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CHICAGO -- With the Chicago Bulls on the brink of a season-ending collapse, Luol Deng stepped up and showed he has more than enough ligaments to shoot with.

If you’re unfamiliar with the Tom Thibodeau Coaching Robot’s mantra, “We’ve got more than enough to win with,” you probably didn’t laugh at that joke. If you’re sick of hearing Thibodeau say those words after the soul-crushing loss of Derrick Rose and a mind-numbing three-game losing streak, you probably winced at it.

But ThibsBot doesn't lie. Or if he does, he believes it. The losing streak is over and despite another late Ankle Moment, the half-dead Bulls are still alive in their first-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers after a non-artful 77-69 win at the United Center on Tuesday night.

Just when everyone had finished their obituaries.

Deng, hampered for more than half of the season with a torn ligament in his left hand, has battled through pain to try and erase any lingering, if not misguided, notion that he’s a soft player. But it wasn't just about Deng's reputation. He wanted to play, rather than get surgery, because Deng knew this was going to be a special season. And it almost was. Now the O'Brien Trophy is out of reach, but the Bulls want to keep playing out of stubborn pride. Forget the beach, give them Philly and then Boston or Atlanta.

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CHICAGO -- The story was going as scripted.

Halfway through the first game of the mourning-after period, the Chicago Bulls were rallying behind their limping leader and providing inspiration to a city of devastated fans holding a wake for Derrick Rose's torn ACL.

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DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau dressed for the first practice of the rest of the playoffs in his regular black Adidas sweatsuit, like a mourning Ben Stiller in "The Royal Tenenbaums."

"Chas Tenenbaum" Thibodeau's get-up mirrored the mood of the franchise, the city, and most of the National Basketball Association: Funereal.

The Bulls coach, who is the best coach to be hated by about half his fanbase, was quick to remind everyone that Sunday wasn't a wake. Not for the Bulls and not for Derrick Rose's career. Don't send flowers to the Berto Center. Don't sit shiva for Rose's torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Thibodeau preaches focusing on the present, and he rejects negativity from outside sources, and his team still has a job to do.

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CHICAGO -- For the second time in two days, and the third since the All-Star break, the Chicago Bulls proved they are ready to beat more than just the dregs of the NBA.

Chicago’s 92-72 win over the fiesty Indiana Pacers on Monday night capped off a back-to-back “revenge tour” as the Bulls beat two of the eight teams that have beaten them this season. Only the Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat remain on the checklist.

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CHICAGO -- Derrick Rose's back is letting him play basketball again, and that despite reports, he's not looking to add any general manager responsibilities to his on-court workload.

Rose denied a report that claimed he asked Chicago Bulls management to push for a trade to land Los Angeles Lakers forward Pau Gasol.

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CHICAGO -- Derrick Rose returned to resounding applause Monday afternoon. He only missed the last five games, but it seems longer.

Is it my bad memory or was his last assist to Trenton Hassell?

Don't get me wrong, C.J. Watson, John Lucas III and Mike James are nice players, but even with some Voltron-like magic, those three can't combine to equal one Derrick Rose.

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CHICAGO -- In early December, a reporter wanted to get ahead of the big story and ask some Chicago Bulls about facing the Miami Heat in a playoff rematch.

This was before they had played a game. Not that it matters. Most look at the regular season, not to mention the first two rounds of the playoffs, as a warm-up act to the real playoffs.

The way the Bulls have started the season has only served to validate that line of thought.

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CHICAGO -- Score one for the little guys. Well, the pretty big little guys anyway.

The Indiana Pacers, the upstart contender from Nowheresville, didn't quite avenge their playoff defeat to the big, bad Chicago Bulls, but a 95-90 win at the United Center definitely put a little spring in their step.

Don't sleep on the guys from Naptown. They have more than enough size and an improved scoring punch since last season.

Indiana gave the Bulls their first home loss of the season, and first drew blood in a battle between the only two teams in the Central Division that can run and chew gum at the same time.

Sure, it's just the Bulls' fourth loss, but the way coach Tom Thibodeau looked after the game, you'd think Tyler Hansbrough smashed his favorite projector.

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CHICAGO -- Derrick Rose had Jeff Teague all sized up. We all know the aw-shucks attitude is for off the court. He's a predator between the lines.

So with the game there for the taking, Rose went to work. It was a sight to see.

Two between-the-leg crossovers, a hesitation dribble to freeze the point guard, and then an explosion to the hole. After he picked up the dribble, Rose carried the basketball -- though it wasn't a carry -- coasting toward the rim where Atlanta Hawks forward Josh Smith lay in wait.

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The Maurice Podoloff trophy stands sentry in the living room of his "little townhouse" near the Bulls' practice facility. Every day, on the way to the Skittles machine or out the door to the Berto Center, Derrick Rose can admire what he accomplished last season.

The trophy represents the past, which makes Rose wince, and more importantly, it's a testament to his basketball education.

"I look at it here and there," he said, when I asked if he thinks about what he accomplished last season. "I can't be caught up in it. That's just from working hard. I know if I work hard every summer, I don't have to think about it while I'm on the court. It's just going to happen."

Rose says basketball is about reaction -- "reacting here, reacting there"-- and while he talks, he starts snapping his fingers to simulate reaction. Rose is often asked if he plans his mesmerizing moves, which sent adults into childlike hysteria last season, and his answer is always the same.

"If you think too much," he said, "you're going to mess up."

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CHICAGO -- With the exception of public address announcer Tommy Edwards' formally announcing his name, over and over, as "Richard Rip Hamilton," I think we can say Rip Hamilton's transition from hated Bulls' rival to starting shooting guard/missing link was seamless.

"It was like there was no transition," Carlos Boozer said. "It fit like a glove."

Hamilton, going into his 13th season in the NBA, has played against the Glove (Gary Payton) and the Answer (Allen Iverson), and now we could steal both of those nicknames to describe his fit in with the Bulls, which return nearly the entire 62-win team from last season.

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CHICAGO -- Everyone knows Tom Thibodeau is the Roger Ebert of the NBA. Film is his passion.

During their abbreviated training camp, the Chicago Bulls had exercise bikes facing the projection screen on their practice court, all the better to multi-task while he showed a horror movie.

Thibodeau's film, footage from the team's Eastern Conference finals meltdown, was for mature audiences and it had a distinct purpose.

If the Bulls players tried to avoid thinking about the Miami Heat collapse during their extended hiatus, they couldn't escape the footage of the preening Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh as they prepared for their second season as a targeted team with sky-high expectations.

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DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Familiar sounds echoed in the Berto Center gym Friday night.

Carlos Boozer hollering, Tom Thibodeau teaching and the squeak-squeak-squeaking of fresh basketball shoes hitting the floor.

For basketball junkies, it was the sound of a season. Think Dr. Dre's long-awaited "Detox" album in high-tops.

While the confusing after-effects of the lockout and the ugliness of the Chris Paul situation resonated around the league, it was a business-like jam session on Day 1 for the Chicago Bulls, which return mostly intact from last year's 62-win team.

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CHICAGO -- Old habits die hard for Derrick Rose, who still bleeds Bulls' black and red.

Hours after chastising NBA owners at a shoe store in downtown Chicago and minutes after playing nine groups of teenagers in a surprisingly competitive series of three-on-three, Rose accidentally spoke for the team that can't let him in their gymnasium or put him on their website.

"On behalf of adidas, the Bulls, my family …" he said as he thanked the crowd at the James R. Jordan Boys & Girls Club on West Monroe Street.

That is what we call a lockout foul. Rose, a living thank-you note, can't speak to or for the Chicago Bulls right now, because of the ongoing NBA labor strife. In fact, adidas had to scrub the gym of Bulls logos and paraphernalia to film the games for their "Run with Rose" promotion.

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MIAMI -- Derrick Rose is fine.

He's finer than a physics-defying South Beach knockout.

Finer than Joakim Noah, who will be writing a check to the NBA, thanks to one angry word.

Rose is finer than the few remaining hairs on his coach Tom Thibodeau's head after two straight losses.

Rose is frustrated, sure. Who wouldn't be in his situation? But he's not going to admit to showing fatigue from a grueling season carrying the Chicago Bulls, at times, on his well-tattooed shoulders.

He hasn't lost his fast-twitch explosiveness or his rock-solid confidence. Just ask him.

"I'm fine, man," he said Monday afternoon. "Trust me. No excuses."

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