Boylan: Nets still pose challenge
Bulls coach Jim Boylan said he won't even try to figure out what New Jersey's roster will look like tonight.
The Nets finally pulled off the eight-player trade that sent Jason Kidd, ex-Bull Malik Allen and Antoine Wright to Dallas on Tuesday.
New Jersey received Devin Harris, DeSagana Diop, ex-Bull Trenton Hassell, Maurice Ager and Keith Van Horn in the deal, though it's unclear if any of those acquisitions will suit up tonight. Harris hasn't played since Jan. 27 because of an ankle injury. Van Horn hasn't played since 2006.
"For us right now, it's more about how we handle ourselves and how we go about playing," Boylan said. "New Jersey, you know Vince Carter is out there. You know (Richard) Jefferson's going to be out there. (Bostjan) Nachbar's going to be out there, (center Nenad) Krstic. They have enough good players right now."
The Bulls have lost 12 straight at New Jersey, including the season opener Oct. 31. Boylan won't be sorry that Kidd is gone, however.
"I had the opportunity to coach him in Phoenix and I got to see firsthand what he can do and how he can control a game," Boylan said. "It's a beautiful thing to watch unless you're on the other side. So I'm glad he's gone.
"But we play Dallas next week, so it really doesn't matter. It's like a bad dream. He just keeps coming back."
Big Easy stands tall: New Orleans native Chris Duhon was the Bulls' only representative at all-star weekend. He thought his hometown did a nice job staging the event. There were no reports of the mayhem that seemed to engulf the streets of Las Vegas during last year's game.
"They did well," Duhon said. "They host a lot of big events throughout the whole year, so I knew that everything would run smoothly, and they did an amazing job with it."
Duhon teamed with B.J. Armstrong and Chicago Sky forward Candice Dupree in the shooting stars contest. Team Chicago finished a disappointing second to San Antonio after failing to knock down a half-court shot in timely fashion during the final round.
"We had fun," Duhon said. "We had an opportunity. I think we had like 10 seconds to hit the half-court shot. We just couldn't make it."
As it turned out, Duhon eventually drained half-court baskets in both rounds of the competition, which gave him food for thought as the regular season resumes.
"If I'm open and I have my feet set, I think I'm going to be able to let that go," he joked.
Bulls honor NIU: The Bulls will honor victims of the shooting at Northern Illinois by wearing T-shirts with an NIU logo during warmups at tonight's game in New Jersey and at home Friday against Denver. There will be a moment of silence before Friday's game at the United Center.
Tonight's tipoff
Bulls vs. New Jersey Nets at the Izod Center, 6:30 p.m.
TV: Comcast SportsNet
Radio: WMVP 1000-AM
Update: Jason Kidd won't play for the Nets and neither will ex-Bull Malik Allen. Both were sent to Dallas, along with shooting guard Antoine Wright, in the eight-player deal that became official Tuesday. Before the all-star break, the Nets (23-30) won three of four games.
Series history: The Bulls' losing streak in New Jersey reached 12 games with a 112-103 overtime loss in the season opener. The last road win over the Nets came April 17, 2001, with A.J. Guyton the Bulls' leading scorer.
Next: Denver Nuggets at the United Center, 7 p.m. Friday
-- Mike McGraw