Bulls at Pacers
The Chicago Bulls may have assumed that with Derrick Rose back, they would be back to their customary spot atop the Central Division. The Indiana Pacers, who host the Bulls on Wednesday, will not be so easily shoved aside. The Pacers are the only unbeaten team left in the NBA after easily dispatching the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday and are holding opponents to 85.5 points per game.
Paul George is becoming every bit the superstar for Indiana that Rose once was for the Bulls and is averaging 27 points and 8.8 rebounds while playing strong defense and threatening from the 3-point line. “Paul George did everything I asked him to do and everything you can possibly ask a player to do (against the Pistons),” coach Frank Vogel said. The Bulls are one of the best defensive teams in the league and can run speed (Jimmy Butler), length (Luol Deng) or bulk (Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah) at George.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPN, CSN Chicago, FSN Indiana
ABOUT THE BULLS (1-2): It has not been as easy integrating a rusty Rose back into the system as it seemed in the preseason, when the former MVP guard looked a lot like his old self. Rose is shooting 28.8 percent from the field and is trying to get on the same page with coach Tom Thibodeau. “It’s up to us to go out there and play the games the way that (Thibodeau) wants us to play,” Rose told the team’s website. “That’s to be aggressive and play with an edge, and we’ve got to work on it every day.”
ABOUT THE PACERS (4-0): Indiana matched the franchise’s best start with Tuesday’s 99-91 triumph and George seems motivated to keep improving. “I want this moment and I’m not going to shy away from it,” he said of his superstar turn. Starting point guard George Hill missed the last two games and is day-to-day with a hip injury, and ball security remains the teams’ lone problem with an average of 19.5 turnovers. C.J. Watson filled in at point guard on Tuesday.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Pacers C Roy Hibbert blocked seven shots on Tuesday and leads the NBA with 21.
2. The Bulls are shooting just 23.2 percent from 3-point range.
3. Indiana took three of the four meetings last season, winning the two at home by an average of 7.5 points.