Bulls-Lakers Preview

Ten games into his NBA career, Derrick Rose knows he has a long way to go before he can be compared to Michael Jordan.

But the way the rookie has performed so far, it's hard not to draw the comparisons to Jordan's arrival in Chicago for the 1984-85 season.

On Tuesday night, Rose and the Chicago Bulls open a seven-game road trip as they face the Los Angeles Lakers and the player most often compared to Jordan -- Kobe Bryant.

In Saturday's 104-91 win over Indiana, Rose led Chicago with 23 points as he became the first Bulls rookie since Jordan to score in double figures in his first 10 games.

"I didn't even know that to tell you the truth," said Rose, who has four 20-plus-point games. "I'm not even near him right now. Hopefully I will be, but I'm too far way. For me to do that is nice. I'm worried about winning right now."

Chicago (5-5) won its second straight as Rose hit 3-of-5 shots from 3-point range. He had made only 2-of-9 from beyond the arc in his first nine games.

"They are giving it to me. I'd be a fool not to shoot it," said Rose, who added eight assists, four rebounds and three steals.

If Rose can keep up his current pace of 18.9 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game, he would become the first rookie to average at least 18.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists since LeBron James posted 20.9, 5.5 and 5.9, respectively, in 2003-04.

With Kirk Hinrich out possibly three months with a thumb injury, Ben Gordon is averaging 25.5 points in his last four games -- all starts. Gordon, though, has scored 12.5 points per game on 37.3 percent shooting (19-for-51) in four lifetime road games against the Lakers.

Andres Nocioni had his first double-double of the season on Saturday with 20 points and 11 rebounds. He hit six 3-pointers and posted his first career 30-point game in an 82-72 loss at the Lakers on Nov. 19, 2006.

While Chicago looks for a win to open its western swing, Los Angeles (7-1) will try to rebound from its first loss of the season.

After holding opponents to a league-low 86.7 points per game and 40.2 percent shooting through seven games, Los Angeles (7-1) fell to Detroit 106-95 on Friday when the Pistons shot 50.7 percent and made 7-of-16 from 3-point range.

"They're one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference, obviously," said Bryant, who scored 29 points but missed 18 of 30 shots. "And they caught us on a night when they were hot as a pistol and we were pretty cold."

Despite having Bryant held to 36 points in his last two home games against Chicago, Los Angeles has won both games by limiting the Bulls to an average of 75.0 points and 34.3 percent shooting. Bryant did have a 43-point game on Nov. 20, 2005, but the Bulls won 96-93 -- their last win at Los Angeles.

Pau Gasol, whom the Bulls nearly acquired before last season's trade deadline, has three consecutive double-doubles against Chicago, averaging 16.3 points and 11.3 rebounds.

After leading Chicago to six NBA championships in nine seasons from 1989-98, Lakers coach Phil Jackson is 9-5 against his former team, including 5-2 in Los Angeles.