Deng ready to go - just not at full tilt

Luol Deng wants to put on a show in his hometown on Tuesday evening but not at the expense of his entire season. The exhibition against the Utah Jazz is, after all, only the second game the Chicago Bulls forward has played in six months after the shin injury that sidelined him for Britain's Eurobasket campaign this summer.

The recovery is ongoing, he admitted.

"It's not 100% but it's definitely starting to feel better with each practice," said Deng, who made his comeback against Indiana on Friday. 


"We've got to be smart, though. It's still pre-season and I've just come back. Also this game is for our team and we've got to prepare ourselves in the right way."


So don't expect Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro to push him too much. Then again, don't expect the hysterical reaction that Greg Popovich got when he held out Tony Parker in the fourth quarter when the Spurs came to Paris a few years ago.


"Luol is always one of our showcase players and we need him to play and consistent all the time," Del Negro said. "This is only our second exhibition game. He's coming back from missing a lot of last season. So we need to monitor his minutes as well as enjoying the game, play hard and play well. 


"Luol took the guys to the soccer game yesterday and they enjoyed themselves. But they know the importance of the practices we had today and the game tomorrow."


Read Kirk Hinrich's thoughts on the game here. (Fox Sports)