Bulls talk of unity
A decisive win at Miami prompted talk of a team showing character and players pulling together. This was about ignoring inner and outer turmoil to turn in one of a disappointing season's best efforts.
In reality, though, the Bulls proved very little during a tumultuous four-game road trip. They simply beat two teams below them in the standings (Philadelphia and Miami), while losing to two teams above them (Atlanta and Orlando).
To regain some valid respectability, the Bulls need to beat quality teams and improve their dismal 7-10 home record. They'll get a chance to do both when Golden State and Detroit visit the United Center the next two days.
At least the Bulls were able to rinse a rancid taste from their mouths with Wednesday's 126-96 victory at Miami, which featured season highs in both points and field-goal percentage.
"There were a lot of things said before the game in the locker room by players that I'll keep to myself," coach Jim Boylan said. "But it really just shows me that we have a good group of guys, and even though we've been struggling some this year, I have faith in them."
No one else had much faith in the Bulls the previous few days. The road trip began with rookie Joakim Noah's verbal altercation with assistant coach Ron Adams. Noah was benched for one game, then another after his teammates met and recommended additional punishment.
The Bulls followed that by barely giving any effort in a pair of dismal losses to the Hawks and the Magic, then tried to downplay reports of a heated locker-room argument in Orlando.
"We just know as a team, since the Joakim Noah thing and the thing I guess with him and Ben Wallace (in Orlando), we're getting beat up by the media thinking this team is falling apart and we're not together," guard Chris Duhon said. "Our thing today, when we talked this morning and in the locker room before the game, was that's not true.
"This team has been through a lot together. We've been through a lot of ups and downs. During that whole time, we've always stuck together. We've always backed each other up."
Being out of town, the Bulls were largely unaware of the criticism coming from Chicago as fans wondered whether Boylan was indecisive, whether Noah was a troublemaker, and why Ben Wallace was shown on television laughing on the bench during the blowout loss to the Magic.
Ben Gordon agreed with the notion that the rough road trip could end up making the team stronger.
"This is a group that's been through a lot," he said. "This group knows how to persevere. We realize we came out with some lackluster performances, especially in the last couple games. Regardless of what happens, as long as we leave everything on the floor, we'll be able to walk away and not be disappointed."
Of course, the Bulls have spoken about moving in the right direction plenty of times this season and it hasn't stuck for more than a few days. With six of the next seven games at home, they have a legitimate chance to start making up ground.
"Our guys are a good group of people and they wanted to make all these distractions kind of go away," Boylan said. "A lot of people were talking about us in negative ways. No one likes that.
"I think it spoke to the character of our team the way we responded (against Miami). But we need to carry this on and play with that kind of enthusiasm, that kind of drive and determination every night."