CHICAGO -- Joakim Noah is slowly transforming before everyone's eyes.

The Bulls center is making the kind of move that John Paxson and company always thought he could make when they drafted him. He's gone from being a gangly, energetic project off the bench to a bulked-up starting center with All-Star potential.

Noah proved that once again on Saturday night as he went off for 21 points and 16 rebounds during the Bulls' 93-90 win over the Bobcats.

"I'm just trying to take it one game at a time and pick my spots," Noah said. "See where I'm effective on the court. Coach gave me an opportunity, I played a lot of minutes tonight and I feel good."

It's clear that coach Vinny Del Negro has more confidence than ever in his young center.

"That's his energy. That's his effort," Del Negro said. "That's just how he plays. He's long. He's around the basket. He was tremendous tonight. Filling the lanes. Working hard. Played a ton of minutes. And just kept his energy up."

Del Negro hopes that Noah continues to grow as the season wears on.

"We need him to," Del Negro said. "He knows how important he is to our team, and controlling the paint for us and rebounding and playing his minutes. I was happy I saw him take that [step].

"He practices so much. We threw him the ball in the post tonight in the second half and [he] kind of dropped step and [did a] lefty hook & His confidence is growing a little bit, but he's putting in the work every day. He getting better and that's a good sign."

Extra work has been the key to Noah's breakout this season. Almost every single day after practice, you can find him out on the floor with assistant coach Sidney Green. The pair has spent countless hours working on Noah's post moves and there's little doubt that the time is paying off.

Noah hit a little hook shot in the second half, and he's beginning to feel more comfortable and confident down low.

"I feel like I got to be more aggressive," Noah said. "I feel like sometimes I'm on the court and I don't demand the ball or anything like that, so I feel like I've just got to be more aggressive on my duck-ins, and hopefully my teammates will find me."

Even his teammates are noticing Noah's evolution.

"Since I've been back in Chicago after the summer, I've been impressed with Jo the whole time," Bulls guard John Salmons said. "He gave us 21 points and that's like extra. It's all the other stuff he did for us. He's been one of those glue guys -- one of those guys [who] once you have him, it's hard to play without him."

Speaking of Salmons: After struggling to find his range throughout the first two weeks of the season, it seems like Salmons has finally found it once again. The Miami alum dropped 27 points, seven assists and seven rebounds against the Bobcats. He knows his own extra work in the gym is paying off.

"[I'm] just trying to keep the faith and keep working after practice, getting shots up and just trying to stay with it, not getting down," Salmons said when asked about his attitude. "And just keep trying."

The last word: Noah, on his goals for every game:

"I know I'm not going to score 21 points every night. I think that something I want to get consistent with [is] my rebounding. My defensive effort. I feel like offensively I'm just going to try to clean up the glass. And when I get opportunities from my teammates, that's when I'm going to get points."

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