Team officials expected a 12-week absence. But Hinrich, who was injured Nov. 7, practiced with contact Sunday and beat even his most recent estimate to return by two games.

"I was able to mix it up in practice and just have a lot more confidence in it," Hinrich said. "The hand specialist gave it the OK. (Team physician Brian) Cole gave it the OK. I figured if I could give something, no reason to put it off."

Doctors gave coach Vinny Del Negro a limit of 15 to 20 minutes, and Hinrich, who missed 31 games, finished with four points and three assists in 21 minutes. Del Negro welcomed Hinrich's return, particularly for his defense.

"He's going to pick up guys full-court," Del Negro said before the game. "He's on the ball. He's a good pick-and-roll defender. He can guard point and shooting guards and some small forwards. So he gives you versatility and experience. Those are valuable things."

Despite having never suffered a major injury, Hinrich shrugged off a question about clearing mental hurdles during his return.

"Not playing in a game for nine weeks is tough because there's a rhythm, and games are different than practices," Hinrich said. "But I'll block it out."

The Bulls kept six guards active and placed Cedric Simmons on the inactive list with Michael Ruffin, who has been hurt all season.

Deng for the defense: Luol Deng offered an interesting critique of the Bulls' woeful defense.

"The help side is not there, and we don't really talk much on defense," Deng said. "We've got to eliminate layups and make teams beat us with outside shots and contest those. Compared to what our defense used to be, it's definitely not close."

The Bulls rank 25th in allowing 102.7 points per game and 20th in allowing 45.6 percent shooting.

"I don't scream at everybody," Deng said. "I try to grab guys on the side and talk to them. Sometimes you can be a leader that way. But a lot of us are kind of similar in that way. We don't have somebody who's out there screaming and yelling at everybody."