Finding point guard help won't be easy

With Kirk Hinrich projected to be out for three months with a thumb injury, two words should immediately come to mind now that the Bulls need point guard help.

Stephon and Marbury.

Not really. No team seems to have much need for the exiled New York Knick and his $22 million salary. But Bulls general manager John Paxson did make it sound as though luxury-tax restraints could prevent the team from adding an additional guard.

"We're going to be real careful because right now we're looking at the tax number and all that," Paxson said. "I'm going to, first of all, look at the available people out there, but also how does it work with us and the tax line?"

The problem facing the Bulls is the NBA's luxury tax kicks in when a team's payroll exceeds $71.15 million. The Bulls' payroll currently sits at around $70.9 million, so even adding a player at the rookie minimum salary of $442,114 would put them over the tax threshold.

Teams above the tax line not only pay a dollar-for-dollar penalty on the excess amount, they also don't get to share in distribution of the tax money collected.

In theory, the Bulls could trade someone like Cedric Simmons for a guard already under contract. They could also include cash in the deal and avoid paying the tax.

"We do have a lot of players," Paxson said. "We have some depth. We'll figure the next day or two if we want to make some type of move. I guess my big concern is we really don't have a true backup point guard now with Kirk out.

"Ben (Gordon) can handle the ball and Larry (Hughes) can handle it as well. That's where it gets a little bit dicey. We know Derrick (Rose) is going to play those 35 to 42 minutes a night. It's those other minutes that you get a little bit concerned about."

Asked about the backup point guard, coach Vinny Del Negro mentioned Gordon and Thabo Sefolosha, but not Hughes, currently out with a shoulder injury.

Hughes healing quickly: The Bulls are hoping Larry Hughes will be back soon from a dislocated right shoulder. How soon remains to be seen. If Hughes is ready to participate in full-contact practice Monday, he might be able to play next Thursday against Dallas.

"I don't want Larry to rush back, get hit and then be out even longer," coach Vinny Del Negro said. "I want to make sure he feels confident he can go out there and handle whatever."

Bull horns: Drew Gooden sat out Saturday's game with a sprained right ankle, but walked without a limp and said there's a chance he could play Tuesday against Atlanta. ... Not that it's much consolation for the Bulls, but they were credited with 5 blocks of LeBron James shots on Saturday.