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- Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau is hoping forward Luol Deng (sore right hamstring) will return shortly. Deng will miss his fifth straight game. While Deng’s been out, Jimmy Butler‘s done well. “Jimmy’s played well when he’s played. We expect that from everybody on this team,” Thibodeau said. “Everybody who is on the roster has to stay ready and when called upon, get the job done.”
- Deng and Joakim Noah were both named All-Stars on Friday. Thibodeau is pleased with that, but hoped that Carlos Boozer would be named, too. “It’s unfortunate that there’s a limited amount of spots and inevitably people that deserve are left off, but I think all three guys are very deserving,” Thibodeau said.
- During the Washington Wizards’ recent hot streak (six wins in nine games), coach Randy Wittman has noticed some positive trends. “Not a lot of standing around, we’re attacking,” Wittman said. “We’re shooting the ball as well as we’ve shot it all year.”
- On Friday, John Wall started for the first time this season. “He’s still got a ways to go. There’s still a lot of progress that can be made in his conditioning that can only happen through playing games,” Wittman said.
–Rich Dubroff
