Bulls need some competition

You’d have to say the Bulls have played fairly well in preseason so far, posting a 4-1 record with Derrick Rose playing just one game because of an ankle injury.

But preseason doesn’t mean much to begin with and the Bulls haven’t been playing the most difficult teams in the league. Minnesota, Wednesday’s opponent, seems to be angling for a couple of nice lottery picks until first-round draft choice Ricky Rubio arrives from Europe.

Besides the Timberwolves, who visit the United Center on Friday, the Bulls have split a pair of games with Milwaukee, and knocked off Indiana and Utah. The only loss was the “jet lag” game in Green Bay last weekend, two days after returning home from London.

The Bulls’ starters have looked good in three of the five games. They beat Utah, the only opponent that made the playoffs last season, without Rose and John Salmons. At the same time, Joakim Noah’s 16-point, 11-rebound first half on Tuesday happened with Bucks center Andrew Bogut in street clothes, so who really knows if that stat line suggests how much Noah has improved?

The preseason opponents are a long way from San Antonio, Boston, Miami and Cleveland – four of the first five games on the regular season schedule.

There are some positive signs, especially from rookies Taj Gibson and James Johnson, but the Bulls still have lots to prove. They should get a step up in competition next week when Orlando and Washington arrive to close out preseason.