Chris Duhon has been a solid backup point guard for his entire career with the Bulls, but now that he's receiving consistent starting nods in Chicago his game has suffered tremendously. He talked about these woes and the recent coaching change with HOOPSWORLD's Joel Brigham in an exclusive interview.
With the rough time you guys have been having in close games lately, how nice was it to get a one-point win like this?
"It was good. I think our last two losses since Jim Boylan has been here have either been overtime or double overtime. It always comes down to certain plays, and tonight we were able to make some big plays."
It seems like since starting you've been hitting a bit of a cold streak. What do you think has been the reason for those shooting woes of late?
"I think it's just not going in. A lot of the shots I'm shooting are good shots. They're right there, then in and out. I guess it's just a mechanical thing I have to fix. If I just keep shooting with confidence, they're going to start to go in soon."
Everybody wants to know how Ben Gordon feels about going to the bench, but what I don't hear much of is how you feel about going into the starting lineup…
"It's not a big deal to me. I don't care if I start or come off the bench, but it seems to be working. Ben just seems to be stepping his game up to a higher level when he comes off the bench and plays well. We're winning, and that's the main focus.
It seems like either Joakim Noah OR Tyrus Thomas get big minutes and big numbers on any given night; can those two guys be successful on the floor together in your opinion?
"It's different. It all depends on the flow of the game or what style of game is going on. That's a hard question to answer because they both bring something different to the table. Like I said, it all depends on how the game is going, and I think for right now there's not going to be many times where they're in the games together."
Earlier this season the reports were pretty grim with all the losses, but now this resurgence has returned some optimism to the team and the city. Is this team going to make the playoffs this season?
"Yeah, definitely. We know we're not out of it. We still haven't hit our peak yet. We're starting to find our way, starting to find our groove, our niche again. Once we come full circle, everybody's healthy, everybody's confident, then we'll be right back in the mix."
The wonderful thing about Duhon is that while his shot may struggle, he's smart and savvy enough to make plays in other aspects of the game until he finds the stroke again. The Bulls are winning without big production from him, so any extra boost Duhon can give will only be some extra padding on the team's recent success.
