NP: Ben Harper, Give Till It's Gone

During last night's Bulls-Heat game, Chicago Tribune reporter Mark Caro tweeted "No idea why this would work, but I'm ready to see Kurt Thomas." NBC's coverage provides a clue as to why:

This game had an interesting twist in the Bulls offense, — when the double came to Rose he slid the ball to Joakim Noah near the free throw line. Then when the defense came at Noah he made some nifty passes to Boozer and others, leading to Noah having six assists on the night. But by the fourth quarter the Heat had adjusted and they didn’t send anyone to Noah — they dared him to beat them with a jumper or on the drive. Neither worked, and the Bulls offense struggled. It is easier to make the Bulls struggle.

Kurt Thomas can definitely hit that jumper, but then the question is whether or not he'd be too slow on defense at the other end, on account of being older than NBA Commissioner David Stern. Given how much he kept the team competitive during Noah's and Boozer's injuries, I'm a little disappointed that Thomas hasn't been allowed to contribute down the stretch.