DEERFIELD Ill. -- The rise of Taj Gibson isn't going to stop any time soon.

Now that Tyrus Thomas is out for four to six weeks with a fractured forearm, there's little doubt that Gibson will take the bulk of his injured teammate's minutes. He'll be in the starting lineup for the third consecutive night on Saturday, and you can be fairly certain he'll continue to do all the small things that NBA coaches love -- especially on the defensive end.

It's not often that a rookie is able to carve a niche for himself by playing defense, but that's exactly what Gibson is doing, and Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro couldn't be much happier about it.

"It's been great," Del Negro said after practice Friday. "Taj keeps working. He's out there working after practice now, and he's constant effort. He's still making some mistakes, but you can live with those because he's always working. And his energy and his effort, especially defensively is good. He's just got to continually find his spots in the offense and in transition and things. But, as he gets more confident, and gets more consistent minutes, I think that will come."

Although the average NBA fan might be surprised that Gibson, the 26th pick in this year's draft, is making an impact this year, the USC alum doesn't seem that surprised at all.

"I'm a gym rat," Gibson explained. "I have coaches that have been around the league for many years, so I just watch a lot of film. Come in here late nights and just work on my game. It's a blessing to be playing for the Chicago Bulls, and I'm taking it in stride."

After a few months in the league, the game is starting to slow down a little bit for him, as well.

"I'm starting to recognize [things] real quick now," he said. "It's all natural to me now. Just being around guys in practice, talking to Brad Miller. Just getting familiar with the plays called, play sets and defensive transitions. I'm adjusting well. It's still early in the season, but I'm looking to get even better."

Unlike most players coming out of college, Gibson realizes that the quickest way to get better and get on the floor is by improving defensively.

"Yeah, a lot of guys leave college early instead of getting the full fundamentals," Gibson noted after practice. "One thing that I miss and loved about it is just learning every day. Not having to worry about much except for going to class and learning the game of basketball. Now I'm here, I'm just learning even more and taking it in stride. Each day, I get better. Coach Vinny said work your minutes; each day you come on the court, learn something. Take it home and think about it. Every day, I do the same thing."

Future in politics for Hinrich? With the news that former NBA player Chris Dudley is running for governor in Oregon, Gibson was asked which one of his teammates he would least like to see in office.

"I would never want to see Joakim Noah in office," Gibson said with a smile. "It would be all in shambles."

As for which teammate would make the best politician, Gibson said, "I'd probably say Kirk Hinrich. He's a real good leader. Real solid. And I would be behind him 110 percent."

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