Thomas then went out and proved his mouth isn't the only thing that's big about him. In another active performance, the 6-9 Thomas delivered 16 points, 10 rebounds, two blocks and two steals.

Don't look now, but Thomas is averaging 11.7 points, seven rebounds, 1.8 steals and 1.8 blocks in his last nine games. Dare it be said that the third-year forward finally is flashing some consistency as an NBA starter?

"Tyrus has been pretty consistent and active," coach Vinny Del Negro said. "He has played well and given us some athleticism on the front line."

Thomas' development comes at a time the Bulls are straddling the line between developing young players and trying to creep into the playoff picture. With their second straight victory over a bottom-feeder team, the Bulls remain one game behind the Bucks for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.

More games against a depleted and, for three quarters, seemingly disinterested Wizards team would help.

Gordon's 22 points led the Bulls, who also got Drew Gooden's second straight double-double since returning from a sprained ankle and 17 points off the bench from Larry Hughes. Gooden finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Nick Young's 28 points off the bench paced Washington.

The Bulls assisted on 29 of 38 field goals and shot 47.4 percent from beyond the arc while making nine three-pointers.

The Bulls came out aggressively against a truly dismal Wizards team and led 52-34 at halftime.

This being the Bulls, they let matters get interesting.

The Wizards pulled to within 89-82 on Antawn Jamison's fast-break layup with just less than three minutes remaining. But Gordon barely beat the shot clock with a driving layup at the 2-minute-24-second mark, pushing the lead back to nine.

After Jamison split a pair of free throws and Caron Butler blocked Gordon's drive at the other end, Thomas spectacularly blocked a Butler drive to jazz the crowd. When Gooden put back a Gordon miss at the other end, the Bulls were back in business with a 10-point lead.

"I just want to contribute and play more consistently," Thomas said. "I feel I'm playing pretty well. But it's all about us getting wins."

After a brutal shooting start that bottomed with his infamous 2-for-17 performance on Oct. 31 in Boston, Thomas quietly shot 50.6 percent in December.

While his shooting percentage hasn't maintained that level thus far in January, his overall numbers this month are running strong, just like his mouth with friendly dissing of his teammates.

kcjohnson@tribune.com