'Chicago guy' Hunter more than happy to give Bulls a try
Why did veteran guard Lindsey Hunter choose to join the Bulls less than three weeks before his 38th birthday?
To hear him describe it, the family ties added up. For starters, his wife, Ivy, grew up on the South Side.
"I'm kind of a Chicago guy," Hunter said before Thursday's game against Dallas. "So I'm pretty familiar with it. I spend a lot of time here in the summer."
Hunter is in relatively good shape because he trained with his 13-year-old son, Lindsey, a middle school cross-country runner. Then when asked why bother playing again after 15 years in the NBA, Hunter pointed to his father.
"My Dad (another Lindsey) worked at General Motors for 30 years," said Hunter, a native of Mississippi. "He talks to me every day about if you get a chance to play, you should play. He said, 'I worked at a plant for 30 years, and you get to play basketball. So, if you can do that, you do it.' I thought about that and was like, OK."
The Bulls signed the 6-foot-2 Hunter to provide help at point guard while Kirk Hinrich recovers from surgery to reattach a ligament in his right thumb. The Bulls expect Hinrich to be sidelined until mid-February.
Hunter, who did not play Thursday, started his career as a point guard, then developed into more of an outside shooting specialist, before becoming a defensive stopper in recent years. He spent the past five seasons with the Detroit Pistons, appearing in 24 games last season.
By signing Hunter, the Bulls are apparently willing to risk paying the luxury tax this season. But why Hunter instead of somebody younger?
"Because we have enough young guys, and I think it's important to have some veteran guys in the locker room," coach Vinny Del Negro said. "Kirk did a phenomenal job helping Derrick, and I think Lindsey will do the same thing."
Hughes and Gooden return: Larry Hughes and Drew Gooden returned from injuries Thursday. Gooden started at power forward after missing the previous two games with a sprained right ankle, while Hughes took the court exactly three weeks after suffering a dislocated right shoulder in a preseason game at Minnesota on Oct. 22.
Hughes played 13 minutes and had some nice moments, scoring 5 points in the second half and making some plays on defense. Gooden had 8 points and 8 rebounds in 32 minutes.
Quick finish for Noah: Joakim Noah started at center Thursday, but after a rough opening four minutes he went to the bench and never returned. Tyrus Thomas started in Noah's place at the beginning of the second half.
After Thomas produced 8 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals and played some effective defense on Dirk Nowitzki, coach Vinny Del Negro said he felt Thomas had an "outstanding game."
"I've just been out of it," Thomas said. "I think since the first game, I haven't done much. I think I came out today and kind of looked like myself a little bit."
Bull horns: Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was a no-show at Thursday's game, which is rare for him. ... Tuesday's Bulls-Lakers game at the Staples Center was already scheduled to be televised by Comcast SportsNet in Chicago. But the game also won a fan vote to be aired nationally on NBATV.