Thibs, Noah Happy About Health to Begin New Year

After a tumultuous end to 2013, the Chicago Bulls have high hopes in 2014 and for the rest of the NBA season

Along with the first win of the New Year, the Bulls are happy about something else: being healthy for the first time in a long while.

"It’s great, great. Good to have everyone out there," Tom Thibodeau said to CSN Chicago on Thursday prior to the Bulls’ game against the Boston Celtics. "I’m looking at our team and I like the possibilities. I love our team. I like the fact we have everyone back now and we have to work. I’m excited about that."

Over the past few seasons, injuries have kept the Bulls from reaching their potential as true championship contender. But the team has never quit, backed down or stopped working hard, regardless of how bleak things looked on the outside or what happened on the court.

"We’ve just got to keep grinding, a lot of basketball left," said Joakim Noah. "I think that if we just keep grinding, keep our minds into it, it could be a hell of a year."

After being out of the playoff picture for a little over a week as a result of mounting losses in close games, the Bulls win over Boston Thursday night now has them in seventh place in the lowly Eastern Conference standings. And Noah, for one, is happy about the resiliency the team has displayed throughout their tough stretch.

“Overall I think that we’re competing,” Noah said. “We’re competing every night, and I think we just have to keep improving, keep getting better, and I think we’ll have a shot to play in the playoffs if we keep grinding. And in the playoffs anything can happen.”

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