"The Bulls have a big problem. It's a 6-9, 266-pound problem. The solution is obvious to the naked eye and probably to the blindfolded eye.

Carlos Boozer is bringing this team down.

Either Boozer is injured worse than anybody knows, or he has lost whatever he had earlier in the season.

If his turf toe is a bigger problem than he and the Bulls have been letting on, he shouldn't be playing. If he's not injured that badly, well, the Bulls have spent a lot of money for a guy who appears to be wearing weighted clown shoes.

Either way, Taj Gibson should be getting a lot more playing time. That was obvious Wednesday night in the Bulls' 86-73 victory over the Hawks in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinal.

When Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau sent Boozer back into the game in the fourth quarter, some people in the United Center booed. I know what fans offering up a communal, supportive "Boooooz!" sounds like. This wasn't that.

The boos came from fans who had seen Atlanta's Josh Smith twice block Boozer's shot in the third quarter.

Then Smith blocked his shot again in the fourth quarter, just because he could.

Here was the exchange between reporters and Boozer after the game:

"How much is your toe affecting your lift?"

"A lot.''

"Would it better if you gave it a rest?"

"No, I'd rather be out there.''

Going by what we saw in Game 2, that's not in the best interest of the Bulls. He shot 4-for-12 from the floor. He finished with eight points and 11 rebounds."