Skiles tries to remain honest, consistent

These are stressful times for the Bulls.

Sure, they've started poorly before, but this season they were supposed to be one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

Anyone waiting for a meltdown or screaming tirade from coach Scott Skiles, though, has been out of luck.

He joked with reporters Wednesday after returning from a bad loss in Denver, and the mood seemed upbeat after Friday's practice at the Berto Center.

The closest thing to an out-of-character moment from Skiles was his critique and subsequent apology to Tyrus Thomas earlier this week.

"It's been pretty consistent," Ben Gordon said when asked about the coaching staff's approach. "We come in and work on the same things we normally work on. We have a team meeting every once in awhile to sit down and just kind of air things out."

There were much more dire times for the Bulls in November 2004 when they started 0-9 and had no history of success beyond the Michael Jordan era.

One strategy Skiles used back then was to be consistent every day. The coaches came to practice prepared and ready to preach the message that things could only get better.

Coming off a 49-win season and a trip to the second round of the playoffs, the sales job isn't as important as it used to be.

"We try to be honest about it," Skiles said. "We pretty simply look at the things we're not doing well -- address those. Some things we are doing fairly well, but we need to do better. We address those also.

"It's not a time to be blowing smoke. We haven't played well. The guys know that. We're not going to stand around clapping our hands, saying, 'Come on guys, we're all right, we're all right!' We don't see the point in that, because the guys know it and they'll see right through that and then you'll lose credibility."

Poor shooting has been far and away the Bulls' biggest problem this season. Entering Friday's play, they were the only team in the NBA shooting less than 40 percent from the field.

But the prevailing message during the past two practices was to focus on the team identity of defense and hustle. The defense was certainly missing when Denver scored 72 points in the first half Tuesday.

"Unless you just have three or four just exceptional offensive players, the formula is to play good solid defense, put your mind on that, and then the basket opens up for you," Skiles said.

"The reason we've been struggling is we've been getting away from things that have made us successful," Gordon said. "A lot of people are struggling with their offense, but I don't think we need to focus on that. We need to focus on playing defense every possession, rebounding the ball, and I think after you do that, things will start to fall into place."

Forward Luol Deng, who missed the last two games with a sore back, believes it's important to create a better dialogue on the court.

"I think the players, we've got to be on each other out there on the floor," he said. "We've done that in the past. We all like each other. We've got to get on each other. We've got to get to that comfort level that if somebody's not playing hard out there, just tell them."

Next on the schedule are the New York Knicks today at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks (2-9) have lost eight in a row and seem to be in disarray, but the Bulls aren't ready to celebrate yet.

"I don't think I'm in any position to be talking about anybody," Skiles said. "We just want to get our own house in order and play well. Even winning an ugly game right now doesn't necessarily do as much for us as going out and really play well."

Today's tipoff

Bulls vs. New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, noon

TV: Channel 9

Radio: WMVP 1000-AM

Update: How much longer will Isiah Thomas be coach of the Knicks? New York (2-9) has lost eight in a row while moving unhappy guard Stephon Marbury in and out of the starting lineup. Center Eddy Curry is shooting well (18.5 points, .606 field-goal percentage) with his usual 6.4 rebounds. Newcomer Zach Randolph is grabbing rebounds (13.1) but shooting poorly (.411).

Fast fact: The Bulls are 9-2 against the Knicks during the past three seasons, including 4 road wins.

Next: Toronto Raptors at the Air Canada Centre, 11 a.m. Sunday