"When the Bulls lost to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals last season, there was an epidemic of offensive ineptitude throughout the lineup.

Though the Bulls seem to have found an antidote in shooting guard Rip Hamilton, they might be without him when they play the Heat on Sunday.

Hamilton sat out the Bulls' victory Friday against the Milwaukee Bucks at the United Center with a bruised thigh and is considered day-to-day. He was limited to some shooting at practice Saturday.

''We want all our pieces healthy, obviously,'' center Joakim Noah said. ''But we feel like we have enough to win. We're just going to go out there and compete as hard as possible.''"