Coach Vinny Del Negro used Thomas as his sixth man, and Thomas blocked Rodney Stuckey's shot near the first-quarter buzzer. He also had a dunk blocked by Jason Maxiell and then practically tackled Allen Iverson chasing the ensuing loose ball.

"I felt a little sluggish, but once I got my legs under me I just tried to play hard,"said Thomas, who finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds.

Familiar face: With one of his sons sitting next to him in the locker room and plenty of hugs from old teammates on the court, Lindsey Hunter looked at home. And the former Piston, by some accounts, was supposed to be here, where he spent 12 seasons over two stints that included last season.

Instead, general manager Joe Dumars and new coach Michael Curry went another direction.

"Those were my intentions," Hunter said of re-signing. "But things happen. You can ask the powers that be why. I don't have any hard feelings. I've been blessed to play as long as I have. I've been on other teams before, so I know how it goes."

Hunter won a title in 2004 with current Pistons Tayshaun Prince, Richard Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace and said those bonds last. Now, his job has changed.

"Just helping the young guys with information and any insight I can give them," he said. "It's a good group of young guys. I enjoy doing it."

Layups: Wednesday marks the one-year anniversary of Scott Skiles' firing. The Bulls are 37-48 since that day, with Pete Myers going 0-1 as interim coach, Jim Boylan at 24-32 before his dismissal and Del Negro at 13-15 . ... The Bulls boarded their bus for the morning shoot-around before Del Negro canceled it because of weather concerns. "I just didn't think it was smart to sit on a bus for a long time and come to a cold arena," Del Negro said. Instead, the Bulls staged a walk-through in a hotel ballroom.

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Big number: 11

Starting lineups Vinny Del Negro has used in the Bulls' 28 games. Citing a matchup with Rasheed Wallace, Del Negro replaced Aaron Gray with Joakim Noah at center. Wallace finished with 11 points on 5-for-14 shooting.