Hawks Vs. Bulls: Derrick Rose Returns, Atlanta Falls Again

Atlanta Hawks forward Tracy McGrady met with management following his outburst Saturday night over his lack of playing time in a loss to Portland. McGrady reportedly sat down with Hawks coach Larry Drew and general manager Rick Sund to discuss the situation. Both sides emerged from the meeting vowing to move on.

"We talked. Players get frustrated. I was frustrated. We talked and ironed things out. Now, we move on."

McGrady played just under 22 minutes in Atlanta's loss on Monday to the Chicago Bulls. He finished with six points, five rebounds and three assists and the Hawks were +10 while he was on the floor. Atlanta played the game without regular starting small forward Marvin Williams but it was Willie Green and not McGrady that was inserted into the starting lineup.

Frustration is mounting for the Hawks who have lost seven of their last 10 games and with injuries mounting, they can ill afford any off the court distractions. At the same time, it is important for Larry Drew to outline, particularly to his veteran players, what their roles are going forward.

For more on Tracy McGrady and the Atlanta Hawks head on over to Peachtree Hoops. For more news and analysis from around the NBA check out SB Nation's NBA Basketball page.

Joe Johnson left the game in the third quarter of the Atlanta Hawks 90-79 loss to the Chicago Bulls when tendinitis became an issue in his left knee. The team knew about Johnson's knee prior to the game and he wore a soft brace and expected everything to be fine. Before Johnson left the game in the third quarter he had 12 points. Now according to the Hawks, Johnson is doubtful to play against the New York Knicks on Wednesday.

With the Hawks struggling as they have ben by losing seven of their last 10 games, the last thing they need is for their leading scorer to miss significant time. With the All-Star game coming up this weekend it would be an ideal time for Johnson to rest his knee, but he did make the Eastern Conference squad so the rest that he could be getting may not be there if Johnson ends up participating in All-Star weekend.

With Johnson likely out on Wednesday against the Knicks this could leas to more playing time Willie Green or even possibly to the disgruntled Tracy McGrady.

For more on the Atlanta Hawks go visit Peachtree Hoops.

The Atlanta Hawks were unable to come back from an 18-point halftime deficit as the sharpshooting of Jannero Pargo helped close the lead to just 5 points late in the fourth quarter before ultimately losing 90-82 to the Chicago Bulls.

Derrick Rose made his triumphant return to the Bulls lineup by scoring 23 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds on Presidents Day in the United Center. The Bulls were dominant on the boards as Joakim Noah led all players with 16 rebounds along with 5 points. Carlos Boozer also chipped in with 16 points and 5 rebounds.

As we mentioned Pargo earlier, the combo guard came off the bench to lead the Hawks in scoring with 19 points to go along with 5 rebounds. Josh Smith had another strong all-around game with 17 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks. However, Smith struggled mightily with his shot going 7-of-21 from the field.

Joe Johnson also struggled and was held out of the game for the remainder of the fourth quarter for undisclosed reasons. Johnson finished with 12 points in 26 minutes.

For more on this game Hawks fans should visit Peachtree Hoops and Bulls fans should check out Blog A Bull. For more news and analysis from around the NBA head on over to SB Nation's NBA Basketball page.

Derrick Rose has come back into the Chicago Bulls lineup without missing a beat as his 14 points and 3 assists have given his hometown team a 55-37 halftime lead over the Atlanta Hawks at the United Center.

The Hawks have simply been pummeled on the glass thus far in this game as the Bulls have out-rebounded Larry Drew's club 30-13 in thirty minutes of play. Joakim Noah's 11 rebounds is more than the entire starting lineup for the Hawks.

Josh Smith has been the only bright spot for the Hawks, as he's filled the stat sheet with 10 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals in 22 minutes of action. Jannero Pargo has come off the bench to give his team a spark as his 7 points in just 8 minutes of action has been the only other sign of life for the Hawks.

A loss against the Bulls would be 4 losses in the last 5 games for Larry Drew, as Atlanta has missed the presence of Al Horford noticeably in recent games.

For more on this game Hawks fans should visit Peachtree Hoops and Bulls fans should check out Blog A Bull. For more news and analysis from around the NBA head on over to SB Nation's NBA Basketball page.

The Atlanta Hawks will be greeted by a familiar face they probably would've rather not seen. Derrick Rose has returned to the lineup for the Chicago Bulls on Monday afternoon after missing five consecutive games with lower back spasms. Per Aggrey Sam of CSN Chicago, head coach Tom Thibodeau said Rose had no problems on Sunday:

"He went through practice [Sunday] and he didn’t have any problems," Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau said before the game. "He’s been cleared by [Bulls trainer] Fred [Tedeschi]."

Thibodeau will have to manage his rotation of point guards accordingly as Rose’s backup, C.J. Watson, missed Monday’s game due to a concussion after getting hit in the head by New Jersey’s Deron Williams during Saturday’s loss to the Nets. Expect John Lucas and Mike James to handle the backup point guard duties.

For more on this game Hawks fans should visit Peachtree Hoops and Bulls fans should check out Blog A Bull. For more news and analysis from around the NBA head on over to SB Nation's NBA Basketball page.

With Marvin Williams missing Monday afternoon's game against the Chicago Bulls to attend a funeral in Seattle, the Atlanta Hawks will insert Willie Green into the starting line-up:

It will be Willie Green in the starting lineup this afternoon for Marvin Williams.#Hawks

— AT - HawksPRGuy (@HawksPRGuy) February 20, 2012

Green, a 6'4 200 shooting guard, has been an offensive spark-plug off the bench for Atlanta this season, averaging 7.4 points on 46% shooting in 16 minutes a game.

He's too small to replace Williams at the small forward position, so Joe Johnson, at 6'8 220, will likely slide down from the shooting guard position to create room for Green in the starting line-up.

Williams' defense and athleticism at 6'9 245 would have been useful to match-up with Chicago Bulls SF Luol Deng, set to make his first All-Star Game this season, especially since Deng will have a bigger role in Chicago's offense with Derrick Rose questionable to play on Monday.

According to a report by WSB's Zach Klein, the Atlanta Hawks are expected to sign center Erick Dampier to a second 10-day contract.

Nothing is official, but #hawks expected announce later C Erick Dampier will sign another 10-day contract

— Zach Klein (@ZachKleinWSB) February 20, 2012

The news isn't terribly surprising given the Hawks current center situation. Al Horford is expected out for at least the remainder of the regular season and Jason Collins has a torn elbow ligament that will keep him out of action for the next 2-4 weeks.

Zaza Pachulia is the new starting center but the Hawks are extremely thin behind him with 6-foot-8 Ivan Johnson getting most of the minutes as the backup. Dampier was signed to add depth and some size to the front court. He appeared in four games with the Hawks playing 26 minutes.

For more on Erick Dampier and the Atlanta Hawks head on over to Peachtree Hoops. For more news and analysis from around the NBA check out SB Nation's NBA Basketball page.