'Some good things there' for Bulls as circus trip continues

DENVER - When the Bulls departed for the annual circus road trip, they took confidence in the fact that they'd suffered just 1 bad loss and given up 100 points just once - both at Boston on Oct. 30.

Now they've had back-to-back ugly losses against the Lakers and Denver, last year's two Western Conference finalists.

This obvious proof of a great distance that still exists between the Bulls and the NBA's elite teams. At the same time, the Bulls have dropped those three difficult road games and gone 6-3 against everyone else.

"We've had our opportunities," coach Vinny Del Negro said after a Sunday practice. "We're up going into the fourth quarter in Miami, playing pretty well going into the fourth quarter in Toronto. Last night it was 75-71 going into the fourth. So some good things there.

"I think we ran out gas a little bit at the end (against Denver), but also our execution offensively and some of our turnovers really changed the complexion of the game and they hit some tough shots."

The Nuggets stretched their home winning streak to 15, dating to last season.

The Bulls' next stop is Portland, which owns a 10-5 record but has beaten eight sub-.500 opponents. On Saturday, the Blazers beat lowly Minnesota for the third time this season.

The Bulls' lack of outside shooting continues to hamper the offense. Kirk Hinrich knocked down a couple of 3-point baskets in the first half, when the Bulls opened a 14-point lead against Denver, but he and John Salmons combined to hit just 5 of 21 shots overall.

Derrick Rose (28 points) and Luol Deng (22) basically played Denver's top guns, Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups, to a standstill.

"We have to have our big guys take advantage when they're switching," Del Negro said. "We haven't been able to recognize that quick enough nor take advantage of that. I was pleased with Derrick's aggressiveness last night, especially getting to the basket and making plays. That was a positive again."