With Joakim Noah hurting the Bulls really need Brad Miller to step up. In his last 5 games the 33-year old Miller is averaging 22.6 minutes, 7.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game on 35.5% shooting from the floor. Miller has now played in 59 games (22 starts) for the Bulls this season and he is averaging 22.6 minutes, 7.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. He is only shooting 41.5% from the floor and 29.5% from three point range as he is finally starting to play like a man his age and that is not good news for the Bulls.

Forward Taj Gibson has really been a solid player and he has a nice upside. Gibson played in 56 games (44 starts) for the Bulls so far this season and he is averaging 25.1 minutes, 8.4 points, 6.9 rebounds, 0.7 assists and 1.2 blocked shots per game. Gibson is a solid basketball player and he was a good choice by the Bulls last June. Fellow forward James Johnson has not played as much as Gibson has this season. Johnson has played in 44 games (0 starts) for the Bulls this season and he is averaging 9.3 minutes, 2.9 points, 1.5 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. Gibson & Johnson should have big roles in the future of the Bulls which looks bright.

Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah was having a breakout year, nearly making the All-Star game.  This season Noah is averaging 10.9 points, 11.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.6 blocks, and is shooting 49% from the field.  Plantar fasciitis has nearly ruined Noah’s great season though, as he missed 7 straight games this month.  He recently returned from the injury, but it is not going away.  He is trying to contribute any way he can, and is getting limited minutes.  He played just 7 minutes last Friday against Philadelphia and 12 minutes on Sunday against Washington.  He did virtually nothing against the Sixers, but he gave the Bulls 6 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 assist in just 12 minutes against the Wizards.  Noah is not the same player with this foot injury and I’m not sure the Bulls should be playing him.  I think they should shut him down a little longer and let his foot get as much rest as possible so he can try and get back to his old self before the playoffs.  It’s good to see Noah showing some toughness though, and he proved he can still contribute some in very limited minutes.  Hopefully Noah’s foot and conditioning can get better, but it doesn’t look likely since plantar fasciitis can linger for quite a while.

Hakim Warrick, Flip Murray and Acie Law are off to good starts with the Bulls. Warrick has played in 2 games off the bench for the Bulls and he is averaging 28.0 minutes, 12.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game. The Bulls might even think of giving Warrick more minutes going forward if he keeps playing like he is right now. Flip Murray has played in 2 games off the bench for the Bulls so far and he is averaging 23.5 minutes, 10.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. The Bulls like that Murray gives them instant offense off the bench. Acie Law has only played in 1 game for the Bulls so far in which he played 4 minutes, scored 3 points, grabbed 1 rebound and he dished out 1 assist. Law will have to earn whatever minutes he gets the rest of the year but he does have a decent upside.

Kirk Hinrich was the subject of a lot of trade rumors but he is still a Chicago Bull. With that in mind and John Salmons now playing with the Bucks it appears as if Kirk Hinrich will be in the starting lineup for the rest of the year barring injury. Hinrich has played in 46 games (25 starts) for the Bulls this season and he is averaging 32.6 minutes, 10.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Hinrich will need to start shooting better as he is only hitting 38.4% of his shots from the floor this season and that just won’t get it done.

The Bulls have waived 25-year old forward Chris Richard. Richard played in 5 games (0 starts) for the Bulls this season and he was averaging 14.4 minutes, 2.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. The Bulls had to cut Richard to make room for all of the new players they got in the last couple of days.

The Chicago Bulls have traded Tyrus Thomas to the Charlotte Bobcats in return for Flip Murrey, Acie Law, and a future first-round draft pick.  Thomas, who was the fourth pick in the 2006 draft pick, never reached his full potential with the Bulls.  He did show signs of greatness at times, but his play was very inconsistent and his shot selection questionable.  He never panned out to be a star, but he was a good role player for the Bulls and their best shot-blocker.  This season he played in 29 games (3 starts) and averaged 23.4 minutes, 8.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.7 blocks, and 1.4 steals while shooting 48% from the field.  In his 3 1/2 seasons with the Bulls, he played in 254 games (95 starts) and averaged 20.3 minutes, 7.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 1.4 blocks, 0.9 steals, and a 45% FG percentage.

Although the Bulls didn’t get a ton in return for Thomas, Murray and Law’s contracts are both expiring after this season.  That means the Bulls will have more money for the big-name free agents coming up this offseason.  Murray is also a pretty solid guard who this season is averaging 9.9 points, 1.8 assists, 2.1 rebounds, and 0.6 steals.  He has not been shooting the ball well from outside though, with a 39% FG percentage and 31% 3P percentage.  Law has not been getting much playing time, averaging just 7 minutes per game.  The biggest parts of this deal though are the increased salary cap room they have made, along with the future first-round draft pick.

With the Chicago Bulls reaching a deal with the Milwaukee Bucks to trade John Salmons and his $5.8 million salary for Kurt Thomas and Francisco Elson, word is coming out that Bulls have pulled themselves out of the Tracy McGrady bidding.  T-Mac is a star, but there were a lot of downsides to that that trade as well, so it wasn’t too big of a disappointment.  McGrady has never won a playoff series and is very injury prone.  He is often seen as one of the most overrated players in the league, so there are a lot of Bulls fans that are happy this T-Mac trade didn’t happen.  Still, T-Mac would have provided the Bulls with a lot more production than Salmons ever did and it would have been fun to see how he and D-Rose played together.  Both Thomas and Elson have expiring contracts after this season, so that means the Bulls have cleared up some more cap space for the big 2010 free agency class that includes LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and a slew of other talented players.  Thomas and Elson will provide some veteran leadership and depth in the front court, but will likely be gone after this season.

Rumors are coming out that the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks are competing in trade negotiations with the Houston Rockets to acquire Tracy McGrady.  The Bulls have apparently already traded John Salmons to the Bucks.  That means the Bulls would have to give up Tyrus Thomas, Brad Miller, and Kirk Hinrich.  At first I wasn’t too sure if I wanted the Bulls to go for this trade, as I have always thought T-Mac was overrated and injury prone.  Then I thought about how much a point guard like Derrick Rose could help McGrady’s game.  McGrady is a supreme talent who has averaged 21.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.9 blocks in his career.  He has never played with a point guard with the skills and athleticism that Rose brings to the table.  McGrady won’t have to deal with double teams with Rose on his team, so he will get a lot more open shots and room to drive to the hole.  He does have a big ego and he has had a rift with Houston and has only played in 6 games this season.  That means he is fresh, and presumably healthy though.  If this trade happens the Bulls will miss Miller’s production off the bench and Thomas’ shot blocking, but Hinrich has done more harm than good for the Bulls this season with his horrible shooting.  So, after all I think McGrady could do a lot of good things for the Bulls, especially with D. Rose running the show for him.

The Bulls have traded 30-year old SG/SF John Salmons to the Bucks for 27-year old forward Hakim Warrick and 23-year old forward Joe Alexander. Salmons played in 51 games (28 starts) for the Bulls this season and he was averaging 33.2 minutes, 12.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Warrick has played in 48 games (6 starts) for the Bucks this season and he is averaging 21.3 minutes, 10.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. He has now played in 355 games (88 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 21.6 minutes, 10.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. Joe Alexander played in 59 games (0 starts) last season as a rookie for the Bucks in which he averaged 12.1 minutes, 4.7 points, 1.9 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. I like this trade a lot better than the first reported one which involved Francisco Elson and Kurt Thomas coming to the Bulls. Warrick will likely get a lot of P.T. the rest of the year for the Bulls. Alexander might help them out down the road.