Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls are sorely missing their center, Joakim Noah.  Rose has been stepping up his play with Noah out, but Noah and his plantar fasciitis injury has really set the Bulls frontcourt back, especially when it comes to defense and rebounding.  Without Noah, the Bulls are a different team defensively and they need to score more points because of it.  They haven’t really been doing that, and the Bulls have now lost four straight games because of it.  You can’t blame Derrick Rose though, since he has been playing some great basketball lately.  In the past five games he is averaging 27.6 points, 4.5 assists, 1.4 rebounds, and 0.8 steals while shooting 56% from the field.  Rose is definitely doing his part, but he (and every other Bull) could help a little more hitting the glass.  Rose is averaging 3.8 rebounds per game on the season and he has been consistently below that average lately, so rebounding is the only thing he needs to improve on right now.  Although Rose has been stepping it up when it comes to scoring, he can’t do it himself and the win/loss column is proving that.  Taj Gibson and Brad Miller have been doing their part lately, but guys like Luol Deng, Kirk Hinrich, Hakim Warrick, and Flip Murray are not carrying their load on offense.  If those guys don’t start shooting the ball better and helping Rose with the scoring load, the Bulls are going to be in big trouble.

Joakim Noah’s plantar fasciitis in his left foot just won’t go away, and the Chicago Bulls have decided to sit him down for the next three weeks to give it some more time to heal.  After missing seven straight games in February for the injury, Noah attempted to play through it and contribute what he could to the Bulls.  That little experiment only lasted three games though, even though his minutes were limited.  After playing just 7 and 12 minutes in the first two games back, the Bulls put him out there for 27 minutes in a win against Portland last Friday.  In that game Noah had 8 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists, but the next game he could not go.  After missing the past two games, the Bulls have now decided to keep him out for the next three weeks to see if the plantar fasciitis can get any better before the playoffs.  I think this is the right move by the Bulls, since they are going to need Noah in the playoffs since he is their leading rebounder (11.4 rpg), shot blocker (1.56 bpg), and emotional leader.  I’m not sure why the Bulls even tried to play Noah since it may have set his recovery back, but now that they have shut him down hopefully he will be healthy enough for the playoffs.

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.

Derrick Rose is the first All-Star for the Chicago Bulls since Michael Jordan, but now it looks like the star point guard could miss out on his first All-Star game and his chance at defending his Skills Competition Title.  Early in the first quarter in last night’s game against the Orlando Magic, the explosive Rose drove hard to the hoop and took it up strong against the beast that is Dwight Howard.  While airborne, the 6-3 190 pound Rose was bumped hard by the 6-11 265 pound Howard and went down hard on his lower right back/hip.  Rose laid there for a while in obvious pain, clutching his hand to the point of impact.  He hobbled off the court with help from the trainer, and did not return to action.  He was taken to the locker room for X-rays, which fortunately were negative and showed no structural damage.  He was then taken to the hospital for a precautionary MRI, and results are still pending.  The Bulls were crushed after Rose left, losing 107-87.  I am optimistic that Rose will be okay, but at the very least he will have to deal with some pain and severe stiffness for a few days.  Hopefully things are not worse, especially since the Bulls have been without center and rebounding machine Joakim Noah (plantar fasciitis).  It wasn’t all bad news for Rose last night though, as it was announced before the game that Rose was 1 of 27 players selected to be a part of the USA National Team pool, which will eventually be made into the 12 man roster for the 2012 Olympics in London.

The Bulls have decided to shut down starting center Joakim Noah as he has a case of plantar fasciitis. Noah has played in 46 games (all starts) for the Bulls this season and he is averaging 32.7 minutes, 11.2 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. This was a smart move for the Bulls because Noah is probably the 2nd best player on the Bulls behind Derrick Rose and they can’t afford to lose him for longer if they keep playing him. Brad Miller will take over in the middle for the Bulls. He has played in 47 games (10 starts) for the Bulls this season and he is averaging 21.1 minutes, 7.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Look for Miller to replace what Noah does on offense but the Bulls’ will suffer in both rebounding and defense until Noah returns to action.

The Bulls will be without back-up PG/SG Kirk Hinrich for the next week or two due to a sprained left thumb ligament. Hinrich has played in 13 games (0 starts) this season for the Bulls and he is averaging 28.5 minutes, 8.9 points, 2.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.0 steal per game. The Bulls will miss Hinrich as he plays both guard spots for the Bulls off the bench and despite not shooting well he is still an asset to the team. It will be up to Jannero Pargo to step up while Hinrich is out of action. Pargo has played in 14 games (0 starts) for the Bulls this year and he is averaging 11.6 minutes, 5.0 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.

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 have lost center Aaron Gray for the next six to eight weeks due to a stress fracture in his left fibula. Luckily for the Bulls they are very deep at center. Brad Miller and Joakim Noah should be able to handle the extra minutes until Gray is ready to return to action.

The Bulls will be without starting small forward Luol Deng for the next 1-3 weeks with a lingering Achilles injury. Deng has played in 33 games (32 starts) this season for the Bulls and he is averaging 34.7 minutes, 17.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Deng will be replaced in the starting lineup by Andres Nocioni who is having a solid season. Nocioni has played in 43 games (15 starts) this season and he is averaging 26.4 minutes, 14.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. Tyrus Thomas will also likely see a bump in his playing time. Thomas has played in 38 games (11 starts) this season and he is averaging 16.0 minutes, 5.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists. Thomas needs to shoot better as he is only hitting 38.9% of his shots from the floor and 68.7% of his shots from the free throw line this year.

Andres Nocioni is out indefinately with plantar faciitis. This has been a huge blow to the Bulls so far as Nocioni plays all-out all the time and his energy rubs off on his teammates. He has played in 48 games this season and he’s averaging 14.8 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists.