NEW ORLEANS -- Coach Fred Hoiberg and Jimmy Butler played with fire during the Chicago Bulls' 121-116 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night. They came out unscathed in the end, but the risk was not worth any reward, especially for a meaningless regular-season game at the end of a lost season.
Monday's game became meaningless in the standings after the Indiana Pacers knocked the Bulls out of playoff contention with a win over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday night. The Bulls declared before the game that Derrick Rose, Pau Gasol, Taj Gibson and E'Twaun Moore would be shut down for the final two games of the season.