Bucks' Jennings no longer a secret
Milwaukee's Brandon Jennings has discovered the same thing Derrick Rose did last season - start fast as a rookie and opponents will quickly turn up the defense.
Jennings was sensational in November, averaging 22.1 points and shooting 42 percent from the field. He exploded for 55 points against Golden State in his seventh NBA game.
December was a different story, as Jennings' scoring dropped to 16.7 points and he shot 37.6 percent. He'll face the Bulls for the third time this season tonight in Milwaukee. The lightning-quick point guard has averaged 20 points and 6 assists against the Bulls.
"I think a lot of people expect me to score a lot now, but that's not really my game," Jennings said recently in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "Actually, I'm a better passer than I am a scorer, and a lot of people don't know that yet. I'm not going to be able to put up big numbers every night. I've got to find another way to help the team win."
Last year as a rookie, Rose posted great numbers in November (18.9 points, .496 field-goal percentage), then couldn't match them again until April. In December, Rose averaged 16.7 points and shot 45.9 percent.
Tyrus seeks niche: Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro suggested Thursday that he won't change the starting lineup and will stick with rookie Taj Gibson at power forward, even though Tyrus Thomas has played in six games since returning from a broken left arm.
Thomas provided a nice spark when he first came back, but has averaged just 6.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in the last three games. He's shooting 35 percent from the field in the last five contests.
"I feel fine," Thomas said Thursday. "I'm 90, 95 percent now; just trying to once again find my niche on this team."
Asked what he'd like his niche to be, Thomas replied, "Whatever it is, as long as it's helping us win. I feel like as long as I'm on the floor, we have a pretty good chance of winning."
It's no secret that Thomas would like to be more involved in the Bulls' offense. He looked good taking some extra shots following practice, but stuck to team goals when asked about his own role.
"We have a great team," he said. "We've shown what we can do once everybody's on the same page and we're playing the basketball that we can play. We just have to do it consistently."
Rose getting votes: Derrick Rose is running sixth among Eastern Conference guards in the latest all-star voting returns. He trails Dwyane Wade, Allen Iverson, Vince Carter, Ray Allen and the suspended Gilbert Arenas. Starters will be announced on Jan. 21. Based on the latest returns, the other East starters would be LeBron James, Kevin Garnett and Dwight Howard.
The fans are making some strange choices. Iverson played in just three games for Memphis and now 10 for Philadelphia. Houston's Tracy McGrady played in five games this season, averaged less than eight minutes and is currently sitting at home hoping to be traded.
McGrady currently ranks second in the voting among Western Conference guards, though his lead is slim over Steve Nash and Chris Paul.