Bulls begin long road trip with easy victory

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Everyone from general manager Gar Forman to coach Vinny Del Negro to teammates have called Brad Miller and John Salmons stabilizing forces since leaving this NBA outpost via trade last February 18.

To which Salmons responds with his typical shrug and Miller responds with his typical humor.

“Look at Joakim [Noah],” Miller said. “That guy’s out there. Obviously, you have to stabilize him, and just being halfway sane is going to do that.”

There’s nothing funny about this critical six-game trip, and the Bulls got off to a stable start with a 101-87 victory over the Kings Tuesday night at Arco Arena.

Salmons lugged a .317 shooting percentage into the game but, after receiving a nice ovation from Kings fans, sank his first three shots, scored the final nine points of the third quarter and finished with a team-high 23 points.

“It felt good to have the fans recognize what you did for their team while you were here,” Salmons said. “When I go to Philly, I still get booed.

“I saw some shots go in early. That’s always a good sign. I tried to stay aggressive after that.”

In posting a season-high in points, the Bulls lost their label as the league’s only team not to pass the century mark. They also tallied 22 fast-break points and received solid bench efforts – a problem area this young season – from Miller and Jannero Pargo, who scored 10 points in 54 seconds in the first half.

“First, Jannero came in and got us going in the first half,” Del Negro said. “John was solid throughout. Joakim was a monster, especially in the second half with some huge tip-ins. Good way to start the trip, no question.”

That would be Noah, of course, who added his seventh double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Already the league’s leading rebounder, Noah had seven offensive boards and added two blocks for good measure.

“I think he’s comfortable in what we’re doing,” Del Negro said. “I think he has confidence in what he needs to do.”