Election of the Bulls' team captains usually qualifies as minor news, with the possible exception of the time Ben Wallace declined a nomination in 2007.

Following Monday's practice at the Berto Center, however, Kirk Hinrich spoke eloquently about what being a captain means.

"I try to take it seriously," he said. "(The job) is always different. You've got to know when to say things. You've got to always be trying to lead by example. We've got a lot of young guys; try to bring them a long as quickly as possible.

"Just try to set an example every day. For me, I try to set an example by playing hard, bringing energy, trying to play the right way. Just try to have a good feel for the team. I feel like I have a good relationship with all of the guys. It's pretty much that simple."

Hinrich joined Luol Deng and Lindsey Hunter in winning this year's player vote, which wasn't at all surprising. Hinrich and Deng are repeat captains and Hinrich has served in the role several times since joining the Bulls in 2003.

There was praise for Hinrich flowing from several directions on Monday. Guard Derrick Rose talked about coming back from three weeks off with an ankle injury, then having to battle San Antonio's Tony Parker and Boston's Rajon Rondo the first two nights of the season.

"I'm playing Kirk almost every day (in practice)," Rose said. "He's one of the best guards in the NBA, so I'm playing against somebody that's very good."

Rose, who turned 21 during the London trip earlier this month, mentioned that he hopes to serve as captain in the future, perhaps next season.

With still two practice days remaining before the season opener, no one wanted to make a stable guess on how many minutes Rose will play against the San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics.

"At least 20-some," Rose said. "I don't care if it's 5 or 10, I just want to be out there playing. It would be up to the coach. Right now, I'll play whatever minutes they want me to play."

Since Rose may be limited, Hinrich will be even more important in the opening weeks of the season, though he was already expected to play a key role off the bench.

"Kirk's great," coach Vinny Del Negro said. "He does a lot of great things. He's our best defender on the ball. He does a lot of good things for the team, pushes the tempo, plays with thrust, runs the team well when he's out there. I have a lot of confidence in Kirk."