Bulls at Celtics
THE STORY: The Chicago Bulls hope Derrick Rose returns from a one-game absence when they visit the Boston Celtics on Friday. Rose missed Wednesday’s victory over the Washington Wizards because of an aching left big toe. Chicago didn’t miss a beat without Rose as reserve John Lucas III stepped in at the point in a 78-64 victory over the Wizards. Chicago is tied with the Oklahoma City Thunder for the NBA’s top mark and is an impressive 6-2 on the road. Boston has lost back-to-back games, including Wednesday’s 90-85 home loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Point guard Rajon Rondo had 24 points against Dallas and will again be counted on heavily whether or not Rose plays. “This is his team right now until everybody else gets it going,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. “We need him to be aggressive. We need him to be a scorer and attack.” Boston is 2-2 on a five-game homestand that concludes against Chicago.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, ESPN, Comcast Sports Net (Chicago), Comcast Sports Net (Boston)
ABOUT THE BULLS (10-2): Chicago can’t fully replace Rose, but Lucas did a pretty good impression against Washington in his first career start. Lucas had a career-high 25 points to go with eight rebounds and eight assists. The 29-year-old journeyman is normally the third-string point guard but played 45-plus minutes with both Rose and C.J. Watson (elbow) sidelined. The performance showed that Lucas can be counted on a pinch and can be a valuable contributor.
ABOUT THE CELTICS (4-5): Boston was outscored 17-0 on second-chance points in the loss to the Mavericks, which occurred after Rivers criticized the team’s lack of toughness shortly before game time. The Celtics have missed the interior presence of Kendrick Perkins (traded last season), and current center Jermaine O’Neal isn’t much of a banger. In Boston’s previous game against Indiana, the Pacers had a 19-5 edge on second-chance points. The Celtics are averaging 8.4 offensive boards, second-lowest in the NBA.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. The Bulls and Celtics split four meetings last season with the home team winning each game.
2. Celtics forward Paul Pierce will play in his 971st career game, tying him with Kevin McHale for third-most games in franchise history.
3. Chicago guard Richard Hamilton (groin) has missed seven of the last eight games and his status for Friday is unclear.