''Right now, I'm just waiting for [trainer] Fred [Tedeschi] and [the medical staff] to clear me.''

When that happens is anyone's guess. Rose talked optimistically about returning soon, but he also revealed that he's taking stronger medicine and was given a protective walking boot Friday.

''The problem is with a tendon that wraps around a bone in the ankle,'' Rose said. ''It hurts a bit when I jump.''

With the regular-season opener against the Spurs nearly three weeks away, the Bulls can afford to be cautious. Even if he makes a dramatic improvement the next couple of days, it's unlikely Rose would play Tuesday, when the Bulls face the Bucks at the United Center, or Wednesday at Minnesota.

There's an outside chance he might be ready Friday, when the Bulls host Minnesota at the UC, but that would require dramatic improvement the next few days.

Even though the games are meaningless, sitting has Rose frustrated.

''In the preseason,'' Rose said, ''that's when you find out about the things you worked on in the summer. I worked on my jumper and wanted to see how it looked in the preseason games.''

Rose was hurt in the second half of the first preseason game Oct. 2 against Indiana. He limped around but remained in the game.

''I just wanted to win,'' he said of why he stayed in the game. ''I knew it was something significant. After the game, it started hurting, and I could barely walk that night.''

As for the game, the Bulls (2-1) looked a bit sluggish and out of sorts for much of it, particularly on the offensive end, where they were 24-for-60 (40 percent) from the field and committed 27 turnovers.

''I thought we were flat; I thought they outworked us,'' Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro said. ''They were just sharper than we were.''

When asked if the sluggish play could be attributed to the recent return from London, Del Negro said: ''The game's scheduled. You're a pro player; you're paid to play. That's the way it is. I don't make an excuse for that. Did it have an effect? Maybe, maybe it didn't. The game was at 7:30, and we didn't show up and play hard enough.''

NOTES: The replacement officials weren't an issue in the Bulls' first two games, but that wasn't the case Saturday. Neither side was happy with the way the game was officiated -- too many whistles, too many ticky-tack fouls -- and players and coaches from both teams expressed their displeasure.

- Tyrus Thomas (hip) didn't play for a second straight game, but he did practice Friday and could be ready Tuesday or Wednesday. Rookie James Johnson was kneed in his right shin late in the game and limped off but said he should be OK.

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