

Butler plans to play:

During all-star media availability in New York on Friday, Jimmy Butler said he's hoping to play in Sunday's game, despite a right shoulder strain.

“I think I'll be out there. I don't want to miss an All-Star Game,” Butler said, according to espn.com. “This is (my) first one. They don't come easy in this league, that's for sure.

“I'm getting better. Just got to take care of my body like I've been doing all season. ... This is something you live for growing up. I'm very fortunate to be here in this position.”

Bulls center Pau Gasol will start at center for the East squad and match up against his brother Marc.

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