Paul Beaty/AP
As the curtain rose, revealing basketball was back at the United Center on Saturday night, cheers erupted at the sight of Zach LaVine in uniform, delivering the pregame address.
After two games in street clothes and some ambiguous messaging about ‘‘management’’ for a left-knee injury that was supposed to be a non-issue this season, the relief from the Bulls’ fan base was palpable.
On the Bulls’ first possession, LaVine drove hard to the basket and dished to Nikola Vucevic, who put down a dunk to get things started.