Gooden: Bulls' offense not geared toward post play

According to the stat sheet, the Bulls broke even in points in the paint against a taller Portland team Monday night.

Asked if the Bulls needed more inside scoring, center Drew Gooden gave an interesting description of the team's offense.

"Our offense is not really geared toward posting up and stuff like that," said Gooden, who scored a team-high 22 points in the loss to the Blazers. "Ours is a high-octane, shoot when your open or get to the basket (offense). To say Joakim (Noah) or Tyrus (Thomas) or any other big should step up on the block is kind of unfair to say that, because I don't think they have the opportunity to do that at times."

Gooden also gave his thoughts on the Bulls' upcoming schedule, which features three challenging home games against Cleveland, San Antonio and Atlanta in the next week.

"I feel like we could win those games," he said. "I feel like we've been playing better against the high-caliber teams and kind of relaxing against the below-.500 teams. I think those are chances for us to step up and see if we're going to be the team we want to be."

Boobirds target Noah: With Larry Hughes relegated to seven minutes of playing time Monday, fans at the United Center turned their anger toward Joakim Noah, booing the second-year center frequently. Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro is not concerned, however.

"They're going to boo everybody," Del Negro said. "Maybe one night it's Joakim or one night's it's someone else. I think that should motivate you as a player and burn some fire inside you to get in the gym and work on your game and find ways to help your team.

"If you let it absorb you and get a hold of you, then it can be a negative thing. I don't think our fans have been detrimental to any of our players. I think our players know they need to come and play. The fans expect that and they should."

More aches for Gooden: Center Drew Gooden sat out Tuesday's practice after suffering a left groin strain early in Monday's loss to Portland. He kept playing and finished with 22 points and 9 rebounds. Gooden also said he turned his left ankle in the game, but not as badly as the sprained right ankle that kept him out of eight games recently.

Of the players who returned from injuries on Monday, Kirk Hinrich (thumb) participated in the full practice, while Luol Deng (ankle) sat out the last 15 minutes.