Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times heard from Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau that Joakim Noah might require surgery on his right foot this summer but will opt for rehab as his first option. Cowley also mentions that Chicago will likely have to find a way to re-tool their bench with several one-year deals again, as Thibodeau said that the market will dictate whether or not they'll be able to carry over several of their key role players - namely Nate Robinson, Marco Belinelli, and Nazr Mohammed - into next season. Here's more out of the Eastern Conference tonight: 

• Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe writes that even though Paul Pierce's future in Boston is yet to be determined, one source says that Pierce's family is already preparing for possible relocation while anticipating that the Celtics will look to trade him or complete a buyout this summer. 
• Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel opines that the Bucks could be looking for backcourt help in the upcoming draft. 
• Former Pittsburgh center Steven Adams would be ecstatic if he wound up with the Wizards, according to J. Michael of CSN Washington. While it isn't likely that Washington would use their lottery pick on Adams, it seems sensible that they'd target the 7-footer with one of their second round picks if he was still on the draft board. 
• Michael-Carter Williams would relish an opportunity with the 76ers if they drafted him, notes Keith Pompey of Philly.com. 
• Mary Schmitt Boyer of The Plain Dealer observes that Greg Oden has been looking great in his workouts as he targets an eventual return to the NBA. As we've heard before, Oden has been linked to a handful of Eastern Conference teams, especially the Cavaliers. 

A few Monday odds and ends from around the Association:

• North Carolina junior Reggie Bullock is "leaning strongly" toward going pro, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Bullock, who is ranked 35th on Jonathan Givony's big board at DraftExpress.com, is expected to finalize his decision today, according to Wojnarowski.
• The Nuggets team that beat the Trail Blazers in Denver last night may serve as a blueprint for the Blazers' rebuilding process, writes Joe Freeman of the Oregonian.
• Bulls big man Joakim Noah will be represented by Bill Duffy and BDA Management going forward, the agency announced today on its website. As our agency database shows, Steve Nash, Rajon Rondo, and Goran Dragic are among BDA's other NBA clients.
• In other agency news, Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal reports that Jay-Z Roc Nation Sports won't work with any other agencies besides CAA. Roc Nation will hire established agents for multiple sports and will have its own employees, including Jay-Z, certified, Mullen adds (Twitter links).
• Dirk Nowitzki scored the 25,000th point of his NBA career last night, and intends to "be around" long enough to make a run at 30,000, according to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News.
• Although it seems as if Doug Collins will coach his last games for the Sixers this week, many of his players would like to see him back next season, as Lang Greene of HoopsWorld details.

There aren't very many games left in the regular season, and the playoff picture in both conferences could look drastically different by mid-April with plenty of teams close together in the standings as of today. While it's not usual for us to focus on injuries, we have a few significant notes worth mentioning tonight:

• Pistons rookie big man Andre Drummond could be close to returning after a 21-game absence, says David Mayo of MLive. Although the Pistons aren't in the playoff race in the Eastern Conference, a few more regular season games couldn't hurt the former UConn product's development if healthy. 
• Clippers guard Chauncey Billups is still day-to-day with a groin strain but could return on Tuesday against the Mavericks, writes Arash Markazi of ESPN Los Angeles. 
• Mike Bresnahan of the LA Times tweets that Lakers forward Antawn Jamison has ligament damage in his right wrist. Although he'll try to play through it, Jamison probably faces surgery in the offseason. 
• According to Ken Berger of CBS Sports (via Twitter), the Grizzlies have announced that center Marc Gasol will be out indefinitely after re-aggravating an abdominal tear last night against the Hornets. Though they are ahead of the sixth place Warriors by a comfortable margin in the standings, Memphis is separated from the third place Nuggets by one game and the fourth place Clippers by just half a game. 
• Joakim Noah will sit both of the Bulls' games this weekend as he continues to deal with plantar fasciitis in his right foot, says Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago. The team is currently one game behind the fifth-place Hawks and a half game ahead of the Celtics.   
• Greg Payne of ESPN Boston says that both Courtney Lee and Kevin Garnett are individually recovering from sprained left ankles. There doesn't appear to be a sense that those injuries are expected to keep either out for an extended period of time, but with just 14 games left and Boston currently on a three-game slide, missing two key rotation players can't necessarily help. 
• Knicks center Tyson Chandler has already missed six straight games due to a neck strain, and is still considered day-to-day (Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York reports). New York still remains atop the Atlantic Division, and while they are only one game behind the Pacers for second place in the East, the fourth place Nets aren't too far behind in their rear view mirror (1.5 games). 

Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld has a new column examining which teams have a chance to be title contenders five seasons from now, taking into account possible moves in free agency and the ages of the teams' core players.

• Brigham believes the Thunder still have the brightest future, given that Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and Serge Ibaka will all be under 30 in five seasons.
• LeBron James' free agency will play a major role in determining the next title contender, Brigham writes. The health and effectiveness of Dwyane Wade will determine whether James stays with the Heat, but the Cavaliers and Lakers are also possible destinations.
• On that note, Brigham writes that, although Kyrie Irving is blossoming into a superstar, the Cavs will not be a contender unless James signs in Cleveland.
• The Bulls will still be contenders if Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah stay healthy, Brigham writes. He also notes that Nikola Mirotic will have come over to the NBA by then.
• The trade for Thomas Robinson added another young piece to the James Harden/Jeremy Lin core the Rockets have built, Brigham writes. Additionally, the team is still well under the cap and can add another high-level player via free agency.
• Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge give the Blazers a solid core to build around, writes Brigham.
• Brigham writes that there will be uncertainty every year for the next five as to whether Chris Paul will still be with the Clippers.
• Even if Stephen Curry's ankles don't hold up, Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes give the Warriors a good young core, Brigham says.
• Brigham writes that the Pacers have excellent cornerstone players in Roy Hibbert and Paul George.

The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Thursday night:

• Rudy Gay is turning to his friends around the NBA for support as trade rumors swirl, writes Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
• Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News writes that Carmelo Anthony's recent fight with Kevin Garnett brings into question Knicks owner James Dolan's decision to build the roster around him.
• K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune writes that Richard Hamilton is starting to realize that his career is coming to a close.
• Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times praises the recent play of Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer for the Bulls.
• A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com writes that Celtics rookie Jared Sullinger is showing an increased aggressiveness in recent weeks.
• Jodie Valade of the Plain Dealer reports that former Cavs center Zydrunas Ilgauskas is mentoring the team's two young bigs, Tyler Zeller and Tristan Thompson.
• Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel is impressed with the job interim head coach Jim Boylan has done for the Bucks since replacing Scott Skiles.
• Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes that Gerald Henderson understands that his primary role with the Bobcats is three-point shooting.

Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune recently reported that Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio is scheduled to visit with his surgeon on Monday and hopes to be cleared for contact practice by the time the team concludes its road trip on Wednesday night. While GM David Kahn hasn't put a timetable on Rubio's return, Zgoda writes that it doesn't appear too far off based on the vigorous workouts he's seen the young guard participate in recently. Earlier this month, owner Glen Taylor said he expected Rubio to be cleared by mid-December. With that aside, here is where you'll find more of tonight's odds and ends: 

• Leandro Barbosa has thrived as a scorer for the Celtics in limited minutes, says A. Sherrod Blakeley of CSNNE.com. 
• Scott Powers of ESPN Chicago takes a look at how Joakim Noah's numbers currently stack up against the Eastern Conference's most productive centers at this point. Without a doubt though, Powers writes, Noah is having his best season yet since being drafted by the Bulls in 2007. 
• Paul Coro of AZ Central calls P.J. Tucker the Suns' best find since Goran Dragic. With defenses helping off in addition to two straight games with double figure scoring (11 and 15 points respectively), Tucker has begun to shed the label that he's an offensive liability. 
• Keith Schlosser or Ridiculous Upside says that Troy Hudson can use his opportunity in the D-League to garner attention from NBA teams the same way Mike James did last year to earn an opportunity with the Bulls. 
• Jon Marks of Sheridan Hoops examines how Kevin Martin has seamlessly accepted his role as a complementary player on a Thunder team which Martin believes is on a "championship level."

As training camps are underway, injuries have begun to pop up throughout the league. Here are a few:

• Lakers forward Jordan Hill has a herniated disc in his back. He'll be re-evaluated later this week, according to a tweet from the Orange County Register's Kevin Ding. 
• New Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry will sit at least another week as he rehabilitates a strained abductor muscle in his left leg, writes The Toronto Sun's Ryan Wolstat.  
• After missing practice for the third straight day on Monday for personal reasons, Joakim Noah's status for the Bulls preseason game against Memphis is uncertain, writes ESPNChicago.com's Nick Friedell. 
• After having offseason surgery on his back, Heat forward Mike Miller expects to experience playing time issues throughout the season, writes the South Florida Sun-Sentinel's Ira Winderman. 
• Hawks big man Anthony Tolliver suffered a scratched cornea in his team's exhibition game on Sunday against the Heat, writes AJC.com's Chris Vivlamore. Tolliver expects to be out a few days. 

The U.S. squad for the 2012 Olympics has been hit hard by injuries, but Team USA isn't the only country that will see NBA players miss the London games. Already facing concerns over Tony Parker's health, France will be without Joakim Noah this summer, the Bulls big man told L'Equipe (French link). K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune confirms the news, noting that Noah will miss the Olympics to rest and rehab the ankle he sprained in the playoffs.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA on Independence Day....

• It appears the Cavaliers' rumored agreement with undrafted rookie Kevin Jones isn't quite a done deal. Bob Finnan of the News-Herald reports that, while Jones will be on the Cavs' summer league roster, a more permanent contract is no sure thing yet.
• The Pistons don't have a ton of room for free agent signings, but president Joe Dumars may not be done exploring the trade market, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.
• Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun believes that Goran Dragic or Kyle Lowry, rather than Jeremy Lin, will be the Raptors' next target if the team misses out on Steve Nash (Twitter link).
• In examining Eric Gordon's max offer sheet with the Suns, SI.com's Zach Lowe explains the benefits of "doing nothing."

In case you missed it amidst tonight's flurry of free agent rumors, the Bulls are making Kirk Hinrich their top free agent target, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Johnson has more in a full report, adding that Hinrich will command most, if not all, of the team's $3MM mini mid-level exception. Hinrich may not be altogether exciting for Bulls fans, but they haven't stopped their pursuit of others, including Brandon Roy, and GM Gar Forman left open the possibility the team could match the Rockets' backloaded offer for Omer Asik, which will be officially tendered on July 11th. "I'm not going to talk about any type of negotiation or anything contractually until we see something," the GM said. "We've made it clear we value Omer and it's been our goal that Omer would stay with the Bulls." Johnson has more out of Chicago, and we've got the highlights here:

• Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau was in Los Angeles to meet with Asik last weekend, but the team's proposal of a four-year deal didn't include annual salaries on par with the $8.3MM per year over three seasons that Houston is set to offer, Johnson reports. 
• Johnson lays out three possible courses of action regarding Asik: The Bulls could try to trade starting center Joakim Noah before the deadline to match Asik's offer or pursue a sign-and-trade with the Rockets. They could also try to trade either Noah or Asik after matching the offer.
• Thibodeau has spoken with Brandon Roy by phone. The team has contacted Derek Fisher's agent and have kept an open dialogue with John Lucas III.
• Assistant coach Rick Brunson has left to take a job on new Bobcats head coach Mike Dunlap's staff.

Earlier today we heard that the Magic general manager Rob Hennigan spoke with the media and addressed the plethora of issues he has on his plate in his first few weeks on the job.  Following Hennigan's availability, Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel put together a comprehensive story on the rapid rate of change with which the Magic have overhauled their organization.  By Schmitz's count, the Magic have dispatched of 17 important pieces of the organization since December.  Starting as early as tomorrow night's draft, it is Orlando roster's turn for a makeover. 

Here are some some odds and ends from around the NBA on this Wednesday night:

• The Bucks will explore the possibility of an extension with Monta Ellis this summer, says GM John Hammond via the team's Twitter feed.  From Hammond: "We are going to talk to Monta about doing an extension this summer. We would love to keep him."
• According to his agent, Ronny Turiaf may wait until the Saturday deadline to decide on his $1.2MM option with the Heat, says Ira Winderman via Sulia.  Winderman adds that Turiaf's decision will likely impact Dexter Pittman -- the Heat have until Saturday to decide whether to guarantee his 2012/13 salary.
• Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago writes that while speculation abounds, it is becoming increasingly unlikely that the Bulls trade either Luol Deng or Joakim Noah.  
• The CSNNE.com staff wonders what is taking Kevin Garnett and the Celtics so long to decide whether the Big Ticket will return to Boston next year.  Meanwhile, Ben Rohrbach of the WEEI.com Blog Network takes a look at the free agent options for the Celtics at power forward should Garnett not return.