Spurs vs. Bulls Previews

Monday: Bulls (20-22) at Spurs (25-17)

Time: 7:30 p.m.
TV: FSNSW
Radio: WOAI-AM 1200, KCOR-AM 1350

STARTING LINEUPS
POS - SPURS - BULLS

PG - 9 Tony Parker (6-2, 9th yr) - 1 Derrick Rose (6-3, 2nd yr)
Parker’s average up to 17 points after three straight 20-point outings.

SG - 3 George Hill (6-2, 2nd yr) - 12 Kirk Hinrich (6-3, 7th yr)
Spurs get away with starting Hill because Bulls’ backcourt is small, too.

SF - 24 Richard Jefferson (6-7, 9th yr) - 9 Luol Deng (6-9, 6th yr)
Jefferson: “Everybody has to look in the mirror and step up.”

PF - 21 Tim Duncan (6-11, 13th yr) - 22 Taj Gibson (6-9, 1st yr)
Duncan to be one of four players all-time with 11 straight All-Star starts.

C - 45 DeJuan Blair (6-7, 1st yr) - 13 Joakim Noah (6-11, 3rd yr)
Blair leads all rookies in rebounding (6.5 rpg); Bulls’ Gibson 2nd (6.3).

SPURS RESERVES

15 Matt Bonner, C/F, 6-10, 6th yr
10 Keith Bogans, G, 6-5, 7th yr
20 Manu Ginobili, G, 6-6, 8th yr
8 Roger Mason Jr., G, 6-5, 6th yr
28 Ian Mahinmi, C/F, 6-10, 3rd yr
34 A. McDyess, C/F, 6-10, 15th yr
42 Theo Ratliff, C, 6-10, 15th yr

BULLS RESERVES

34 Aaron Gray, C, 7-0, 3rd yr
11 Lindsey Hunter, G, 6-9, 17th yr
16 James Johnson, F, 6-9, 1st yr
52 Brad Miller, F/C, 7-0, 12th yr
2 Jannero Pargo, G, 6-1, 2nd yr
15 John Salmons, G/F, 6-6, 8th yr
24 Tyrus Thomas, F, 6-10, 4th yr

COACHES
Spurs: Gregg Popovich
Bulls: Vinny Del Negro

INJURIES

Spurs: Michael Finley (sprained left ankle) is out.
Bulls: Gibson (left foot) and Salmons (flu-like symptoms) are probable. Jerome James (right Achilles) is out.

PROJECTED INACTIVE PLAYERS

Spurs: Finley, Malik Hairston
Bulls: James

NOTABLE

Spurs have lost four of last five, looking for traction in third game of six-game homestand. ... After starting season 10-17, Bulls have won 10 of past 15. ... Bulls won previous meeting 92-85 in Chicago. Bulls have not won season series against Spurs since 1997-98, Michael Jordan’s final season with the team. ... Chicago leads league in blocks (6.42 per game).

— Jeff McDonald

Bulls' confidence on rise
By K.C. Johnson
Chicago Tribune reporter

SAN ANTONIO — On the morning of Jan. 30, 2009, the Bulls awoke in Sacramento with a 19-27 record and to stinging comments from team Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, who called the season "a disaster" and "embarrassing."

That night, the Bulls beat a Kings team featuring Brad Miller and John Salmons, finished their season-high, seven-game trip 4-3 and acquired Miller and Salmons 19 days later. Those two players were instrumental in the Bulls' 17-11 finish and thrilling seven-game playoff series loss to the Celtics.

Fast forward to this season's season-high, seven-game trip.

Though there were no comments from Reinsdorf, there was muttering from players after they dropped winnable games against the Warriors and Clippers to fall to 18-22. That's why Miller offered this unique perspective late Saturday after the Bulls engineered the unlikely back-to-back sweep of Phoenix and Houston in a 24-hour span.

"This trip last year I wasn't on the team but I knew it was a big building block for them," Miller said. "They were really on a roll before they made the trade. This is the trip where they got back to square. We have to build some momentum on this."

That's certainly possible the way the Bulls are playing offensively. At 20-22, the Bulls are two games ahead of last year's record after 42 games.

And though the plantar fasciitis plaguing Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson presents legitimate long-term concerns, a growing confidence is building that the Bulls again will finish this season in strong fashion.

"The guys have focused in and executed the game plan better," coach Vinny Del Negro said. "We've shared the ball and spaced the court better. I like our tempo better. There are a lot of good signs."

The bad signs mostly center on Gibson admitting the pain in his right foot isn't going away despite sleeping with a protective boot and Noah missing his first game this season Saturday with pain in his left foot.

Both players used the Bulls' off-day Sunday to rest and receive treatment.

"I probably won't know anything definitive until (Monday's) shootaround," Del Negro said. "We'll see how he feels after they warm up. It's a tough injury to get rid of it, especially during the season. We'll be aggressive with it and see how they react."

Noah tried treatment, stretching, a massage and a painkilling shot but still couldn't take his double-double average into action.

"I'm definitely aiming for (playing Monday), but (Saturday) morning I could hardly walk," Noah said. "The pain is too much right now. I never had this in college. I had it a little throughout this year. It's just getting worse and worse."

What's getting better and better is the Bulls' offense, averaging 106.1 points over the last 10 games. Throw strong defensive efforts which limited the Suns and Rockets to a combined 39.2 percent shooting, and it follows that the Bulls have won 10 of 15.

There's no guarantee the Bulls will make a trade that improves the team like last season in advance of the Feb. 18 deadline. Mindful that after this trip 20 of the 37 remaining games are at home, Del Negro is thinking positive.

"We had to battle adversity early in terms of Tyrus (Thomas) and Kirk (Hinrich) being injured and getting John to play off guard and developing the rookies," Del Negro said. "We had a very difficult early schedule.

"There are peaks and valleys in any season. You have to improve individually which helps you improve collectively."

*********************

Monday's matchup: Bulls at San Antonio Spurs

Series: Bulls lead 1-0.

Last meeting: Luol Deng scored 17 as the Bulls prevailed 92-85 at home on Oct. 29.

Probable starters (ppg)

BULLS (20-22) SPURS (25-17)

Derrick Rose 19.4; Tony Parker 17

Kirk Hinrich 9.9; George Hill 10

Joakim Noah 11.3; DeJuan Blair 7.1

Taj Gibson 8.5; Tim Duncan 19.9

Luol Deng 17.7; Richard Jefferson 12.8

Team averages (through Saturday)

BULLS CATEGORY SPURS

95.2 (27) Scoring offense 101.1 (11)

98.1 (14) Scoring defense 96.1 (6)

44.0 (26) FG percentage 47.8 (5)

75.5 (18) FT percentage 73.8 (25)

34.8 (18) 3-point FG percentage 38.0 (3)

45.6 (1) Rebounding 42.4 (10)

15 (19) Turnovers 14.1 (9)

Storyline: The Spurs have lost four of five, but the Bulls haven't swept this season series since 1997-98. Noah will test his injured left foot at the morning shootaround. If he can't go, look for Gibson to start on Blair and Brad Miller on Duncan.

"Spurs have lost four of last five"

:depressed

There's no excuse for losing this one. The bulls roster is terrible, outside of Rose, Deng, and maybe Henrich/Salmons nobody on that team can create their own shot.

On a side note, I can't believe they list Duncan as "PF" and Blair as "C", :lmao

Aaron Gray will probably have a career game.

It'd be nice if RJ would finally step up on D and limit Deng so that he doesn't look like Jordan against us.

Hopefully Hill has a nice game vs. Rose.:ihit

If Spurs play small ball they are going to get their asses handed to them.

I agree with dbestpro, someone on that team will have a great night while Jefferson doesn't do shit.

Chicago (20-22) at San Antonio (25-17)
Game info: 8:30 pm EST Mon Jan 25, 2010
TV: CSCH, FSSW
By Kate Hedlin

Concerned about his team’s defense, the last thing San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich probably wants to see is a Chicago Bulls club that has turned around its once-struggling offense.

The Spurs look to avoid just their second three-game home losing streak in nine seasons when they host the Bulls on Monday.

San Antonio (25-17) won 15 of 19 from Dec. 9-Jan. 13 but has stumbled since, losing four of five including two straight at home. The Spurs gave up their second-most points of the season in a 116-109 defeat to Houston on Friday, allowing the Rockets to shoot 55.1 percent.

For the season, San Antonio is yielding 96.1 points per game - sixth in the NBA - but has allowed its last two opponents to top 100.

Tim Duncan scored a team-high 25 on Friday to surpass 20,000 career points, but the Spurs were outrebounded for the third time in five games and gave up 52 points in the paint.

“We’re scoring more points than we’ve ever scored in our lives, but our defense is really sub-par and it’s killing us,” Popovich said.

San Antonio hasn’t lost three in a row at the AT&T Center since dropping its first three home games of 2008-09 - the team’s only three-game home skid in the last nine seasons.

Things don’t get much easier for the Spurs during the rest of this six-game homestand. While the Bulls rank 27th in the NBA in scoring (95.2 points per game), Chicago (20-22) has turned up its offense recently, averaging 107.5 while winning six of eight. San Antonio closes the homestand against Atlanta, Memphis and Denver - all clubs with winning records.

“Chicago is a team that is playing really good,” the Spurs’ Manu Ginobili said. “It’s a really good test. … We are making too many mistakes and we can’t afford another one.”

The Bulls defeated Houston 104-97 on Saturday to improve to 2-2 on a seven-game road trip against teams from the Western Conference, and 6-15 on the road overall. It was the second straight impressive victory for Chicago, which defeated Phoenix the previous night.

“This is the trip to build momentum,” Brad Miller, who scored 25 points against the Rockets, told the Bulls’ official Web site. “Teams that are good on the road, you get that swagger. You’ve got to work harder on the road. We’ve got a long ways to go on this trip (but) it’s a good confidence booster.”

Miller took advantage of a last-minute start after Joakim Noah was scratched because of a left foot injury. Noah, who is averaging 11.3 points and 12.3 rebounds, hopes to return Monday. He had 10 points and 10 rebounds in a 92-85 win over the Spurs on Oct. 29, helping the Bulls outrebound San Antonio 52-44.

The Bulls have lost nine of their last 10 road games against the Spurs, including three straight in which they’ve failed to reach 90 points.

Derrick Rose, who scored 20 points Saturday and is averaging 26.2 points over his last five contests, had 10 points, six rebounds and six assists in his visit to the AT&T Center as a rookie last season.

*********************

Team Stat Leaders

Points
Derrick Rose Chi 19.4
Tim Duncan SA 19.9

Rebounds
Joakim Noah Chi 12.3
Tim Duncan SA 10.5

Assists
Derrick Rose Chi 5.9
Tony Parker SA 5.7

The Bulls should win this game. They have more talent.

rose light up nash big time in az

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ducks

rose light up nash big time in az

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Considering Parker's defense has been weak as shit this year, Rose will pretty much go for 30 against him. I can play this stupid game too, ducks.

rose scored over 30 against nash
also the bulls just played the suns recently

rose has been on fire

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Chieflion

Considering Parker's defense has been weak as shit this year, Rose will pretty much go for 30 against him. I can play this stupid game too, ducks.

---

who said parker would be guarding him

hill could be

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Scola

"Spurs have lost four of last five"

:depressed

There's no excuse for losing this one. The bulls roster is terrible, outside of Rose, Deng, and maybe Henrich/Salmons nobody on that team can create their own shot.

On a side note, I can't believe they list Duncan as "PF" and Blair as "C", :lmao

---

I'd say just Rose and Salmons can create their own shot. This Bulls team lacks (whether Noah plays or not) size, depth and play makers. They're a very mediocre offensive team, so a should be motivated Spurs defense should be able to limit this team to below 95 points and 45% shooting.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by easy7

If Spurs play small ball they are going to get their asses handed to them.

---

Expect to see lots of it. The Bulls play two power forwards in Gibson and Thomas who are slightly undersized and neither (particularly Thomas) is a post up threat. If it's close coming down the stretch, I full expect to see: Hill on Rose, Parker on Hinrich, Ginobili on Salmons, Jefferson on Deng and Duncan on Noah. Even if the Bulls were to finish with either Gibson or Thomas at the four and with either Hinrich or Salmons on the bench, I still think the Spurs would finish this way. Not just because of what I said about the Bulls PF's, but also so that Hill can be in the game to guard Rose and so that none of the so-called big four would have to sit.

Hill starting against Paul, Williams and now Rose makes sense, but after this game, he should be returned to the bench. This team is already playing undersized, unbalanced lineups as is and they lack the depth at the point to play their two PG's at once at the start. Against the Hawks, if Hill is still starting by then, he'd have to guard Johnson, who's much bigger and stronger than him, so what if he picks up two fouls in the first five-six minutes? Then what, you overplay an already tired looking Parker? It makes no sense.

CHI: D. Rose 32 Pts, 3 Reb, 5 Ast friday in az rose did
so if tp guarded rose and he only went for 30 then he would have done better then nash
if chiefton wants to play the game

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ducks

CHI: D. Rose 32 Pts, 3 Reb, 5 Ast friday in az rose did
so if tp guarded rose and he only went for 30 then he would have done better then nash
if chiefton wants to play the game

---

Bad defense is bad defense, stupid ducks. Who cares about 30 or 32? And Nash is definitely better than Parker on offense to offset the little difference. LOL ducks still an idiot. And if Parker doesn't guard Rose, it only says what little trust the coach has in Parker's defense.

it would be better for the o since rose scores so much if hill guarded rose more in the game


does it say how bad duncan's d is when most of the game he does not guard he other teams best big most of the minutes the night

no pop wants duncan to be fresher and not foul out early in the game
not the lack of d

Hill on Rose is very likely I think, Parker can keep up with Hinrich that way

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ffadicted

Hill on Rose is very likely I think, Parker can keep up with Hinrich that way

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You know I was screwing around with ducks, right?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Chieflion

You know I was screwing around with ducks, right?

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lol i just saw his first post on how DRose lit up Nash and replied

Quote:

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Originally Posted by init2winit

Hope they lose so they are more desperate to make a trade.

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"init2winit"

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ducks

it would be better for the o since rose scores so much if hill guarded rose more in the game


does it say how bad duncan's d is when most of the game he does not guard he other teams best big most of the minutes the night

no pop wants duncan to be fresher and not foul out early in the game
not the lack of d

---

Sounds nuts, but imagine how much better the Spurs world would be with a "Lack of Ducks"

Referee Assignments
Mon. Jan 25
Chicago @ San Antonio: Tony Brothers; Mark Ayotte; Eli Roe

Foot still hobbling NoahComment Email Print Share
By Nick Friedell
ESPNChicago.com
Archive
SAN ANTONIO -- The Chicago Bulls' Joakim Noah is still battling plantar fasciitis in his left foot and is a game-time decision for Monday night's game against the San Antonio Spurs.

"We'll see how it goes later," a dejected Noah said after Monday morning's shootaround. "But, I'm just not moving right. It's frustrating because I've had it for a while but it's just getting worse."


Noah received a pain-killing injection before Saturday's game against the Rockets but was unable to play. He also received a deep-tissue massage on Sunday and is sleeping with a boot to immobilize the foot and accelerate the healing process, but he didn't sound confident about playing against Tim Duncan and Co.


"If I can play, I'll play," Noah said. "I'm going to take a pill, take a shot, do whatever I have to do to try to play. But I took the shot last game and it didn't help and it didn't help at all. And there's no point in trying to go when you know deep inside you're only hurting the team."


To make matters worse for coach Vinny Del Negro, Derrick Rose is battling the same flu bug that has been hovering around the team all week. The good news for Del Negro is that he expects Rose to play.


"Hopefully, we can get [Noah] out there," Del Negro said. "Brad [Miller]'s knee's bothering him a little bit. Derrick's sick, so we're just trying to get over this sickness with the team and heal some plantar fasciitis up and get our guys out there. We'll just go with what we can go with. Our body count's a little low in terms of that but we'll see. It's part of the deal."

http://sports.espn.go.com/chicago/nb...ory?id=4856590

Chicago Bulls @ San Antonio Spurs
Morten Stig Jensen

Chicago has run off two straight with point guard Derrick Rose averaging 26 points on 63% from the field. Rose dominated with 32 points at Phoenix and then added 20 at Houston. With Bulls center Joakim Noah out of action, veteran center Brad Miller stepped up and scored a season-high 25 points on a series of jumpers and close shots.

Tonight, the Bulls are in San Antonio to take on the Spurs. Former MVP and four-time NBA Champion Tim Duncan scored his 20,000th point at Houston three days ago, and is having the second-highest scoring rate (per36) of his career.

Bulls rookie Taj Gibson played a strong game at Houston, finishing with 16 points and 14 rebounds. He'll match up against San Antonio's frontcourt of Duncan, Antonio McDyess and DeJuan Blair. All three are large bodies who can rebound the basketball and get shots at close range. With Noah out, Gibson will have to play another strong game for the Bulls to stand a chance.

Richard Jefferson got traded to San Antonio over the summer, and his numbers have dipped across the board. San Antonio shares the ball, which has hurt Jefferson's isolation opportunities, and he has instead become a spot-up shooter. Luol Deng will have to establish himself offensively, and try to take advantage of the extra energy he'll gain from not having to focus on Jefferson.

The Bulls will also need strong performances from Kirk Hinrich, Miller and John Salmons. All three have had their struggles over the course of the season, but lately, they've fallen into line and been productive.

Chicago won the first game against the Spurs in the season opener, and they'll look to sweep the season series tonight. Bulls fans will get another look at DeJuan Blair who a lot of people wanted in the 2009 NBA Draft.

Chicago Bulls (20-22) at San Antonio Spurs (25-17)

The San Antonio Spurs have a good shot at their first win on this current six-game homestand, as they take on the Chicago Bulls Monday night at the AT&T Center.

The Spurs, who are 0-2 on the residency, have won four of five and five of the past seven matchups with the Bulls. They have also won three straight and nine of the previous 10 meetings between the teams in the Alamo City.

San Antonio lost the opener of the homestand to Utah before suffering a 116-109 defeat at the hands of the Southwest Division-rival Houston Rockets on Friday night. Future Hall of Famer Tim Duncan posted 25 points and 14 rebounds, and eclipsed the 20,000-point mark for his career.

"It was good to get it out of the way," Duncan said of the milestone. "We seem to be two different teams at two different times. We need to be playing 48 minutes the right way, and right now we're no where close to that."

Tony Parker contributed 22 points and 10 assists, while Manu Ginobili and George Hill added 15 points apiece for the Spurs, losers of four of five games overall. San Antonio will also host the Hawks, Grizzlies and Nuggets on the homestand and owns a 17-8 mark at the AT&T Center.

The Bulls will resume their seven-game road trip this evening and have won two straight since opening the trek with back-to-back losses. They improved to 2-2 on the swing with Saturday's 104-97 triumph at Houston, as Brad Miller posted 25 points to make up for the loss of forward Joakim Noah, who sat out with a left foot injury and is questionable for Monday. Noah is averaging 11.3 points and 12.3 rebounds this season.

"With losing Joakim in warmups with his foot bothering him, Brad stepped in and had an excellent game," Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro said. "Shooting, scoring, rebounding, doing everything for us. It was a big boost for us."

Derrick Rose scored 20 points and Taj Gibson ended with 16 points and a career-best 14 rebounds for Chicago, which got 12 points apiece from Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng and John Salmons.

Chicago is 6-15 away from the Windy City and will also visit Oklahoma City and New Orleans on the road trip.

Bulls 6-15 on the road, but as we saw with the road-sucky Jazz, not a reliable indication when teams come to SA this season.

Didn't see posted

Rose a game-time call Monday: According to Bulls announcer Chuck Swirsky's Twitter feed, Derrick Rose will be a game-time decision for Monday's game in San Antonio due to an illness.
(Updated 01/25/2010).

Foot still hobbling Noah

By Nick Friedell
ESPNChicago.com
Archive

SAN ANTONIO -- The Chicago Bulls' Joakim Noah is still battling plantar fasciitis in his left foot and is a game-time decision for Monday night's game against the San Antonio Spurs.

"We'll see how it goes later," a dejected Noah said after Monday morning's shootaround. "But, I'm just not moving right. It's frustrating because I've had it for a while but it's just getting worse."


Noah received a pain-killing injection before Saturday's game against the Rockets but was unable to play. He also received a deep-tissue massage on Sunday and is sleeping with a boot to immobilize the foot and accelerate the healing process, but he didn't sound confident about playing against Tim Duncan and Co.


"If I can play, I'll play," Noah said. "I'm going to take a pill, take a shot, do whatever I have to do to try to play. But I took the shot last game and it didn't help and it didn't help at all. And there's no point in trying to go when you know deep inside you're only hurting the team."


To make matters worse for coach Vinny Del Negro, Derrick Rose is battling the same flu bug that has been hovering around the team all week. The good news for Del Negro is that he expects Rose to play.


"Hopefully, we can get [Noah] out there," Del Negro said. "Brad [Miller]'s knee's bothering him a little bit. Derrick's sick, so we're just trying to get over this sickness with the team and heal some plantar fasciitis up and get our guys out there. We'll just go with what we can go with. Our body count's a little low in terms of that but we'll see. It's part of the deal."


http://sports.espn.go.com/chicago/nb...ory?id=4856590

Might be a great time to steal a victory with so many bulls players out or hampered. Spurs really need a win tonight.