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What in the world are we to make of the Chicago Bulls now, one week short of the NBA playoffs? Do we believe they're the team that lost by 42 to the Sacramento Kings a month ago or the team that stopped the Miami Heat's historic 27-game winning streak? Come postseason are we to expect the Bulls that lost back-to-back games this week to completely awful Toronto and Detroit, or the team that came from 17 down Thursday night to snap the New York Knicks' 13-game winning streak?

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CHICAGO -- As he watched Thursday night's gritty 118-111 overtime win over the New York Knicks unfold from the bowels of the United Center, injured Chicago Bulls forward Taj Gibson said, he and fellow injured big man Joakim Noah got so frustrated they almost broke the television screen on which they were watching the game.

They couldn't believe they weren't out on the floor with the rest of their teammates, but they never doubted that the Bulls could find a way to win despite the fact that they still have so many guys out because of various injuries. They knew the spirit and will they play with as a group doesn't change -- no matter who is on the floor. They knew that just because the talent might not have been there, it didn't mean the heart of this squad suddenly disappeared.

Most of all, Gibson, Noah and the rest of the Bulls understood the most true fact of all when it comes to this up and down Bulls season without Derrick Rose: Just when you're about to count out the Bulls and write them off completely, that's when they will find a way to surprise everyone.

"It was a big win," Gibson said. "It seems that we don't really get any respect around the East. ... We tried to make a statement. We tried to let people know that we're still a tough team. We got a lot of injuries. A lot of people don't understand we've had a lot of injuries on this team throughout the season and we're still playing well. But with this team, you don't know what you're going to get. We lose to below-.500 teams, and we come out and beat some of the best teams around the NBA."

In many ways, the past two weeks have served as a perfect microcosm for this team as it enters the final four games of the regular season. The Bulls have beaten the Miami Heat, who went into that game on a 27-game winning streak, and the Knicks, who went into Thursday's game on a 13-game winning streak. They've also lost to the Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons and Toronto Raptors. They know they can beat any team or lose to any team on a given night, which gives them a perfect amount of confidence in games, such as Thursday's, that most people don't believe they can win.

"Honestly, there wasn't anything said about the [Knicks'] streak," Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich said. "It wasn't like, 'Oh well, they've won X amount of games in a row and we're going to stop them.' It was just focus on what we have to do, and for the most part, we did a pretty good job."

There's the key for the Bulls. When they are locked in and focused, they really can beat anyone. This notion is exemplified by the play of veteran point guard Nate Robinson. He has the rare ability to continuously make coaches furious and incredibly happy in the span of a single possession. He proved that again against the Knicks, going off for 35 points off the bench. For as much flak as Robinson takes because of some of his questionable decisions on the floor, he also plays with the type of swagger his teammates feed off.

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CHICAGO -- Let's take a quick look at how the Chicago Bulls earned a hard-fought 118-111 overtime win over the New York Knicks on Thursday night at the United Center.

How it happened: Nate Robinson had a huge game off the bench for the Bulls, scoring 35 points, and Jimmy Butler had another big game, pouring in 22 points and pulling down 14 rebounds. The energetic pair led the way for a Bulls team that overcame a 17-point deficit while still playing without Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and Derrick Rose. Given the way the Bulls have played over the last week, this is a win coach Tom Thibodeau and his team should savor as they head into the final four games of the regular season.

What it means: The Bulls win these kinds of games against high-level teams because they play together with no fear. No matter who is on the floor, no matter who is hurt, they believe they can win because Thibodeau has instilled confidence in them. Confidence is a trait that Robinson is never lacking. He always believes he can dominate a game and he always believes he can lead his team to victory. He plays with a swagger that can drive Thibodeau crazy, but it's the type of energy the Bulls desperately need down the stretch. To that point, Butler continues to improve day by day and is showing why so many people within the organization are encouraged by his success. Thibodeau clearly trusts in him more than he did earlier in the season, and he should. Butler has proven he can make a major impact against some of the best teams in the league. He has played 98 minutes over the last two games.

Hits: Rip Hamilton chipped in with 14 points, eight assists and three rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench.

Misses: Carlos Boozer had 13 points and 15 rebounds, but he and Kirk Hinrich combined to go just 6-for-22 from the field.

Stat of the night: The Knicks' 13-game winning streak is over.

What's next: The Bulls are right back at it Friday night when they face off against the Toronto Raptors.

Chicago Bulls fans eager for Nikola Mirotic to join the team that drafted him with the 24th pick in 2011 will likely have to wait until the summer of 2014, general manager Gar Forman explained.

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Chicago Bulls general manager Gar Forman admitted Thursday that Joakim Noah's plantar fasciitis in his right foot is a problem that's likely to linger into the playoffs.

"The concern now is more short-term," Forman said on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "I think this is the type of injury where we're trying to manage it and get him better where he's more comfortable.

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DEERFIELD, Ill. – It's a question posed at every Chicago Bulls pregame shootaround: Will Derrick Rose play tonight?

And every time he is asked, like he was Thursday before the Bulls play the New York Knicks later in the day, the answer is identical: "No.”

So why do the Bulls continue to go through it? Why doesn't the organization save head coach Tom Thibodeau the trouble and announce that the former MVP is done for the season? Why do they put fans through the daily waiting game, with some turning on Rose for what they seem to look at as quitting on the season?

"I think they were just being forthright,” Thibodeau said when asked why there wasn't an announcement long ago that Rose will not play this season. "That's what everyone thought. We didn't know, and we still don't know. We were just being honest.

"Obviously, you can look back and say that now, but we never felt that way. We knew it was the type of injury that takes time, so you just want to do what you feel is right and we feel like we've done that."

Adding more attention to the matter is that the red-hot Knicks roll into town with Iman Shumpert giving high-energy minutes in helping the team to a 13-game winning streak. That's the same Shumpert who also tore his ACL last April, doing it on the exact same day as Rose.

Shumpert had his surgery to repair his ACL 10 days before Rose. And he returned to action on Jan. 17 with a light test of 15 minutes against the Detroit Pistons. Shumpert has played 40 games already this season, while Rose's action comes only in practice.

"Everybody is different, and Shumpert has done a great job for them,” Thibodeau said. "The thing that Derrick has done, and this part you guys don't see, is Derrick has put a ton into his rehab. He really has. He gives you maximum effort every day. There's nothing more he could really do. Once he feels ready, he'll go. That's where it is. We feel good about our team, we do the right things we feel we have a chance against anybody.”

It's just that Rose's status hangs like a cloud over the team. How good would they be if he was eased back into action sooner? How effective could he have been in the upcoming playoffs if he was getting 15-18 minutes over the last three weeks or so?

And with so many Bulls players hit with nagging injuries late in the season, what's their motivation to return if a seemingly healthy Rose is playing it safe?

"Look, this was not unexpected,” Thibodeau said. "A player like Derrick there's going to be a lot of attention on and rightfully so. This guy has done an incredible job with his career, with this franchise, and we understand how important it is. But it would be just as important for any other player.

"When a guy has an injury like that you have to be smart about it, you have to be patient, and you have to do what you think is right.”

Earlier this week, Thibodeau essentially confirmed that Rose has been dominating at stretches during practice. So what gives? Is the coaching staff holding him back? Is Rose's confidence not where it needs to be? Is chairman Jerry Reinsdorf simply replaying all the emotions and concern he had when Michael Jordan came back from his broken foot in 1986?

Like a good offense, the Bulls have been sharing the ball on this one.

"We knew this would be a possibility all along,” Thibodeau said. "We didn't know when he would come back, other than, as I mentioned [Tuesday], Jerry made it very clear how we were going to approach it and I believe it is the right approach. That's the way we're handling it.”

Thibodeau was asked if the coaching staff is still waiting for Rose to come to them for updates on his progress.

"We've done that throughout,” Thibodeau said. "I talk to Derrick every single day and I've done that from the start of the season. He's feeling a lot better, continues to make progress. He's not quite ready, and there's nothing else you can say or do other than we want to give him all the support that he needs.

"As long as he keeps doing all the things he's doing there's nothing more that we can ask of him. He's doing everything he can. He's putting hours on hours each day into the rehab, so that's all we can do.”

So the Bulls will continue on the same course. There might be only a handful of games remaining in the regular season to get Rose at least partially up to speed before the playoffs, but nobody is saying if that will happen.

"There's no drop-dead (return) date,” Thibodeau said. "That's the thing. Whenever he's ready, he's ready. We made that clear. That's where it stands.

"Whenever he's ready. That was made clear to everybody right from the beginning.”

At least we know of one question Thibodeau will be asked after the next scheduled shootaround.

Nick Friedell enters the Bulls chat room at 2:30 CT to talk about tonight's game against the Knicks.

Submit questions here and come back for the chat.

CHICAGO -- Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng, who missed the last two games with a bruised hip, is expected to play limited minutes against the New York Knicks on Thursday night.

After Deng went through Thursday's shootaround in preparation for a matchup with the New York Knicks, coach Tom Thibodeau said, "He did everything."

"It feels good to have a few people back and just knowing we're going into (the Knicks game) strong and trying to protect our home floor, trying to get a win," Jimmy Butler said.

Marco Belinelli, who has been nursing an abdominal strain, will also be in action Thursday night, as will Richard Hamilton, who returned to action Tuesday after a long stint on the bench while nursing a bulging disc in his lower back.

Joakim Noah, who has missed nine of the past 10 games with plantar fasciitis is out. Taj Gibson (knee) and Derrick Rose (knee) are also out.

CHICAGO -- Carmelo Anthony on Thursday implored the media and fans to have patience with Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose in his return from knee surgery and the New York Knicks forward believes Rose should sit out the rest of the season.

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The college basketball season is over, but for NBA talent evaluators, the analysis is still a long way from complete. Over the next three months, NBA front-office personnel will commence the exhaustive process of vetting draft prospects, including conducting background checks, making countless phone calls to coaches around the country and, of course, watching a ton of film.

During my time in the front office with the Phoenix Suns, I always made it a point to watch film from beyond the current season, all the way back to high school and AAU if possible. I liked doing this because it gave me a clearer idea of the progression the player made from level to level, and it allowed me to track any continuous flaws that had not been corrected. One of the reasons I had such a strong opinion on Austin Rivers, for example, was because I watched him play in high school and AAU prior to his time at Duke.

Another advantage is watching the player handle adapting to different situations and expectations. How does he handle being asked to do more or less than he's used to? How does he handle playing for a new coach in a new system? How does he handle playing with more or less talent around him? These are all important questions that decisions-makers must be able to answer as they envision how potential draftees would fit on their teams next season and beyond.

Here's a look at five draft prospects who fit five teams' needs perfectly in terms of both position and style of play.

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Trey Burke | Point Guard | Michigan

NBA fit: Orlando Magic

As we near completion of Year 1 of Orlando's rebuild, the Magic have done a good job of collecting young talent of varying levels of potential. Nikola Vucevic was an absolute steal as an elite rebounder in the Dwight Howard-Andrew Bynum deal; Maurice Harkless has come on strong over the past 10 games, showing a tantalizing mix of athleticism and versatility; and Tobias Harris has taken full advantage of the playing time afforded to him since being acquired from Milwaukee. The Magic have established a culture of character, hard work and effort (necessary in a rebuild), but lack a motor for their offense, which struggles to shoot efficiently (49 percent team eFG%) and doesn't get easy scoring opportunities (23rd in corner 3-point attempts and 29th in FTA rate).

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DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau wants his injury-plagued team to focus on simply playing well together, not snapping another team's streak Thursday when they play the New York Knicks, winners of 13 straight.

"We're not worried about streaks," Thibodeau said after Wednesday's practice. "We're worried about the Knicks. They've had a great season, they've played at a very high level. They spread you out and shoot a lot of threes. They've got a great player in (Carmelo) Anthony that requires your entire team to focus in on but you can't lose sight of all the others that they have that are very talented and they can all play make, put it on the floor, they can shoot. So they're a talented team, a deep team."

The Bulls have already snapped one long winning streak this season, ending the Miami Heat's 27-game run on March 27, but guard Kirk Hinrich just wants them to get back on track after losses to the Detroit Pistons and Toronto Raptors.

"I think the satisfaction would just be to beat the New York Knicks," Hinrich said. "They're a great team. We just want to be playing better basketball."

In order to do that, slowing down Anthony, who is averaging 40.6 points in five April games, will be key.

"A guy like Carmelo, it has to be a team effort (to stop him)," Hinrich said. "He's going to get his. He's going to get his shots, he's going to get his points, you just have to try and do the best job you can on him."

Injury update: The Bulls just did a walk-through on Wednesday and it appears not much has changed on the injury front. Richard Hamilton and Marco Belinelli have responded fine to playing. Taj Gibson is still working his way back from a knee injury and figures to be out a little longer. The same goes for Joakim Noah, who could very likely miss the rest of the regular season because of plantar fasciitis in his foot. Derrick Rose's status remains unchanged.

As for Luol Deng (hip), Thibodeau hopes he will be back on the floor soon, but isn't sure if Deng will make his return Thursday night.

"He feels a little bit better, but we'll see where he is (Thursday)," Thibodeau said. "I don't want to jump the gun on anything. I just want him to be healthy."

New York Knicks center Tyson Chandler and power forward Kenyon Martin will miss Thursday's game against the Chicago Bulls, the team announced Wednesday.

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CHICAGO -- Despite playing some inconsistent basketball of late, the Chicago Bulls won’t lack for confidence when they face the streaking New York Knicks on Thursday at the United Center.

Sure the Knicks are on a 13-game winning streak, but the Bulls have already shown they know what it takes to undercut a team on a roll. Not only that, the Bulls seemingly have the Knicks’ number this season, having already defeated them three times.

Yet after a 101-98 defeat at the hands of the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday, there was no trash talk or swagger coming from the Bulls’ locker room.

“They’re a dangerous team,” guard Nate Robinson said of the Knicks. “It’s tough beating a team three times, and four times is really, really tough. They have it going right now and are feeling really good about themselves, which they should. They’re a hell of a team. We have our hands full. We have to go back to school, do our homework and be ready.”

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CHICAGO -- The big question surrounding Joakim Noah after his latest plantar fasciitis setback has been: Will he return before the regular season?

That's the wrong question.

The more important one is: Why should he return before the playoffs?

As the Bulls head into the final week of the regular season, Noah's status has become a hot topic of conversation because of his importance to the defensive system Tom Thibodeau has put into place. It's that importance that should make the decision regarding Noah's status easy for Thibodeau and company. Shut him down for the regular season, give his feet another week and a half of rest, and then bring him back for the playoffs.

The problem is that a week and a half of rest probably isn't going to do any good for his feet. He received a cortisone shot in his right foot recently and is hopeful that that will alleviate some of the pain, but he has been down this road before in regards to plantar fasciitis. Having dealt with this injury three seasons ago, Noah knows this is all about pain tolerance from here on out. He knows it all depends on how he feels on a day-to-day basis and how much he feels he'll be able to help the team without hurting himself further.

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CHICAGO -- Jimmy Butler doesn't want to lie.

He's just played 48 minutes in a hard-fought 101-98 loss to the lowly Toronto Raptors and he looks exhausted. But while his body looks beat up as he sits slouched in a chair in front of his locker, his words paint a much a cheerier picture. The idea that Butler, who dropped in a career-high 28 points and pulled down seven rebounds could be the two-guard of the Bulls future, is very appealing to the Marquette alum.

"It brings a smile to my face, obviously," Butler said. "But I try not to get too caught up in the future because it's not promised. You never know what could happen. Right now I live for the moment and I praise every moment that I'm given because it's a blessing. But knowing that they want me to be here alongside Derrick (Rose), (Luol Deng) and all these other guys, that makes me smile."

Butler's recent performances should make Tom Thibodeau and the Bulls front office smile even brighter these days. In just his second season, Butler has proven that he should at least be part of the conversation as to who should replace Rip Hamilton at the two-guard spot when he Hamilton leaves this summer. Butler came into Tuesday night's affair averaging 8.1 points and 3.7 rebounds in almost 25 minutes. It's clear to his teammates why the happy-go-lucky 23-year-old is having more success this season.

"Confidence," Hamilton said of Butler. "From a physical standpoint, you look at him (he's) 6-7, 6-8, 225, strong. Just confidence. Understanding the NBA game. It's different than being in a college (setting)."

In Hamilton's mind, the key difference for his young teammate is the fact that he has improved his shooting dramatically. Butler has improved his field goal percentage by almost six percentage points from last year to now.

"Before when he came in he used to shoot darts," Hamilton said with a laugh. "He used to shoot dart shots and I used to say, 'Yo, just get underneath the basket and just shoot high-arching shots so you can practice and get a rhythm of shooting the ball up. You jump so high you think you can jump over everybody but you're shooting darts.' So (the difference is) just understanding his shot, how he can get his shot, how to play in the NBA is different than the college game."

Butler bridged the gap by putting in the work. Coaches have repeatedly praised his work ethic over the summer and they were happy with the time he spent working on his game. Instead of just being viewed as a defensive stopper, Butler worked out to prove he was an offensive threat as well.

He wanted to take the next step in his development and it appears that he has. Is he the two-guard of the future? Only time will tell -- but he has certainly given the Bulls plenty to think about.

With Butler's emergence, the Bulls have to think long and hard as to whether they should shop Luol Deng over the summer. If the Bulls feel like Butler is a long term solution, they could conceivably trade Deng for younger, cheaper pieces and move Butler to the three position while trying to go after a two-guard next summer. They could also decide to keep Deng and Butler and form a solid defensive duo. Either way, it looks as if Butler has worked his way into a lot more playing time in the future.

So does he prefer to be the two or the three of the future?

"No," he said firmly Tuesday night. "I'm doing whatever I want to do right now. The future? Hell, tomorrow's not even promised, not to even think (about) next season. We'll just keep going right now, keep winning these games and go into the playoffs."