Hinrich holds on to starting job -- for now
Even after Kirk Hinrich went scoreless with 1 assist in Wednesday's win at Charlotte, Bulls coach Scott Skiles seems reluctant to move backup point guard Chris Duhon into the starting lineup.
"It's always a possibility," Skiles said. "That's the fine line you have to walk, especially when you start to develop a history with players. If you've seen players have struggles in the past and seen them work it out and come back and play very, very well, it makes you slow down on any action you want to take. But obviously we're searching for wins right now."
The Bulls rallied from 11 points down late in the third quarter to win 91-82 using a lineup of Duhon, Luol Deng, Andres Nocioni, Ben Gordon and Joakim Noah. Skiles suggested he'll continue with Hinrich in the starting lineup but is prepared to use Duhon as much as necessary.
"When things have been out of whack a bit, I've kind of been the guy that steadies us and keeps us together," said Duhon, who had 12 points and 9 assists against the Bobcats. "During this tough stretch, that's what I'm trying to do.
"There were times (in the past) I was just out there. I was running the team and the offense, but I wasn't setting the pace for the team. That's what I've been trying to do -- change the pace of the game."
Gordon and Deng sat out Thursday's light practice at Oakland University in Rochester, Mich., with minor bumps and bruises. Both played the entire second half at Charlotte.
Noah steps forward: Joakim Noah is usually not the most graceful player on the floor, and he's limited by a thin build, but when the rookie center is in the game, good things seem to happen for the Bulls.
Noah missed most of the home win against Charlotte last week with a mild ankle sprain. In the last three games when he has played a significant role, Noah averaged 6.7 points and 5.3 rebounds in 18.3 minutes.
He hasn't done anything spectacular but is steady on both ends of the floor and brought a spark to a team that often seems to be in the doldrums because of its poor play.
"I don't know if I'd go so far yet as saying (good things happen) most of the time, but there's no question he can be active around the basket," coach Scott Skiles said. "For the most part, he has energy out there. When you're that big and you're long like that and you play with energy, you can get something done in a pro game."
Noah was satisfied following Wednesday's win in Charlotte but didn't want to get carried away.
"It's only one game," Noah said. "What I've learned so far is you can't get too high and you can't get too low, because you never know what's going to happen. I can't control my playing time and stuff like that."
Bulls horns: During the first nine minutes of the third quarter Wednesday, the Bulls went 3-for-10 from the field with 9 turnovers and were fortunate to be outscored by just 14-6. … Charlotte shot 6 of 26 from 3-point range, setting a Bulls opponent season high in 3-point attempts. … Tyrus Thomas, the former starter at power forward, has played a total of 13 minutes in the last two games.