Would Boylan consider going to Marquette?
This would have been a perfect April Fool's joke, the Bulls scheduling a news conference for this morning at the Brat Stop in Wisconsin.
Amid reports Tuesday that Marquette coach Tom Crean is leaving to take the Indiana job, Marquette grad Jim Boylan was asked if he would ever be interested in coaching his alma mater.
"We're having a press conference tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. and we'll let you know then," Boylan deadpanned.
In Chicago or Milwaukee?
"It's going to be in Kenosha," he answered.
Boylan is the Bulls' interim head coach until the end of the season, but anything beyond that is in question. Boylan did give his thoughts on Crean's move.
"It doesn't shock me," he said. "I know that Tommy's been looking around at some jobs over the last couple of seasons. I believe he was involved with the Kansas job a few of years ago, then his name was mentioned with Kentucky last year."
Tuesday's game featured two head coaches from Marquette with Boylan facing Boston's Doc Rivers.
Doc goes undeclared: Celtics coach Doc Rivers is refusing to take sides in the MVP race, even though Kevin Garnett is a leading candidate.
"When I was a player, I thought Michael (Jordan) should have won it every year," Rivers said. "Then I thought Shaq (O'Neal) should have won every year. It's nice that there are this many guys (in the running)."
Rivers does think Garnett should win defensive player of the year. Boston ranks first in the league in points allowed and defensive field-goal percentage.
Gooden sits again: Bulls forward Drew Gooden missed his second game with a lower abdominal strain, but he swore he will return before the season ends April 16.
"I just need a few days off," Gooden said before meeting with a specialist in the training room.
Rondo in red: The Boston Three Party gets most of the attention, but the rapid improvement of second-year point guard Rajon Rondo (10.7 points, 5.0 assists) has been important for the Celtics.
One front-office staffer believes if the Bulls hadn't struck a deal with Philadelphia to move up in the 2006 draft and select Thabo Sefolosha, their choice most likely would have been Rondo. The Bulls originally had the 16th pick that year. Boston got Rondo at No. 21 in a trade with Phoenix.
Bull horns: Aaron Gray played Tuesday after missing one game and one practice due to back spasms. Gray said he spent two nights sleeping on the floor because his bed was too soft. … Cedric Simmons and Shannon Brown returned Tuesday from D-League assignments. Brown averaged 25.7 points in six games with the Iowa Energy.