When Gordon is hot, Bulls are not
SEATTLE -- The Bulls were glad to have Ben Gordon back in the lineup on Saturday in Sacramento after he missed five games with a sprained right wrist.
But when Gordon's offense took off, the rest of the Bulls disappeared. On his way to 33 points, Gordon scored 21 of the Bulls' 41 second-half points in the loss to the Kings.
"I think that's the danger of having a guy like Ben, who can come in and really take over a game offensively, is you tend to stand around and let him do that," coach Jim Boylan said. "You certainly want to try to go to him when he's hot like that. But at the same time, you can't forget about your own offensive output."
In the first half of the Sacramento game, Kirk Hinrich, Andres Nocioni, Joakim Noah, Joe Smith and Tyrus Thomas combined for 38 points. In the second half, those players contributed 13 points and the Bulls went ice cold in the final five minutes of a winnable game.
"Late in the game, they're double-teaming Ben Gordon until he passes the ball up," Boylan said. "If we're not ready to do something with our other four guys when he gets rid of the ball, then we fall into that trap of relying too much on Ben."
Thomas sits out: Forward Tyrus Thomas was inactive for Monday's contest because of a sprained left foot, which happened during Saturday's loss at Sacramento. His status is listed as day-to-day.
"I can't really tell you when or how," Thomas said while soaking his left foot in a tub of ice. "Just after the game it was hurting. I know it kind of twisted funny."
Smith starts well: Forward Joe Smith returned to the starting lineup against the Sonics, while rookie Joakim Noah went back to being a reserve. Noah first started last week while Smith missed two games with an illness.
In the six games before he got sick, Smith struggled with a sore knee and averaged 6.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and shot 30.1 percent from the field. He came alive in Seattle on Monday with 14 points and 7 rebounds in the first half.
Super-sized party: According to witnesses, the Bulls' annual Super Bowl party became pretty boisterous during the fourth quarter. Of course, it's conceivable there was some friendly wagering involved.
"I don't know how many other people cared, other than it being a good game," Kirk Hinrich said.
Bull horns: Sacramento center Brad Miller, who piled up 22 points and 20 rebounds against the Bulls on Saturday, was named Western Conference player of the week. Miller played for the Bulls from 2000-02. ... Monday's game was Nick Collison bobblehead night in Seattle. Collison and Kirk Hinrich were roommates at Kansas.