I don’t want to put too much emphasis on preseason stats. After all, preseason games are like lab experiments. Coaches tinker with various lineups and try to test the reserves, and players test new moves and try to ratchet up their games for the upcoming 82-game (plus playoffs hopefully) grind.

Still, what happens in the preseason can sometimes hint at what to expect in the early part of the regular season. And here’s what happened during the Bulls’ preseason:

Scoring, rebounding and ball handling were problems:
Chicago averaged only 95.8 PPG while shooting 44.6 percent from the field and 36.6 percent from beyond the arc.

The team’s 2009-10 averages: 97.5 PPG, 45.1 and 33.0.

Furthermore, the Bulls were outrebounded by a slim margin (40.4 RPG to 39.9 RPG) and turned the ball over. A lot (17.4 TOs per game).

Of course, team stats in the preseason are deceiving because the bench gets a lot more PT than usual. I mean, does anybody really expect Brian Scalabrine to average 20 MPG once the regular season starts?

Of course not.

Additionally, the Bulls have nine new players and a new coaching staff. As if the personnel turnover wasn’t enough, the team’s best new player — Carlos Boozer — played exactly zero preseason minutes. What’s more, C.J. Watson, Joakim Noah, Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer and Taj Gibson all missed games due to minor injury or illness.

Under those circumstances, it would have been silly to expect too much from eight relatively meaningless games.

Still, the numbers may be a sign that the chemistry and continuity aren’t quite there.

But not all was doom and gloom:
By and large, the Bulls were unselfish with the ball, compiling 181 assists on 274 field goals. That means that 66 percent of the team’s made shots were assisted. For comparison’s sake, the 2009-10 Utah Jazz led the league in assist ratio, and 67 percent of their buckets were assisted.

Furthermore, the defense was reasonably strong, holding opponents to 94.6 PPG on 45 percent shooting from the field and 30 percent from the land of three. The Bulls also averaged 7.9 SPG and 5.6 BPG.

Derrick Rose shot poorly:
Over the summer, there was a lot of buzz about Rose’s improved jumper and how he had been working on his three-point shooting. It didn’t show during the preseason. Rose hit 43.4 percent of his field goals and went 5-for-21 from downtown (23.8 percent).

This probably isn’t a huge deal. However, Rose is the foundation of this team on offense. And since he tends to be more of a shoot-first point guard, the consistency and reliability of his shooting is paramount.

Joakim Noah was Joakim Noah:
Other than missing two games with flu-like symptoms, Noah had a very Noah-like preseason: 10.8 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 1.8 BPG and 1.3 SPG in 28 minutes a night. His shooting was a little off (45.1 percent) and he turned the ball over (2.6 TOs per game), but he was second on the team with 4.2 APG.

Trust me, Jo’s going to be worth every penny of that $60 million contract extension.

Luol Deng may have been the team’s best player:
Deng had a strong preseason, averaging 16.0 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 1.8 APG and 1.1 SPG in 28 MPG. His shooting was even more impressive: 50.6 percent from the field and 51.7 percent on threes.

And how’s this for unexpected: Lu not only led the team in three-point field goal attempts — Deng launched 29 treys, with Keith Bogans coming in second at 20 attempts — he also finished first in free throw attempts (48 to Rose’s 39). For his game to improve, Deng needed to reduce his reliance on long-range twos (check), take more threes (check) and attack the rim (check).

This could be quite a season for Deng. Assuming he stays healthy.

Keith Bogans was better than expected:
Going into training camp, everybody figured it was a two-man race for the starting shooting guard spot. Those two men being Ronnie Brewer (the presumed starter) and Kyle Korver (the challenger). Only Bogans started all eight games. And although it may only have been because Brewer was injured, Bogans delivered by shooting 51.7 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point range.

Bogans didn’t do a lot of scoring (5.5 PPG) or log a lot of time (16.8 MPG), but he was more consistent than Korver (43 percent from the field, 33 on threes) or Brewer (28 percent from the field, 0-for-1 on threes). Maybe I was wrong to sleep on Bogans.

C.J. Watson was worse than expected:
There were times during the preseason when coach Tom Thibodeau played Rose and Watson at the same time, and that could make the Bulls a terrifying transition team. But don’t get too excited about that prospect: I doubt we’ll see much of that tandem during the season.

Watson was brought in for two reasons: 1) to back up Rose at the point and 2) provide another shooter.

Regarding reason number one: Watson was looking to shoot (59 field goal attempts) more than he was looking to pass (22 assists). Plus, he had 16 turnovers to those 22 dimes.

Regarding reason number two: C.J. connected on only 32 percent of his shot attempts and went 4-for-16 from downtown (25 percent).

I’m willing to cut Watson some slack. After all, he came from Don Nelson’s gunslinger offense, and he now has to adjust to new teammates, a new coach, and a very new and different playing style.

Still…

Omer Asik made quick progress:
When the preseason began, Asik looked marshmallow soft. By the final preseason game, he looked a little more prepared to mix things up. In eight games — including four starts — Asik played 19.6 MPG and averaged 5.3 PPG, 6.9 RPG and 1.1 BPG while hitting nearly 52 percent of his shots. His free throw shooting (14-for-28) was an issue, but his effort was not.

I’m not saying Asik is ready to overtake veteran Kurt Thomas as the first center off the bench, but from what we saw in the preseason, Omer may be ready to contribute early on. Which will be necessary with Boozer out.

James Johnson may be ready:
JJ continues to be something of an enigma, but he did score 8.5 PPG off the bench while hitting 50 percent of his shots. And he showed some of his very first signs of basketball IQ.

Maybe I should give Brian Scalabrine a break:
After all, Scal made the absolute most of the minutes he was given, averaging 6.0 PPG on 56 percent shooting (including 43 percent on threes). Not bad for an end-of-the-bench guy.

Pacers President of Basketball Operations and all-time NBA great Larry Bird watched last night’s game from a few rows behind his team’s bench. I’m not going to make the obligatory “he should have suited up” joke, but the Pacers probably could have used him. They sure needed something. As it was, Bird was treated to an embarrassing 28-point loss.

That’s no way to treat a living legend.

But Indy’s woes are Danny Granger’s problem (although Granger missed the game with a sprained left ankle). The Bulls were happy to end their 4-4 preseason on a high note. Thanks to Luol Deng (29 points, 7-for-11 from the field, 12-for-12 from the line, 8 rebounds, 3 assists) and Derrick Rose (14 points, 6 assists, 2 blocks), Chicago was able to do it without Joakim Noah, who missed his second consecutive preseason game with flu-like symptoms.

After their half-hearted defensive effort against the Raptors, the Bulls turned up the D, holding the Pacers to 35 percent shooting. Chicago forced 20 turnovers, scored 25 points off those turnovers and won the rebounding battle 50-37. Of course, minus Granger and T.J. Ford (strained right hamstring), Indiana had to go with a starting lineup of Mike Dunleavy, Josh McRoberts, Roy Hibbert, Darren Collison and Lance Stephenson.

That group had a combined plus-minus score of -78.

With Noah out, Omer Asik started at center and finished with 6 points, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks and a steal. Of his 10 boards, 7 came on the offensive end, which was pretty impressive. Unfortunately, I have to throw a wet blanket on his blocks. All three came during garbage time in the fourth quarter. Two were against Paul George (who finished 2-for-14 from the field) and the other was against James Posey (0-for-4).

Still, the kid played a solid 26 minutes. And he’s been showing a willingness to play physical with the big boys.

Kyle Korver logged 24 minutes despite his ankle cyst. He finished with 7 points off the bench, but his shooting was so erratic (3-for-10 from the field and 1-for-5 from downtown) that I was starting to wonder whether he also had a cyst in his shooting hand. Oh well. At least he had 5 assists.

Speaking of which, the Bulls continue to be unselfish with the ball. They had 23 assists on their 33 field goals. And the team’s shooting percentage (45.8) might have been better if Korver, Ronnie Brewer (3-for-7), C.J. Watson (1-for-6) and Kurt Thomas (1-for-6) hadn’t come off the bench shooting blanks.

I have to admit, that’s a source of concern for me. The Bulls are deep, but they don’t really have an off-the-bench scorer this season. You know, a sixth man who can come in and put some points on the board when the offense is sluggish. I’m not sure who’s going to be starting at the two — Brewer, Korver or Keith Bogans — but none of them really qualify as an offensive spark plug. Bogans and Korver shoot and Brewer slashes. They don’t create.

Past that? Well, Kurt Thomas is an old man on his way out of the league. C.J. Watson has averaged 9.8 PPG during the preseason, but his shooting has been ghastly (32 percent from the field and 25 percent on threes). James Johnson has had a decent preseason (8 PPG on 50 percent shooting), but I wonder whether he can be consistent during the regular season. Taj Gibson will return to the bench when Carlos Boozer returns, but he doesn’t really create offense either. Don’t even bring up Brian Scalabrine.

My point is this: At this point, there simply isn’t a clear leader among the reserves. It may not be an issue. But the best teams usually have a guy like that.

Jumping topics here: Has anybody noticed Luol Deng has been on fire from three-point range? In eight preseason games, Deng went 15-for-29 from distance (51.7 percent). He attempted at least three triples in seven of the eight games. The only time he didn’t attempt three or more was during his abbreviated stint against the Magic.

Deng also closed out the preseason on fire. He scored 20+ points in three of his last four games (with the fourth game being a 5-point outing in Orlando). In those three games, Deng scored 23 points on 8-for-14 from the field, 22 points on 7-for-13 shooting, and last night’s 29 points on 7-for-11. He’s hitting threes, drawing fouls, rebounding the ball, playing defense…I’m telling you, Deng’s career might be revived under new coach Tom Thibodeau.

Said Thibs: “He has played a complete game. I’ve liked his defense and his offense. He’s mixing things up well. He’s moving without the ball, hitting the midrange jumper and added the 3-point shot. He’s posting up. He’s had a terrific preseason.”

The Bulls really, really need that strong play to continue, especially until Boozer gets back.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

Last season, the Toronto Raptors ranked dead last in Defensive Rating, giving up a whopping 113.2 points per 100 possessions. From the looks of things, their D didn’t improve when Chris Bosh decided to take his talents to South Beach.

To wit: The Bulls assisted on 26 of their 39 field goals, scored 27 fast break points, earned 35 free throws, had 42 points in the paint, shot 50 percent as a team and finished with 110 points.

Players who enjoyed stat-padding nights included Derrick Rose (20 points, 9 assists, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks and a steal), Luol Deng (22 points, 7-for-13, 6 rebounds, 3 assists), James Johnson (13 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter), Brian Scalabrine (14 points on 6-for-7 shooting), C.J. Watson (12 points on, ugh, 3-for-13 shooting) and even the ancient Kurt Thomas (10 points on 5-for-6 shooting).

The bad news? Toronto assisted on 24 of their 38 field goals, scored 15 fast break points, earned 36 free throws, had 50 points in the paint, shot nearly 48 percent from the field and finished with 103 points. The Raptors also won the rebounding battle 45-36.

This wasn’t the Celtics or the Lakers. This was the Raptors…a team with a few above-average players at best. Not surprisingly, Coach Tom Thibodeau wasn’t happy with his team’s defense. To say the least.

Said Thibs: ”Transition, pick-and-roll defense, challenging shots, not protecting the paint, from A to Z, it just wasn’t there. I liked the way we played offensively a lot. We shared the ball, made good decisions and scored effectively. But if we’re just going to rely on our offense, we’re going to be in trouble.”

You’ve got to love this, right? That quote reads like something you’d expect a coach to say 10-20 games (or more) into the regular season. Speaking of which, Thibodeau burned a 20-second timeout less than four minutes into the game to read his team the riot act for a lackadaisical start. Clearly, this man is intense.

Said Luol Deng: “He expects a lot out of us. And we were letting him down.”

On that subject, Thibodeau also said: “I’m concerned about our rebounding, our rebounding is not good.”

In all fairness, the fact that Joakim Noah missed the game with flu-like symptoms and Carlos Boozer is still out with that broken hand probably explains the rebounding deficit. Not to make excuses, but they are, by the numbers, Chicago’s two best rebounders.

At any rate, the way Luol Deng tells it, ”Defense First” has been a consistent and repetitive message from Thibodeau: “That’s coach. He expects excellence out of us and I’m glad that he does. It’s just going to make us all better and it’s going to make us better as a team.”

You know who Thibs reminds me of? Former Bulls coach (and current Bucks coach) Scott Skiles.

Like Thibodeau, Skiles was a demanding perfectionist. His bulldog’s intensity and absolute insistence on defense, hard work and hustle make the Bulls a much better team. However, his style wore on his players. A lot. By his fourth season in Chicago, many players had tuned him out and some even seemed to quit on him. Then Skiles got fired. On Christmas eve.

In the NBA, things rarely end well for taskmasters.

And although some people will tell you that today’s player is more self-centered than the old-schoolers, this isn’t a new thing. Back in the early 1980s, a former U.S. Marine Corps drill instructor named Bill Fitch coached the Boston Celtics to a 32-game turnaround and then won a league championship in only his second season with the team. Admittedly, having Larry Bird around helped, but so did Fitch’s demanding nature and attention to detail (he was one of the first NBA coaches to use video sessions).

Unfortunately, the coach’s dictatorial style got to his players. By the fourth year of the Fitch Regime, those players — Kevin McHale and Robert Parish in particular – staged a mini-revolt that culminated in an embarrassing playoff sweep by the Milwaukee Bucks. When a Larry Bird-led squad gets swept by a lesser opponent, you know there’ s a problem. Not surprisingly — and despite the fact that Bird was his biggest supporter — Fitch was canned.

Don’t get me wrong. I love the fact that Thibodeau wants nothing but 100 percent effort from his team every single night. I liked that quality in Skiles, and I’m glad it’s back. But it’s something to think about down the road.

Right now, though, the Bulls need this. They do. The team has nine new players. Boozer is going to miss the team’s most challenging stretch of the season. Guys have ticky-tac injuries and need to learn their roles. Structure is an absolute necessity.

After all, these games are going to start counting soon.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

There are losses. And then there are losses.

Friday night’s home loss to the Mavericks was disappointing but also kind of uplifting. The offense was clicking early (38 points in the first quarter). Key guys played well, including Derrick Rose (23 points, 4 assists), Joakim Noah (13 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocked shots) and Luol Deng (23 points, 5-for-7 from downtown). And the team forced OT against a strong Western Conference team that was motivated to win.

Of course, there were problems. Such as bad shooting (39 percent), especially by the reserves (9-for-36). Even more critically, there were the turnovers (21) and the massive number of points Dallas scored off those turnovers (29). The only things the Bulls forgot were giftwrap and some ribbon, because they literally gave the game away.

The turnover issue has been an ongoing problem in the preseason. In their first four games, the Bulls committed 15, 13, 24 and 17 turnovers. I suppose we can partially overlook all the miscues due to the new offensive system (which emphasizes ball movement) and all the new personnel. Still, it’s worrisome.

Of course, turnovers weren’t the problem against the Magic. The problem was everything. The offense was dreadful (Chicago scored only 23 points in the first half and shot only 31 percent for the game) and the defense was even worse (Orlando hit 62 percent of their field goals). Minus Carlos Boozer (broken hand) and Taj Gibson (sore right heel), the Bulls’ frontcourt got manhandled: the Magic enjoyed lopsided margins on the boards (43-28) and in points in the paint (44-20).

The loss was somewhat predictable — the Bulls were down two key players and coming off a tough overtime defeat the night before, while the Magic were at home and seemed to be playing full tilt – but losing by 38 is always a kick in the face no matter the circumstances.

“Tired” fans can understand. “Too tired to try” is a little harder to swallow.

Said Rose: ”It is a learning experience, but I told guys that this can’t happen again. Some people will get cursed out or whatever. We just showed no fight.”

Added Noah: “Definitely embarrassing.”

Definitely.

I try not to get too worked up over preseason games. The injuries to Boozer and Gibson, not to mention back-to-back games against strong opponents, qualify as extenuating circumstances. Plus, against the Magic, coach Tim Thibodeau was trying to limit the starters’ minutes. However, there have been lingering problems — namely bad shooting and shoddy ball control — plaguing the team. And the fact that their two wins were at home against bad teams (Washington at Toronto) makes me want to squeeze the heck out of a stress ball.

It’s starting to look like the immediate future without Carlos Boozer is going to be really rough.

Mavs game extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

Magic game extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

As I’ve said before, preseason games are essentially meaningless. You shouldn’t get to low after a loss, and you shouldn’t get too high after a win. Especially against a Raptors team featuring a starting lineup of Amir Johnson, Julian Wright, David Andersen, Jose Calderon and Leandro Barbosa.

That said, it’s still nice to see positive things happening.

For instance: Ball movement. The Bulls were whipping the ball around and finding the open man. Nobody more so than Joakim Noah, who finished with a game-high 8 assists (including 4 in the first quarter). Derrick added 7 dimes, and overall the Bulls assisted on 26 of their 40 field goals.

The unselfish play led to hot shooting (52 percent from the field and 50 percent from downtown) and plenty of free throw attempts (32).

Said Rose: “[Coach Tom Thibodeau] isn’t talking to us about moving the ball. It just comes from the offense. The offense is made so that if you don’t have a shot, you pass it.”

Added Noah: “[Thibodeau's] offense puts us in a position where we can succeed.”

It’s funny, but I don’t remember ever reading any quotes like that about Vinny Del Negro’s offense the last couple seasons. But maybe I’ve suffering from recall bias.

Speaking of Noah, the dude is juiced. In addition to the gaudy assist total — remember people, he’s a center — Joakim had 16 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Of course, his numbers might have been padded by the fact that he also played a game-high 40 minutes. Noah wasn’t the only Bulls player logging heavy PT. Rose (36) and Deng (31) did too.

I guess that’s how you get guys prepped for the season.

Another positive sign was the job Chicago did on the boards. After getting thoroughly outrebounded in their first two preseason games, the Bulls outrebounded the Wizards 48-32 on Friday and then pounded the Raptors on the glass 44-22 last night. Heck, Noah almost matched Toronto’s rebound total by himself.

On the subject of board work, Omer Asik did sturdy job of rebounding the ball, pulling down 8 in his 20 minutes of playing time. Asik added 9 points and a co-game-high 3 blocked shots. Admittedly, Omer is a little raw and he’s adjusting to the speed and power of the NBA game. But I like his court sense and the way he positions himself around the basket. He looked pretty good against Washington last weekend (10 rebounds, 9 points), and he was solid against last night.

You know who else looked good? C.J. Watson. During his 19 minutes, Watson went 5-for-7 (which included hitting his first four shots) and finished with 12 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds off the bench. Last season, the Bulls never really had a reliable backup for D-Rose. It would be nice if C.J. could be that guy.

I should also note that Ronnie Brewer finally suited up for some action. He didn’t start, played only 10 minutes, and contributed 4 points, a rebound, and assist and a personal foul. But he seemed reasonably spry for somebody with a sore hamstring.

Said Brewer: “[The inury is] not going to affect the way I play. I’m still going to be aggressive and be one of the most athletic guys on the court. I’m still going to be in the weight room to get stronger in both legs. I won’t be cautious. I’ll just stretch a little more.”

Still…that’s the same hammy that Brewer partially tore last February. Which means proceed with caution.

Said Thibs: “We have to be careful with his minutes. But what he brings to our team is his ability to get in the open floor and attack, slash, put the ball on the floor. And we need a guy who can defend wings well. His length and versatility are assets.”

Deng continues to shoot threes. He went 1-for-3 against the Wizards on Friday and 2-for-3 last night. Three three-point attempts may not sound like very many in this day and age, but we’re talking about a guy who has attempted only 0.8 treys per game during his career.

All in all, it was a nice win. Sure, it came against a lousy team in a game that doesn’t mean anything. But trending upward sure is better than the alternative.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos

You know what I love about the NBA preseason?

It’s stress-free basketball. During the regular season and playoffs, I obsess over losses. Even worse, I obsess over what I consider to be ominous signs during wins…bad shooting, poor rebounding, and so on.

During the preseason, I can simply shrug my worries away. The wins and losses don’t accumulate or count toward homecourt advantage, so 0-2 hardly matters. Basketball-Reference.com doesn’t list a player’s preseason stats, so there’s no need to sweat Luol Deng’s 3-for-9 shooting night.

I don’t have to second-guess anything.

And yet I found myself doing just that last night. It wasn’t the loss that bothered me. After all, Dallas starters Dirk Nowitzki (30 points, 10 rebounds) and Caron Butler (who scored 14 of his 22 points in the fourth) played until the final minutes. Meanwhile, Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau used a clutch lineup of John Lucas, Kyle Korver, James Johnson, Brian Scalabrine and Omer Asik.

That’s not the team’s clutch-time five.

What worries me are negative trends. After getting outrebounded 42-37 by the Bucks on Tuesday, the Bulls were again crushed on the boards last night. Dallas held a 54-34 rebounding edge and finished with 25 second-chance points. Can Carlos Boozer pull down one-handed rebounds? Have we ruled that out? Because that eight-week absence is starting to feel really long.

Said Thibodeau: “We’re small. So we have to gang rebound. If we can’t do that, we won’t be successful. We can’t leak out. We have guys taking off early trying to get on the break. They need to get in the fight first.”

Chicago also struggled through another night of poor shooting and stunted scoring that gave me flashbacks to the worst days of last season. In their first preseason game, the Bulls shot 42 percent and scored only 83 points. Last night, they shot 42 percent and scored only 83 points.

That’s definitely the bad kind of deja vu.

The three-point shooting was particularly bad: 6-for-21 as a team, despite the fact that Keith Bogans went 3-for-3 from deep and Luol Deng was 2-for-4. To be fair, that stat was padded by John Lucas’ 0-for-5 shooting inaccuracy. Derrick Rose continues to shoot treys with confidence…he just isn’t hitting them. He went 0-for-3 last night.

Speaking of Rose, his ball distribution was an issue once again. I know some people think I’m needlessly nitpicking on this point, but through the first two preseason games, Rose has attempted 25 field goals while accumulating only 4 assists (2 assists per game). During last night’s game, Joakim Noah (6 assists) surpassed that total and Scalabrine matched it. Am I the only person bothered by that?

A 6-to-1 ratio of shots to assists is not what you want from your All-Star point guard. It’s just not. I’m all for Rose hitting shots. But he needs to create them for his teammates too.

Still, complaints aside, the Bulls played solid defense, holding the Mavs to 38 percent shooting. Dallas lived off of their rebounding and a 31-18 advantage in free throw attempts. And, of course, the clutch play of their starters against Chicago’s reserves.

Moreover, the Bulls starters played well. Every one of them had a positive plus-minus score, led by Taj Gibson (+13), Noah (+11) and Rose (+11). By contract, only Nowitzki was in the green for Dallas (+5). The rest of the Mavs’ starters were a combined -16.

Chicago struggled when Thibs went to the bench. That’s not terribly surprising, considering the Bulls were missing Boozer (broken right hand), Ronnie Brewer (sore right hamstring), and C.J. Watson (sore left quadriceps). When a team is down two starters and their backup point guard, don’t expect much in the way of depth.

To wit: Brian Scalabrine has logged 43 minutes in two preseason games. Once the regular season starts, he might not have 43 minutes of PT by the trade deadline.

But hey, what am I getting all worked up about? Like I said at the beginning of this post, preseason games don’t count for anything. I should just sit back, relax and enjoy this meaningless basketball. No, really. I’m going to stop fretting about misguided shooting and Derrick’s sticky fingers. I wouldn’t mind if somebody addressed the rebounding issue, though. Is that cool?

Said Noah: “Just for the psyche of the team, it’s a problem. When teams are getting second and third opportunities, they get confidence. So we have to eliminate that.”

Okay. Good. I’m done complaining then. For now.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos

Well, that was pretty ugly, wasn’t it?

The Bulls shot 42 percent from the field — including 3-for-12 on threes — and missed 11 free throws. The Bucks shot an identical 3-for-12 from downtown and gave up a whopping 27 points off 25 turnovers. There were blocks and bricks and steals and all manner of awkward moves.

Welcome to the NBA preseason.

Said Bucks coach (and former Bulls coach) Scott Skiles: “It was a typical first exhibition game. We turned the ball over way too much. We got too casual with [the ball]. We made some poor decisions with the ball. Defense was OK.”

Whether Milwaukee played OK defense or the Chicago players simply couldn’t locate the hoop is a matter of opinion. Maybe it’s a little of column A and a little of column B. Bulls big men Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson, Kurt Thomas and James Johnson went 7-for-22. Omer Asik played 17 stiff and tentative minutes.

Meanwhile, guards Keith Bogans (starting at SG for the injured Ronnie Brewer) and C.J. Watson were 3-for-13. Watson had a team-high 6 assists but committed 5 fouls and 4 turnovers, finishing with a game-worst plus-minus score of -15.

Despite Chicago’s active hands (which led to 14 steals), the Bucks managed to hit over 50 percent from the field and outrebounded the Bulls 42-37. The wee tiny Earl Boykins scored 12 of Milwaukee’s 29 fourth quarter points.

Said Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau: “We can’t be pleased with our defense. We allowed the ball to go anywhere.”

Mostly into the basket.

Added Noah: “The best thing about the game is we have another one in a couple of days. It’s preseason, just clean it up and get better.”

Don’t get me wrong. It wasn’t all doom and gloom. The perpetually overlooked and underrated Luol Deng scored 16 points on 6-for-10 shooting…and three of those field goals were at the basket. He also added 4 steals, 3 boards and 2 assists. That’s Deng for you: Doing a little bit of everything…but very quiet like.

Kyle Korver came off the bench apparently intent on earning a starting role. Korver scored a game-high 22 points by going 7-for-12 from the field, 1-for-1 on threes and 7-for-7 from the line. He scored 11 points in the fourth and his triple pulled the Bulls to within a point (82-81) with 3:21 to go.

Of course, Korver’s fourth quarter heroics came mostly against Milwaukee’s Chris Kramer. Skiles switched the more athletic Luc Richard Mbah a Moute onto Korver after that almost-game-tying three. From that point, Korver struggled to get open and didn’t score again.

I’m just sayin’.

As noted, Chicago’s offense struggled. Derrick Rose had 13 points on 5-for-10 shooting but dished out only 2 assists. Rose’s assist totals are a continuing source of concern for me. He just doesn’t have a playmaking nature. He’s a scorer…but he’s a point guard. Ah well. I don’t want to obsess over this too much. I will try to reserver judgement until Carlos Boozer — who had successful surgery on his broken pinky finger and wants us all to know he has only 5 percent body fat — returns and gets into a groove.

Having a solid inside threat and a full compliment of healthy teammates might be all it takes to unleash Rose’s inner assist champion. We’ll see.

The offense had plenty of movement but not much flow. Bulls fans are probably going to have to exercise a little patience. Thibodeau is implementing a new system and the Bulls are working in several new players. And of course the team’s presumed second option is currently acting as the team’s head cheerleader.

Transitions don’t always go smoothly.

By the way, Boozer’s absence was probably evened out by the fact that Milwaukee’s Andrew Bogut was held out of the game. It was a precautionary move to protect his surgically repaired right hand, which apparently got whacked at practice last Friday.

Not that I expected anybody to take too seriously any game in which Brian Scalabrine logged 20 minutes. I’m just trying to provide some perspective.

One quick hit on Thibodeau: The man is intense. He was pacing, directing, lobbying with the officials. As K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune observe, Thibs “was vehemently arguing a blocking foul on James Johnson late.”

Said Thibodeau: “The result is always important. We’re here to win.”

Unfortunately, the Bulls didn’t. Which is fine. After all, it’s still early in the preseason. There’s no pressure.

Yet.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

…Tyrus Thomas or rookie Taj Gibson? Nobody knows yet, except possibly Vinny Del Negro. But the coach isn’t talking. However, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune reports that Gibson played with the first unit during yesterday’s practice. Tyrus was asked about the situation afterward, but he “politely declined to discuss the situation, smiling as he waved off a question.”

I suppose this whole “will he or won’t he start” situation could be a motivational ploy by Vinny. But, based on everything I’ve seen from Tyrus over the past few seasons, I don’t believe that kind of gimmick is going to work with him. In fact, I could see it backfiring. No offense to Gibson — who has looked good and played with a lot of heart during the preseason — but I again contend that the Bulls need to start Thomas.

It’s “Put Up or Shut Up” time for Tyrus (who’s in a contract year) and the Bulls (who are going to have some tough decisions to make next summer). Why take the chance of watching Thomas regress while coming off the bench when the time is now to see what this kid is all about?

It’s also possible that Vinny is sending a message that starting spots are earned by hard work and solid play. And, generally speaking, that’s a good message to send. But every situation is different, and I’d hate to see this situation sow seeds of discord before the season even begins.

On the bright side, Derrick Rose has officially returned to practice.

Chicago’s preseason primer is almost over. It ended last night with an exciting (by preseason standards) 101-98 home defeat by the Orlando Magic. The Bulls ended a successful 5-2 preseason with questions and a bit of controversy. The questions revolve around continuity. With starters (particularly Rose) missing time, Vinny Del Negro was forced to use a variety of lineups. He never did get his desired rotation down. Speaking of which, that leads us to the possible mini-controversy.

When Tyrus Thomas missed a few preseason games with a hip injury, VDN started Taj Gibson at the power forward spot. Gibson has been playing well, so Del Negro started him again last night despite having a healthy Tyrus available for action. And Thomas, fresh off a 22-point, 13-rebound performance, got a little testy about it: “I don’t think it should even be questionable from what I contributed to this team last season and what I did throughout camp, but like I said, he [Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro] is the guy that makes the decisions. Whatever decision he makes I still I have to go out and play.”

It’s not that I necessarily disagree with Tyrus. I mean, he shouldn’t lose his starting spot due to injury. And as good as Gibson has looked, the Bulls have more to gain at this point from starting Tyrus and playing him big minutes. After all, it’s a contract year for Thomas. But his attitude is a prime example of why he remains an enigma. I would much rather Ty have said, “Team success is all that matters and, regardless of whether I start, I will do everything I can to help the team win.” Instead, he pouted and basically said he’ll do what he has to do but only because he has to do it.

Maybe the contract year is the problem. Remember: the bigger he plays this season, the bigger the potential payday next summer. And let’s not forget, Tyrus recently said he could be a 20/10 guy, adding that: “First, I have to figure out my role as far as the offensive end. I have to figure out where I’m going to get my shots. But on the defensive end, definitely 10 (rebounds a game).”

Look, I’m glad that Ty is feeling so confident, and I’ve love for him to reach (or come close to) 20/10. But there’s a lot of “me” in his “team” right now.

Guys who looked good:
Captain Kirk was particularly sharp, hitting 8-for-10 from the field and 2-for-4 from beyond the arc. He finished with 18 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and no turnovers. The fact that he started at point and played 25 minutes while only dishing 3 dimes is a slight concern, as is the fact that he didn’t earn any free throw attempts. But it’s not all that surprising, either.

John Salmons — whose wife just gave birth to their second child — scored a team-high 19 points thanks in part to a team-high nine free throw attempts (of which he hit six). He also shot 6-for-12 from the field (plus 1-for-1 from downtown) and had 4 assists. I particularly liked the fact that Salmons was aggressive, driving hard for three layups and earning foul shots. He’s also been doing a good job making plays for his teammates over the course of the preseason.

Okay, have I mentioned my man crush on this Taj Gibson kid? He’s been giving great effort during the preseason. His stat line from last night won’t jump out at you — 31 minutes, 10 points, 5-for-6 shooting, 3 boards, 3 steals, 1 turnover, 3 fouls — but he just looks unusually seasoned for a rookie. There was one telling moment in the first quarter. Gibson, despite his lanky frame, had carved out deep post position. Brad Miller fed him a bounce pass that was partially deflected by his defender. Gibson ripped away the ball, spun around and jammed it home. It was a great moment. It showed effort, tenacity and the ability to make a play under hostile conditions. Just good stuff.

Guys who looked both good and bad:
Luol Deng played a game-high 37 minutes. That means Vinny Del Negro is no longer limiting Deng’s minutes. So he’s ready for full-time action, which is a good thing. He grabbed 7 rebounds (including 2 offensive boards) and blocked a shot. However, he scored only 10 points on 12 shots and didn’t earn a single free throw attempt. Here’s a summary of Deng’s 12 shot attempts: missed 21-foot jumper, made putback from an offensive rebound, made 19-foot jumper, missed 23-foot jumper, missed 19-foot jumper, made layup, missed 19-foot jumper, missed layup (blocked by Vince Carter), made 22-foot jumper, made 11-foot jumper, missed 19-footer, missed layup (blocked by J.J. Redick). As you can see, most of his jumpers came from about 20 feet out and he had two layups stuffed…one by J.J. Redick!

At his best, Luol was always more of a midrange shooter. He needs to be more aggressive and get closer looks. Earning some shots at the charity stripe would help too. Maybe these things will come. Maybe he’s just getting back into the groove. Maybe…

Joakim Noah did a little bit of everything last night: 8 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks. And — prepare for a shock — he even hit a jumper from about 17 feet out during the second quarter. Jo the Jump Shooter? Yeah, I doubt it too. The downside is that Noah committed 4 fouls in his 23 minutes of action, and he wasn’t much of a match for Dwight Howard. Of course, who is?

Jannero Pargo is still struggling to find his jump shot. (Think, Jannero. Where was the last place you saw it?) Pargo went 3-for-11 (0-for-4 from the Land of Three) in 28 minutes. However, he did grab 6 rebounds (an amazing feat for such a wee little man) and hand out a team-best 5 assists while committing only 1 turnover. So Pargo’s floor game was on even if his shot was off.

Brad Miller scored 15 points in only 21 minutes, thanks in part to his uncanny ability to draw fouls (he was 7-for-8 from the line). But he also fouled out in limited PT, shot only 4-for-9 from the field, and committed 3 turnovers.

Guys who looked bad:
Gibson and James Johnson played good rookie, bad rookie last night. While Gibson was doing his best to bogart Thomas’ starting spot, Johnson was slowly falling out of VDN’s rotation. He played only 11 minutes and finished with zero points (0-for-2) and 1 lonely rebound.

Guys who didn’t play:
Derrick Rose is still out with that bum ankle, and Del Negro said Rose could — gulp! — said Rose may miss the Oct. 29 opener against San Antonio: “It is possible he will not be ready for the opener against San Antonio. I hope he practices [Tuesday] but it is really day to day. I don’t want to get him out there and have him sore the next day.

Rose, however, begs to differ with his coach: “No way. I will be playing for sure. It’s been kind of crazy. I’m kind of mad, but you see a lot of things. Defensive plays, offensive plays, who is open on offensive plays and who is supposed to move over on defense. You see a lot of things not playing, but it is killing me not to be out there.”

Reasons for concern:
Rose has played only one preseason game, which means that even if he’s ready to go against the Spurs, he’s going to be rust and the team won’t be used to playing with him. In addition to Rose, Salmons and Thomas have both missed time. VDN had had to use several different starting lineups. Roles and rotations haven’t been ironed out. It’s just not an ideal situation. Speaking of non-ideal situations, the Bulls continued their meager three-point shooting, going 3-for-10 as a team last night.

They also committed a lot of fouls. The Magic went to the line 39 times, including 17 foul attempts for Howard. Fortunately for the Bulls, the Magic bonked 12 of those FTAs, otherwise the game might not have been as close as it was.

Reasons for optimism:
Chicago’s offense looked pretty good last night, especially considering they were going up against one of last season’s best defensive squads. The Bulls shot 50 percent from the field (37-for-74). They also limited their turnovers to 14 and gave up only 9 offensive boards (not bad when facing a team with Dwight Howard).

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.

They're enjoying the little things. Are you?

The Bulls improved to 5-1 in the preseason with a 94-90 home win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. To be honest, I’m not sure what to make of this game or all these wins considering that Chicago has been playing short-handed for most of the preseason. And that makes me nervous. So maybe it’s time to remember Rule #32 from Zombieland: Enjoy The Little Things.

Guys who looked good:
Friday night’s “Steppin’ It Up” award goes to Tyrus Thomas, who finished with a game-high 22 points to go along with a team-best 13 rebounds and 2 blocks in 25 minutes. His field goal percentage was outstanding (7-for-9), but I was more impressed by the fact that he did most of his work inside and was aggressive enough to earn 13 free throw attempts. Sure, he missed five of his foul shots and committed a silly offensive foul while trying to make something happen off the dribble, but he gobbled up defensive rebounds (10), scored on offensive rebounds, and his energy level was off the charts. Basically, he played the way the Bulls management, coaches and fans have been wanting him to play (consistently) for years. He certainly shut his critics up…for the night.

Jannero Pargo finally had a decent shooting game (5-for-11) despite missing all his three-point attempts (0-for-3). More importantly, he dished out a team-high 7 assists while limiting his turnovers (which have been a problem in the preseason) to only 3. Pargo even added 2 steals and 2 blocks [!!].

Guys who looked both good and bad:
Taj Gibson once again had a rock-solid game, finishing with 14 points, 6 boards, 2 blocks and a steal. He also grabbed 3 offensive rebounds earned seven free throw attempts. I note these things because offensive rebounding and free throws are usually the result of intensity, aggressiveness and effort…and Gibson has been giving the Bulls those three things throughout the preseason. I wasn’t thrilled with the shooting (5-for-12), particularly because he attempted (in my opinion) too many jumpers. He also committed 5 fouls in 24 minutes. That’s on par for a rookie, but still.

James Johnson chipped in 10 points (4-for-8), 4 rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal in his 26 minutes of PT. Plus, he committed only 2 fouls.

Guys who looked bad:
Okay, I’m officially worried about Luol Deng. Scratch that. I was worried a game or two ago. I’m very worried about Deng. His shooting continued to be ice cold (2-for-7). Most of his shot attempts were long jumpers and he made only one trip to the line. He did play a preseason-high 32 minutes and grabbed 8 rebounds (all defensive). But he was — and has been — a ghost on offense. Remember: Deng is supposed to be the primary member of the committee assigned to cover the loss of Ben Gordon’s 20 PPG.

Joakim Noah was…erratic. He committed a couple offensive fouls, turned the ball over on a three-second violation, bonked a layup, had another layup blocked by Al Jefferson, and missed a nine-foot hook shot. Noah didn’t have a huge impact on the boards either. I’m not really worried about the offense, but the Bulls need Jo to dominate the boards and protect the paint. People may think I’m crazy, but I still think Noah could be Ben Wallace 2.0. That’s what I’m hoping (and waiting) for.

Brad Miller didn’t hit a field goal (0-for-2) and finished with more turnovers (5) than assists (4). Yet, by some twist of fate, he finished with the highest plus-minus score of the game (+11). Go figure.

Guys who didn’t play:
Derrick Rose (right ankle), John Salmons (personal reasons).

Reasons for concern:
Even though Tyrus returned after missing four games, Rose was still out and Salmons had to skip the game for personal reasons. So basically, Vinny Del Negro hasn’t been able to establish any continuity with the team’s projected starters. That’s bad, because this preseason was supposed to be establish a little post-Gordon team identity. The Bulls won the rebounding battle (50-48) but gave up 14 offensive rebounds. As for the turnovers, well, when you look at the stat sheet and feel like celebrating because the team “only” coughed the ball up 19 times for “only” 14 points going the other way, you know there’s a problem. Oh, and note the 2-for-8 three-point shooting. And that was as a team.

Reasons for optimism:
In all fairness, the Bulls have been getting it done without their best player and at least one other starter.

Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.