April 03--The Bulls are without both Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson for Saturday's showdown with the Pistons, whom they trail by 1 1/2 games for the seventh seed.
Rose participated in some of Saturday's morning shootaround but Friday's MRI exam confirmed swelling on the bursa sac in his left elbow, which knocked him out of the second half of Thursday's victory over the Rockets. That game moved the Bulls to within one game of the eighth-seeded Pacers.
"Every day it's getting better, able to push off a bit more. But it's still real tender. I can't dribble," Rose said. "Every time I get hit, the vibration of getting hit aggravates the spot. . . . I've been trying to play in consistent games. It hurts (to sit out). But just gotta be smart. I'm out there playing with one hand."
Gibson returned to New York Friday for a personal matter. He headed back to Chicago on Saturday, but hasn't practiced because of his fractured rib. The Bulls used their 22nd different lineup, starting E'Twaun Moore, Jimmy Butler, Mike Dunleavy, Bobby Portis and Pau Gasol.
The Bulls have used the intentionally fouling strategy at times this season, which the Mavericks used Friday night against Andre Drummond in their victory over the Pistons. Hoiberg pointed to not using it against Dwight Howard on Thursday in Houston as an example of how the Bulls use it selectively, based on the flow of the game.
That's the approach he said the Bulls would use Saturday against Drummond.
