The Bulls were outscored 22-11 in the 4th quarter against the Raptors last night and it doomed them in the end. It also didn’t help that the Bulls only shot 39.8% from the floor last night. Luol Deng led the way last night for the Bulls with 18 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists. Rookie forward Taj Gibson was also solid last night for the Bulls with 18 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists. Derrick Rose pitched in with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. The Bulls are now 4-4 on the year.

The Chicago Bulls (4-3) lost on a controversial call to the Denver Nuggets (6-2) tonight at the United Center.  The Bulls tied the game at 89 with two clutch free throws from Derrick Rose with 10.4 seconds to play.  Chauncey Billups came back and hit a clutch free throw himself for the Nuggets, with only 0.6 seconds to play.  Billups purposely missed the second and the Bulls quickly rebounded and got a timeout with 0.3 seconds left.  That is when Brad Miller received the inbound pass and quickly caught and shot in one swift movement.  Miller hit the shot at the buzzer, and the refs reviewed to see if he got it off in time.  This really was a close call, but after seeing all of the reviews I could not see any conclusive evidence that the ball was still in Miller’s hand.  It was probably the closest last second shot the NBA has ever reviewed, but I just could not tell if Miller got it off or not.  Now I thought the rule is like the NFL’s replay:  only conclusive evidence can overturn a call.  The refs ruled it good on the floor, but after several minutes they decided that the ball was still on Miller’s fingertips when the red light went on, and ruled it no good.  I disagree with this call as I could not see any conclusive evidence the ball was still in his hand, but apparently the NBA doesn’t have that rule.

This was a tough way to lose, as the Bulls played very well in this one.  Luol Deng, Joakim Noah, and Derrick Rose led the way for the Bulls.  Deng had 21 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks while Noah had another great rebounding night, finishing with 21 boards, 2 blocks, and 12 points.  Rose had 22 points, 5 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal.  Carmello Anthony led the way for the Nuggets, scoring 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists.  The Bulls are heading to Canada tomorrow night to take on the Toronto Raptors.

Joakim Noah has really played well as the starting center for the Bulls this season. In his first six starts of the year, Noah in averaging 30.3 minutes, 11.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.3 blocked shots per game. Noah is giving the Bulls a needed presence in the middle both offensively and defensively as they lack muscle along the front line. Look for Noah’s good play to continue because of his non-stop motor and his will to win. It’s exciting to watch him play and the Bulls were smart to put him in the starting lineup.

The Bulls shot 50% from the floor and they held the Bobcats to 39.5% shooting last night and those were the biggest reasons for the win last night. John Salmons had by far his best game of the season as he scored 27 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, dished out 6 assists and he stole the ball 3 times. Joakim Noah was incredible around the basket as he finished with 21 points, grabbed 16 rebounds, dished out 3 assists and he also blocked 4 shots. Luol Deng was solid again for the Bulls with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 2 steals. Derrick Rose pitched in with 13 points, 4 assists and 3 steals. The Bulls are now 4-2 on the season.

The Bulls will be without forward Tyrus Thomas for the next 4-6 weeks as he fractured his radius in his left forearm while lifting weights which will require surgery early next week. Thomas has played in 4 games (3 starts) for the Bulls this season and he is averaging 8.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 1.8 blocked shots per game. Rookie Taj Gibson will replace Thomas in the starting lineup while he is out of action. Gibson has played in 5 games (2 starts) for the Bulls this year and he is averaging 22.0 minutes, 6.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game. If Gibson plays really well while Thomas is out of action he might be the starter even when he comes back.

The Bulls just wanted this game more than the Cavs and that is why they got a huge win in Cleveland last night. Luol Deng led the way for the Bulls in this game with 15 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists. John Salmons had one of his better games of the season finishing with 14 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. Derrick Rose also had a really good game with 14 points, 2 rebounds and 11 assists. The Bulls are now 3-2 on the season.

It looks like Luol Deng’s hardwork in the offseason is paying off.  Deng missed 33 games last season due to a broken tibia in his leg and many have been questioning Deng’s toughness.  He has responded great early this season, pulling down a career high 20 rebounds against the Milwaukee Bucks earlier this week and wreaking havoc on both ends of the court.  Through the first four games, Deng is averaging 17.8 points and 10.5 rebounds while shooting 48% from the field.  He has also been a solid defender for the Bulls, giving them a much bigger lineup compared to last years.  With a healthy Deng, the Bulls could really take the next step this year.

The Chicago Bulls (2-2) got off to a terrible start and scored only 29 points in the first half against the Milwaukee Bucks (1-2).  They found themselves in hole heading into halftime and were down as many 18 points.  They stormed back though, with Luol Deng leading the way.  Deng had a huge night, shooting 7 of 16 for 24 points while pulling down 20 rebounds and blocking 2 shots.  Brad Miller and Jannero Pargo were great sparks off the bench, and helped the Bulls dwindle the Bucks lead down.  Miller had 13 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 block.  Pargo had 10 points and an assist in only 14 minutes of play.

The Bulls did a good job rebounding tonight, out-rebounding the Bucks 53-44.  They also blocked a ton of shots totaling 12 as a team, with Joakim Noah leading the team with 5 while also adding 12 rebounds.  Derrick Rose added 15 points, 5 assists, 2 rebounds and a block.  Brandon Jennings led the Bucks with 25 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 1 rebound.

John Salmons is off to a very poor start to the 2009-2010 season as he is only shooting 27.9% from the floor. Salmons has started 3 games for the Bulls so far this season and he has averaged 36.0 minutes, 11.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 2.3 steals per game. The Bulls need Salmons to get his act together soon as they have had problems scoring points so far this season.

The Bulls led this game 70-69 last night before being outscored 26-17 in the 4th quarter which doomed them. Luol Deng led the way for the Bulls in this game with 26 points and 8 rebounds. John Salmons also had a decent game finishing up with 17 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals. Brad Miller pitched in with 11 points and 3 rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench. The Bulls are now 1-2 on the season.