--C Aaron Gray made his season debut against Utah on Thursday. Gray had been out since the early days of training camp because of a stress fracture in his left fibula. The third-year pro seemed rusty against the Jazz. His only shot attempt was a hook that missed the rim entirely.

--F James Johnson got one of the longest runs of his rookie season in Utah on Thursday. He entered the game late in the first quarter and ended up playing 18 minutes. He didn't play badly, either, finishing with 10 points and five rebounds.

--F Luol Deng has been getting better as the season goes on. He matched a season-high with 26 points against the Jazz on Thursday. In the last three games, he has averaged 24.3 points and shot 49 percent from the field.

MEDICAL WATCH:

--G Kirk Hinrich (sprained left thumb) sat out Thursday's loss to Utah after injuring the thumb a day earlier. His status is unknown.

--F Tyrus Thomas (broken left arm) is expected to be out until early December after breaking the radius in his left forearm. This was a freak accident that occurred while Thomas did a pull up during a weightlifting session at the Berto Center. A metal plate was used to repair the break during surgery on Nov. 7.

--C Jerome James (torn right Achilles) hasn't played since early last season when he was with the Knicks. No one is counting any contributions from him, but he has vowed to get healthy and play sometime this season. He's starting to run again but needs to pass a fitness test before he'll be allowed to practice.