Bulls lose center Kurt Thomas to Portland

One piece to the Bulls’ 62-win puzzle is moving on. Veteran center Kurt Thomas agreed to a two-year deal with Portland on Sunday.

The Bulls offered a one-year deal worth the minimum salary, but they weren’t willing to add a second guaranteed season.

Thomas, 39, was invaluable last year, when he started 37 games while center Joakim Noah recovered from thumb surgery. Thomas was an excellent defender and a reliable midrange jump shooter.

So who can the Bulls get for big-man insurance? If they’re looking for a wily veteran, the best options figure to be Troy Murphy, Erick Dampier, Theo Ratliff, Joe Smith or Tony Battie.

Some of the other free-agent big men are Kwame Brown, Joel Przybilla, Sam Dalembert, Kris Humphries, Francisco Elson, Dan Gadzuric, Shelden Williams and Hilton Armstrong.

“Obviously, we wanted Kurt Thomas back and we offered him a contract,” said Bulls general manager Gar Forman. “If we don’t find the right guy, we’ll be patient with it and try to keep some flexibility at that position. If we don’t address it right away, we might address it down the road.”

This is the second year in a row, the Bulls watched their preferred veteran big man slip away. Last year, Brad Miller signed a larger deal in Houston. He’s since been traded to Minnesota but still carries a contract the Bulls won’t be willing to take on.

Bulls ready for workload:There has been plenty of talk about how tough a condensed 66-game schedule will be for NBA players and whether a younger team like the Bulls will have an advantage.#147;It#146;s going to be a difficult schedule physically for these guys because of the amount of games and back to backs,#148; Gar Forman said. #147;I think we have 19 games in January and there#146;s a stretch where we have nine games in 12 days.#147;One of the things (coach) Tom (Thibodeau) does well is monitor our team #8212; how much to work and when rest is needed. We#146;ve put together a plan to be proactive and try to keep guys healthy.#148;Thibodeau already called for a break in the action, canceling Monday#146;s practice.Rose due for a raise:General manager Gar Forman acknowledged that he#146;s working on a contract extension for Derrick Rose.By winning MVP last season, Rose is eligible to earn a starting salary equal to 30 percent of the salary cap, or $17.4 million.#147;Derrick is the centerpiece of what we#146;re trying to put together here,#148; Forman said. #147;Obviously, we want Derrick to be a Chicago Bull for a long, long time. We#146;re talking to his representatives now and hope we can get something done in a short amount of time.#148;