Rest but stay ready is Hoiberg's all-star break plan
Jimmy Butler was selected as a starter for the East in Sunday's All-Star Game at New Orleans. The rest of the Chicago Bulls will try to figure out the right way to handle a weeklong break.
Despite their inconsistent play all season, the Bulls are in seventh place in the East and just a game behind Indiana for sixth. If the playoffs started today, the Bulls would play Boston in the first round.
"The important thing is you do want to take a break, both physically and mentally," Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said before Thursday's game. "It is important to get away from it for a couple days. But at the same time, you have to keep yourself sharp. You have to keep yourself ready by getting in a couple workouts before we come back for our practice on Wednesday evening, and I'm confident our guys will do that.
"Our young guys are workers. They'll get in the gym. They'll all go home with (workout) programs, but it is important to get away from it for a few days and try to get a little bit refreshed."
Injury report half good:
Coach Fred Hoiberg felt earlier this week there was a chance Dwyane Wade would play against the Celtics. But he sat out for the third straight game.
Wade has a sore right wrist, then added illness to his list of ailments. So Thursday's absence was a combination of causes.
"He did some stuff in practice yesterday, then woke up with an illness this morning," Hoiberg said. "It will be two full weeks since he had the wrist injury, so hopefully we'll get him back full strength (after the all-star break)."
Paul Zipser missed his third straight game with an ankle injury, but Nikola Mirotic was available after missing two games with a sore back.
Boston has been busy:
Boston coach Brad Stevens is hoping his players use the all-star break to get some rest. Thursday marked the Celtics' sixth game in nine days, in four different time zones, with five of those on the road. They played at home against Philadelphia on Wednesday.
Still, Boston had won 11 of its previous 12 games, with the only loss coming at Sacramento two days after the Kings lost to the Bulls. That's while missing second-leading scorer Avery Bradley with a sore Achilles.
"I think that's a sign of a good team pulling together and just trying to figure it out," Stevens said. "Then I think anytime you have a couple of guys that are as consistent as we have in regard to how they perform on a given night, I think you're able to play in your lane and play a role that helps your team win."
Hoiberg resists change:
The NBA trade deadline will pass before the Bulls play their next game, and for the second time this week coach Fred Hoiberg suggested he doesn't feel changes are needed.
"I like our guys," he said. "When we were at full strength last week, we were playing pretty good basketball. Hopefully we get back to that here soon when the break's over and hopefully we can have a good stretch run."
It was more like two weeks ago when the Bulls played well at the start of the ice-show road trip, but who's counting?