Bulls coach likes what he sees from Rose
Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau was asked Wednesday if Derrick Rose really has looked good in the team scrimmages.
“He’s had some very good practices,” Thibodeau said. “The big thing about his game is he makes the game easy for everyone else, because he demands so much attention and he knows how to create easy scoring opportunities for everybody. That’s the mark of a superstar, the ability to make others better.”
One report had Rose feeling good about his outside shot.
“He’s put so much work into his shot,” Thibodeau said. “A big part of shooting is confidence and concentration. He’s had an opportunity to do those things for an extended amount of time now. So he’s feeling very good about his shot and he’s mixing his game up extremely well right now. He’s got the shot and the drive going, so it’s good.”
Gibson optimistic:After going through practice at the Berto Center, Taj Gibson felt optimistic he#146;ll be able to return from a left knee sprain against Portland on Thursday.#147;I felt great today, had a great scrimmage, great practice,#148; Gibson said. #147;If I can plant off it, if I can guard somebody #151; that#146;s the main thing we#146;re trying to do right now, trying to get it strong, get it stable. It was fine today, so looking forward to seeing how it#146;s going to react tomorrow.#148;Gibson has been out since suffering the injury in a Feb. 24 loss at Oklahoma City. The Bulls have missed his defensive presence.#147;He just brings in a whole different dimension,#148; teammate Joakim Noah said. #147;He#146;s probably one of the best defensive bigs in the league.#148;Gill involved in altercation:The anger over the Bulls#146; controversial loss to Denver on Monday didn#146;t end that night.According to Crain#146;s Chicago Business, there was a physical altercation between Comcast SportsNet Bulls analyst Kendall Gill and Timm Doyle, a guest on Tuesday#146;s #147;Sports Talk Live#148; show.Crain#146;s reporter Danny Ecker, a guest on the show, wrote that Gill confronted Doyle inside the Comcast SportsNet offices. During the show, Doyle was critical of Gill#146;s postgame analysis following the loss, according to the story. Ecker said he witnessed Gill throw a punch before the two were separated.Both men are former Big Ten basketball players #151; Gill at Illinois and Doyle at Northwestern. Doyle appears frequently on the Big Ten Network. CSNC officials have removed Gill from their broadcasts while they investigate the incident.March tradition continues:Taj Gibson, who played at USC, doesn#146;t have a team in the NCAA Tournament, so he#146;ll have to be content enjoying the misfortune of teammates.#147;There#146;s a lot of bets going on,#148; Gibson said. #147;I#146;ll bet against Joakim (Noah) and Florida #151; especially when they lost to Ole Miss (in the SEC title game). He was so (ticked).#148;Even workaholic coach Tom Thibodeau vowed to watch some tournament games this weekend.#147;It#146;s an exciting time of the year,#148; he said. #147;Those games, one game, it#146;s virtually like a Game 7 every night. And there are a lot of good teams, so I#146;m looking forward to it and watching whatever I can.#148;Bulls game dayPortland Trail Blazers at the United Center, 7 p.m.TV: Comcast SportsNetRadio: ESPN 1000-AMUpdate: Portland (31-36) has the probable rookie of the year in guard Damien Lillard (19.0 points, 6.6 assists) and an all-star in C LaMarcus Aldridge (21.1 ppg) but has been slipping out of playoff contention. The Blazers have gone 6-13 since Feb. 6 and have lost two in a row. SF Wesley Matthews hit 7 of 11 shots from 3-point range in Tuesday’s loss at Milwaukee. The Bulls lost in Portland 102-94 on Nov. 18 and have dropped three straight in the series.Next: Indiana Pacers at the United Center, 7 p.m. Saturday— Mike McGraw