2008–09 Chicago Bulls season

2008–09 Chicago Bulls season
Head coach	Vinny Del Negro
General manager	John Paxson
Owner(s)	Jerry Reinsdorf
Arena	United Center
Results
Record	41–41 (.500)
Place	Division: 2nd (Central) Conference: 7th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	First Round (lost to Celtics 3–4)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	CSN Chicago (38 games) CSN Chicago Plus (4 games) WGN America (14 games) WGN (24 games) WCIU (10 games)
Radio	WMVP
< 2007–08 2009–10 >

The 2008–09 Chicago Bulls season is the 43rd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

In the playoffs, the Bulls lost to the defending NBA champions, the Boston Celtics, in seven games in the First Round. The defending champion Celtics were also taken to a seven game series the prior season in the first round against the Atlanta Hawks. They finished with a 41–41 record for the second time in their past four seasons.

• June 26: The 2008 NBA draft took place in New York City.
• July 1: The free agency period started.

The Bulls re-signed Luol Deng to a 6-year $71 million contract on July 30, 2008. Ben Gordon signed a 1-year contract on October 2, 2008.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club team
1	1	Derrick Rose	G	United States	Memphis
2	39	Sonny Weems	G	United States	Arkansas

2008–09 Chicago Bulls roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From F 9 Deng, Luol 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1985-04-16 Duke G 7 Gordon, Ben 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1983-04-04 Connecticut C 34 Gray, Aaron 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 270 lb (122 kg) 1984-12-07 Pittsburgh G 12 Hinrich, Kirk 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1981-01-02 Kansas G 11 Hunter, Lindsey 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1970-12-03 Jackson State C 31 James, Jerome  7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 285 lb (129 kg) 1975-11-17 Florida A&M F 54 Johnson, Linton 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1980-06-13 Tulane F/C 52 Miller, Brad 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 244 lb (111 kg) 1976-04-12 Purdue G 21 Nelson, DeMarcus 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1985-11-02 Duke C 13 Noah, Joakim 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 232 lb (105 kg) 1985-02-25 Florida G 5 Roberson, Anthony 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1983-02-14 Florida G 1 Rose, Derrick 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1988-10-04 Memphis G/F 15 Salmons, John 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1979-12-12 Miami (FL) F 2 Thomas, Tim 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1977-02-26 Villanova F/C 24 Thomas, Tyrus 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1986-08-17 LSU

Head coach Vinny Del Negro Assistant coach(es) Bernie Bickerstaff Pete Myers Bob Ociepka Dave Severns Mike Wilhelm Del Harris Fred Tedeschi (trainer) Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended (DL) On assignment to D-League affiliate Injured Roster Last transaction: April 9, 2009

The Bulls were having a meager year floating under .500 and on February 18, 2009 they made their first of several trades sending Andrés Nocioni, Drew Gooden, Cedric Simmons, Michael Ruffin to the Sacramento Kings for Brad Miller and John Salmons.^[1] Then on February 19, 2009, the NBA trade deadline, the Bulls traded Larry Hughes to the New York Knicks for Tim Thomas, Jerome James, and Anthony Roberson.^[2] Later that day the Bulls made the third trade in a span of less than 24 hours sending swingman Thabo Sefolosha to the Oklahoma City Thunder for a 2009 first round pick.^[3]

The trades brought a late-season push for the Bulls, which finally clinched a playoff berth on April 10, 2009, their fourth in the last five years. Then on April 13, 2009 they clinched the 7th place in the east by beating the Detroit Pistons and remained .5 game ahead of Philadelphia 76ers for the 6th spot with one game remaining. The Bulls though lost their last game to Toronto and the 76ers beat Cleveland, who did not play most of its best players. The Bulls finished 7th even though they tied Philadelphia at 41-41. The Bulls got matched up with a Garnett-less Boston in the first round of the playoffs.

Central Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div	GP
z-Cleveland Cavaliers	66	16	.805	—	39–2	27–14	13–3	82
x-Chicago Bulls	41	41	.500	25	28–13	13–28	9–7	82
x-Detroit Pistons	39	43	.476	27	21–20	18–23	7–9	82
Indiana Pacers	36	46	.439	30	25–16	11–30	7–9	82
Milwaukee Bucks	34	48	.415	32	22–19	12–29	4–12	82

#	Eastern Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Cleveland Cavaliers	66	16	.805	—
2	y-Boston Celtics	62	20	.756	4
3	y-Orlando Magic	59	23	.720	7
4	x-Atlanta Hawks	47	35	.573	19
5	x-Miami Heat	43	39	.524	23
6	x-Philadelphia 76ers	41	41	.500	25
7	x-Chicago Bulls	41	41	.500	25
8	x-Detroit Pistons	39	43	.476	27
9	Indiana Pacers	36	46	.439	30
10	Charlotte Bobcats	35	47	.427	31
11	New Jersey Nets	34	48	.415	32
12	Milwaukee Bucks	34	48	.415	32
13	Toronto Raptors	33	49	.402	33
14	New York Knicks	32	50	.390	34
15	Washington Wizards	19	63	.232	47

2008-09 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MEM	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NOH	NYK	OKC	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	TOR	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Boston	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Charlotte	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Chicago	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Cleveland	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Dallas	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Denver	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Detroit	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	–	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Golden State	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Houston	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Indiana	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
L.A. Clippers	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
L.A. Lakers	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Memphis	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Miami	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Milwaukee	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Minnesota	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	0—0	0—0	0—0	0—0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
New Jersey	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	0—0	0—0
New Orleans	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
New York	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Oklahoma City	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	–	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Orlando	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	–	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Philadelphia	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	–	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0
Phoenix	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	–	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0
Portland	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	–	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
Sacramento	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	–	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0
San Antonio	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0—0	–	0–0	0–0	0–0
Toronto	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0	0–0
Utah	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—	0–0
Washington	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–0	—

2008–09 game log
October: 1–1 (home: 1–0; road: 0–1) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 1 October 28 Milwaukee W 108–95 Luol Deng (21) Tyrus Thomas (10) Derrick Rose (9) United Center 21,762 1–0 2 October 31 @ Boston L 80–96 Derrick Rose (18) Joakim Noah (13) Ben Gordon, Kirk Hinrich (3) TD Banknorth Garden 18,624 1–1
November: 7–8 (home: 4–2; road: 3–6) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 3 November 1 Memphis W 96–86 Derrick Rose (26) Drew Gooden (20) Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon (4) United Center 21,785 2–1 4 November 3 @ Orlando L 93–96 Drew Gooden (21) Andrés Nocioni, Luol Deng (7) Kirk Hinrich, Drew Gooden, Luol Deng (3) Amway Arena 15,606 2–2 5 November 5 @ Cleveland L 93–107 Ben Gordon (31) Drew Gooden (9) Derrick Rose (7) Quicken Loans Arena 20,562 2–3 6 November 7 Phoenix W 100–83 Ben Gordon (23) Joakim Noah (14) Ben Gordon, Derrick Rose (6) United Center 21,967 3–3 7 November 8 Cleveland L 97–106 Ben Gordon (29) Tyrus Thomas (8) Derrick Rose (9) United Center 21,965 3–4 8 November 11 Atlanta L 108–113 Derrick Rose (26) Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, Aaron Gray (10) Derrick Rose (6) United Center 21,738 3–5 9 November 13 Dallas W 98–91 Ben Gordon (35) Luol Deng, Derrick Rose (9) Derrick Rose (6) United Center 21,751 4–5 10 November 15 Indiana W 104–91 Derrick Rose (23) Andrés Nocioni (11) Derrick Rose (8) United Center 21,759 5–5 11 November 18 @ L.A. Lakers L 109–116 Derrick Rose (25) Andrés Nocioni (8) Derrick Rose (9) Staples Center 18,997 5–6 12 November 19 @ Portland L 74–116 Andrés Nocioni (13) Tyrus Thomas (7) Lindsey Hunter, Ben Gordon (3) Rose Garden 20,599 5–7 13 November 21 @ Golden State W 115–110 Larry Hughes (26) Drew Gooden (16) Derrick Rose (5) Oracle Arena 19,596 6–7 14 November 23 @ Denver L 101–114 Ben Gordon (28) Joakim Noah (9) Derrick Rose (6) Pepsi Center 16,202 6–8 15 November 24 @ Utah W 101–100 Derrick Rose (25) Tyrus Thomas (8) Derrick Rose (9) EnergySolutions Arena 19,911 7–8 16 November 26 @ San Antonio L 88–98 Ben Gordon (23) Drew Gooden (12) Derrick Rose (6) AT&T Center 17,837 7–9 17 November 30 @ Philadelphia W 103–92 Ben Gordon (21) Drew Gooden (12) Derrick Rose (10) Wachovia Center 13,561 8–9
December: 6–9 (home: 5–2; road: 1–7) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 18 December 2 Philadelphia L 95–103 (OT) Derrick Rose (24) Tyrus Thomas (13) Ben Gordon (4) United Center 20,485 8–10 19 December 3 @ Milwaukee L 90–97 Ben Gordon (22) Drew Gooden (9) Derrick Rose (9) Bradley Center 13,684 8–11 20 December 6 Washington W 117–110 Luol Deng (26) Drew Gooden (10) Derrick Rose (8) United Center 21,741 9–11 21 December 9 New York W 105–100 Drew Gooden (22) Drew Gooden (16) Derrick Rose (7) United Center 19,519 10–11 22 December 12 @ Memphis L 96–103 Ben Gordon (26) Drew Gooden (13) Derrick Rose (11) FedExForum 17,132 10–12 23 December 13 New Jersey W 113–104 Ben Gordon (29) Joakim Noah (8) Ben Gordon, Derrick Rose (6) United Center 21,751 11–12 24 December 16 @ Charlotte L 101–110 (OT) Ben Gordon (25) Tyrus Thomas, Drew Gooden (9) Derrick Rose (7) Time Warner Cable Arena 11,225 11–13 25 December 17 L.A. Clippers W 115–109 (OT) Andrés Nocioni, Ben Gordon (22) Drew Gooden (11) Derrick Rose (7) United Center 20,102 12–13 26 December 19 @ Boston L 108–126 Luol Deng (19) Aaron Gray (8) Derrick Rose (5) TD Banknorth Garden 18,624 12–14 27 December 20 Utah W 106–98 Ben Gordon (26) Joakim Noah (9) Ben Gordon, Derrick Rose, Andrés Nocioni (3) United Center 22,046 13–14 28 December 23 @ Detroit L 98–104 Larry Hughes (19) Tyrus Thomas (12) Ben Gordon (7) The Palace of Auburn Hills 22,076 13–15 29 December 26 @ Miami L 77–90 Ben Gordon (15) Aaron Gray (11) Derrick Rose (3) American Airlines Arena 19,600 13–16 30 December 27 @ Atlanta L 117–129 Ben Gordon (33) Tyrus Thomas (9) Derrick Rose (7) Philips Arena 18,031 13–17 31 December 29 @ New Jersey W 100–87 Ben Gordon (24) Andrés Nocioni (8) Derrick Rose (13) Izod Center 18,786 14–17 32 December 31 Orlando L 94–113 Joakim Noah (19) Joakim Noah (11) Thabo Sefolosha, Andrés Nocioni (4) United Center 21,861 14–18
January: 7–9 (home: 3–6; road: 4–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 33 January 2 @ Cleveland L 92–117 Ben Gordon (22) Joakim Noah (10) Ben Gordon (4) Quicken Loans Arena 20,562 14–19 34 January 3 Minnesota L 92–102 Derrick Rose (22) Aaron Gray (9) Ben Gordon (6) United Center 20,516 14–20 35 January 6 Sacramento W 99–94 Ben Gordon (24) Drew Gooden (10) Derrick Rose (8) United Center 18,060 15–20 36 January 9 Washington W 98–86 Ben Gordon (22) Drew Gooden (11) Derrick Rose (9) United Center 20,125 16–20 37 January 10 Oklahoma City L 98–109 (OT) Ben Gordon (22) Drew Gooden (12) Derrick Rose (6) United Center 20,469 16–21 38 January 12 Portland L 95–109 Drew Gooden (22) Drew Gooden (9) Derrick Rose (10) United Center 18,996 16–22 39 January 14 @ Toronto W 102–98 Derrick Rose (25) Luol Deng (14) Derrick Rose (10) Air Canada Centre 18,494 17–22 40 January 15 Cleveland W 102–93 (OT) Luol Deng (22) Luol Deng (8) Derrick Rose (6) United Center 21,297 18–22 41 January 17 San Antonio L 87–92 Ben Gordon (20) Andrés Nocioni (15) Derrick Rose (8) United Center 22,100 18–23 42 January 19 @ New York L 98–102 Luol Deng, Derrick Rose (20) Joakim Noah (18) Derrick Rose (8) Madison Square Garden 18,807 18–24 43 January 20 Atlanta L 102–105 Ben Gordon (21) Joakim Noah (11) Kirk Hinrich (8) United Center 20,389 18–25 44 January 23 Toronto L 94–114 Ben Gordon (19) Aaron Gray (7) Kirk Hinrich (7) United Center 20,886 18–26 45 January 25 @ Minnesota L 108–109 (OT) Ben Gordon (23) Joakim Noah (10) Derrick Rose (7) Target Center 16,009 18–27 46 January 28 @ L.A. Clippers W 95–75 Luol Deng (23) Tyrus Thomas (10) Ben Gordon (8) Staples Center 15,637 19–27 47 January 30 @ Sacramento W 109–88 Ben Gordon, Luol Deng (20) Tyrus Thomas (10) Derrick Rose (11) ARCO Arena 13,356 20–27 48 January 31 @ Phoenix W 122–111 Derrick Rose, Ben Gordon (26) Luol Deng (10) Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon (6) US Airways Center 18,422 21–27
February: 6–6 (home: 4–1; road: 2–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 49 February 3 @ Houston L 100–107 Luol Deng (28) Tyrus Thomas (13) Derrick Rose (7) Toyota Center 16,653 21–28 50 February 4 @ New Orleans W 107–93 Derrick Rose (21) Tyrus Thomas (10) Ben Gordon (7) New Orleans Arena 16,270 22–28 51 February 7 @ Dallas L 114–115 (OT) Ben Gordon (28) Tyrus Thomas (12) Derrick Rose (9) American Airlines Center 20,349 22–29 52 February 10 Detroit W 107–102 Ben Gordon (24) Joakim Noah (16) Kirk Hinrich (5) United Center 21,896 23–29 53 February 12 Miami L 93–95 Ben Gordon (34) Joakim Noah (11) Derrick Rose (6) United Center 21,801 23–30 54 February 18 @ Milwaukee W 113–104 Kirk Hinrich (31) Joakim Noah (9) Derrick Rose (9) Bradley Center 15,309 24–30 55 February 20 Denver W 116–99 Ben Gordon (37) Luol Deng, Tyrus Thomas (12) Kirk Hinrich (8) United Center 21,790 25–30 56 February 22 @ Indiana L 91–98 Ben Gordon (28) Joakim Noah (12) Derrick Rose (8) Conseco Fieldhouse 17,083 25–31 57 February 24 Orlando W 120–102 Derrick Rose (22) Joakim Noah (8) Derrick Rose, Brad Miller (5) United Center 21,902 26–31 58 February 25 @ New Jersey L 99–111 Ben Gordon (17) Tyrus Thomas (11) Kirk Hinrich, Derrick Rose (5) Izod Center 14,075 26–32 59 February 27 @ Washington L 90–113 John Salmons (25) Brad Miller (11) Luol Deng, John Salmons, Derrick Rose (3) Verizon Center 18,114 26–33 60 February 28 Houston W 105–102 Derrick Rose (22) Joakim Noah (15) Derrick Rose (7) United Center 22,394 27–33
March: 9–7 (home: 7–1; road: 2–6) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 61 March 3 @ Charlotte L 80–96 Ben Gordon, Tyrus Thomas (14) Tyrus Thomas (12) Derrick Rose (5) Time Warner Cable Arena 14,216 27–34 62 March 4 Golden State W 110–88 John Salmons (23) Joakim Noah (17) Derrick Rose, Kirk Hinrich (6) United Center 20,108 28–34 63 March 6 Milwaukee W 117–102 Ben Gordon (34) Joakim Noah (13) Ben Gordon (7) United Center 21,186 29–34 64 March 9 @ Miami L 127–130 (2OT) Ben Gordon (43) Joakim Noah (15) Ben Gordon, Derrick Rose, Brad Miller, Kirk Hinrich (3) American Airlines Arena 19,600 29–35 65 March 11 @ Orlando L 79–107 John Salmons (18) John Salmons (8) Derrick Rose (3) Amway Arena 17,461 29–36 66 March 13 @ Philadelphia L 101–104 Derrick Rose (20) Joakim Noah (9) Derrick Rose (6) Wachovia Center 17,563 29–37 67 March 14 New Orleans W 97–79 Ben Gordon (27) Brad Miller, Joakim Noah (9) Derrick Rose (7) United Center 22,135 30–37 68 March 17 Boston W 127–121 John Salmons (38) Brad Miller (14) Derrick Rose (8) United Center 22,107 31–37 69 March 18 @ Oklahoma City W 103–96 Derrick Rose (25) Tyrus Thomas (11) Brad Miller (5) Ford Center 19,136 32–37 70 March 21 L.A. Lakers L 109–117 John Salmons (30) Tyrus Thomas (16) Ben Gordon (6) United Center 23,011 32–38 71 March 23 @ Washington W 101–99 Ben Gordon (21) Joakim Noah (12) Derrick Rose (8) Verizon Center 15,421 33–38 72 March 24 Detroit W 99–91 Kirk Hinrich (24) Tyrus Thomas (12) Kirk Hinrich (8) United Center 20,502 34–38 73 March 26 Miami W 106–87 John Salmons (27) Tyrus Thomas (12) Derrick Rose (7) United Center 21,908 35–38 74 March 28 Indiana W 112–106 Ben Gordon (25) Derrick Rose (9) Derrick Rose (8) United Center 20,756 36–38 75 March 29 @ Toronto L 129–134 (OT) Ben Gordon (37) Brad Miller (10) Derrick Rose (9) Air Canada Centre 18,949 36–39 76 March 31 @ Indiana L 105–107 Derrick Rose (24) Derrick Rose (11) Brad Miller (8) Conseco Fieldhouse 15,687 36–40
April: 5–1 (home: 4–1; road: 1–0) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 77 April 4 New Jersey W 103–94 Ben Gordon (18) Joakim Noah (10) Derrick Rose, Kirk Hinrich (5) United Center 21,424 37–40 78 April 7 New York W 110–103 Kirk Hinrich (25) Brad Miller (12) John Salmons, Derrick Rose (6) United Center 20,764 38–40 79 April 9 Philadelphia W 113–99 Ben Gordon, Tyrus Thomas (24) Ben Gordon, Joakim Noah (7) Derrick Rose (8) United Center 20,791 39–40 80 April 11 Charlotte W 113–106 Ben Gordon (39) Joakim Noah (10) Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah (7) United Center 20,265 40–40 81 April 13 @ Detroit W 91–88 Derrick Rose (24) Joakim Noah (13) Derrick Rose (8) The Palace of Auburn Hills 22,076 41–40 82 April 15 Toronto L 98–109 Ben Gordon (23) Brad Miller (11) Derrick Rose (11) United Center 20,677 41–41
2008–09 season schedule

The Bulls-Celtics series became the first playoff series in NBA history to have 4 games go into overtime.^[4]

2009 playoff game log
First Round: 3–4 (home: 2–1; road: 1–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 April 18 @ Boston W 105–103 (OT) Derrick Rose (36) Joakim Noah (17) Derrick Rose (11) TD Banknorth Garden 18,624 1–0 2 April 20 @ Boston L 115–118 Ben Gordon (42) Brad Miller (9) Kirk Hinrich (7) TD Banknorth Garden 18,624 1–1 3 April 23 Boston L 86–107 Ben Gordon (15) Joakim Noah (10) 3 players tied (3) United Center 23,072 1–2 4 April 26 Boston W 121–118 (2OT) Derrick Rose (23) Derrick Rose (11) Derrick Rose (9) United Center 23,067 2–2 5 April 28 @ Boston L 104–106 (OT) Ben Gordon (26) Joakim Noah (17) Gordon, Rose (6) TD Banknorth Garden 18,624 2–3 6 April 30 Boston W 128–127 (3OT) John Salmons (35) Joakim Noah (15) Rose, Hinrich (7) United Center 23,430 3–3 7 May 2 @ Boston L 99–109 Ben Gordon (33) Joakim Noah (15) Ben Gordon (4) TD Banknorth Garden 18,624 3–4 Legend:   Win   Loss
2009 playoff schedule

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Source:	[5]

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Luol Deng	49	46	34.0	.448	.400	.796	6.0	1.9	1.22	0.51	14.1
Drew Gooden*	31	27	29.6	.457	.000	.866	8.6	1.4	0.84	0.45	13.1
Ben Gordon	82	76	36.6	.455	.410	.864	3.5	3.4	0.87	0.27	20.7
Aaron Gray	56	18	12.8	.485	.000	.576	3.9	0.8	0.25	0.32	3.5
Kirk Hinrich	51	4	26.3	.437	.408	.791	2.4	3.9	1.29	0.37	9.9
Larry Hughes*	30	6	26.4	.412	.392	.817	3.1	2.0	1.20	0.30	12.0
Lindsey Hunter	28	0	9.5	.329	.333	.600	0.4	1.3	0.71	0.04	2.6
Linton Johnson*	8	0	5.3	.364	.500	.000	1.0	0.3	0.13	0.00	1.1
Brad Miller*	27	0	27.6	.478	.231	.853	7.4	3.2	0.81	0.44	11.8
Demetris Nichols*	2	0	2.5	.250	.000	.000	0.0	0.5	0.00	0.00	1.0
Joakim Noah	80	55	24.2	.556	.000	.676	7.6	1.3	0.61	1.38	6.7
Andrés Nocioni*	53	2	24.1	.414	.378	.806	4.2	1.1	0.49	0.30	10.4
Anthony Roberson*	6	0	3.8	.294	.200	.000	1.2	0.2	0.00	0.00	2.0
Derrick Rose	81	80	37.0	.475	.222	.788	3.9	6.3	0.81	0.22	16.8
John Salmons*	26	21	37.7	.473	.415	.843	4.3	2.0	0.96	0.58	18.3
Thabo Sefolosha*	43	14	17.1	.434	.300	.840	2.9	1.5	0.81	0.44	4.5
Cedric Simmons*	11	0	5.5	.524	.000	.429	1.1	0.2	0.09	0.36	2.5
Tim Thomas*	18	0	14.1	.400	.442	.700	2.3	0.7	0.33	0.00	5.8
Tyrus Thomas	79	61	27.5	.451	.333	.783	6.4	1.0	1.15	1.91	10.8

*Statistics with the Chicago Bulls

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Ben Gordon	7	7	43.4	.388	.370	.875	2.9	3.0	.43	.14	24.3
John Salmons	7	7	44.7	.402	.316	.853	4.4	2.3	1.29	1.00	18.1
Derrick Rose	7	7	44.7	.492	.000	.800	6.3	6.4	.57	.71	19.7
Brad Miller	7	0	26.5	.471	.714	.792	7.9	1.3	.29	.86	10.1
Tyrus Thomas	7	7	27.9	.438	.000	.786	6.3	.86	1.00	2.6	9.6
Kirk Hinrich	7	0	30.0	.468	.394	.680	4.1	2.9	1.71	.43	12.6
Joakim Noah	7	7	38.7	.509	.000	.760	13.1	2.3	.86	2.14	10.1
Tim Thomas	2	0	7.5	.300	.250	.000	1.5	0.0	.00	.00	3.5
Aaron Gray	2	0	4.5	.000	.000	.000	0.5	0.0	.00	.00	0.0
Lindsey Hunter	6	0	4.0	.333	.333	.750	0.71	0.71	.29	.00	0.86
Anthony Roberson	1	0	4.0	.750	1.000	.000	1.0	0.0	2.0	.00	8.0
Linton Johnson	3	0	3.3	.500	.000	1.000	1.3	0.3	.00	.00	1.3
TOTAL	7	---	---	.442	.388	.793	45.6	22.0	9.14	6.71	111.1

• Derrick Rose = Rookie of the Year
• Derrick Rose won the All-Star Weekend Skills Challenge
• Derrick Rose was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team

• 4—Overtime games played in this series
• 7—Overtime periods played in this series, more than any other NBA team has played in an entire postseason.

The Bulls beat the odds and won the NBA Draft Lottery on May 20, 2008. The Bulls vaulted from the ninth spot to win the NBA Draft Lottery in Secaucus, NJ, and obtain the first pick in the June 26 NBA Draft.^[6] Chicago had a 1.7 percent chance of winning and were represented by Executive Vice President, Business Operations Steve Schanwald. The Heat had the best odds of securing the top selection and will pick second followed by the Timberwolves and Sonics.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	1	Derrick Rose	Point guard	American	University of Memphis
2	39	Sonny Weems	Shooting guard	American	University of Arkansas

Date	Acquired	From	For
June 26, 2009	Ömer Aşık	Portland Trail Blazers	Sonny Weems[7]
February 18, 2009	Brad Miller and John Salmons	Sacramento Kings	Drew Gooden, Andrés Nocioni, Michael Ruffin and Cedric Simmons[8]
February 19, 2009	Jerome James, Anthony Roberson and Tim Thomas	New York Knicks	Larry Hughes[2]
February 19, 2009	2009 First Round Draft Pick	Oklahoma City Thunder	Thabo Sefolosha[3]