<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Defensively last season, the Bulls allowed the sixth-fewest points per game, limited opponents to the second-lowest shooting percentage and forced the second-most turnovers on average. So what do they do for an encore?</p> "I don't know, but I do know we've added some length and each guy at his own spot individually is better," coach Scott Skiles said after Saturday's two-hour-plus practice. "Then guys are doing a good job of reading each other. It's hard to imagine we're not going to be very good defensively." The Bulls narrowly missed becoming the first team since the 1994-95 Knicks to lead the league in opponents' field-goal percentage for three straight seasons when the Rockets edged them in that statistic in 2006-07. Skiles is considered a straight shooter, so his early optimism could be telling. In casual conversations with high-profile college coaches who watched practice last week, many commented on the Bulls' defensive intensity. "We're at a high level," Skiles said. "We haven't had much of a drop-off from, say, a practice in March to where we are right now. As a matter of fact, I feel like we've picked it up."</div></p> LINKAGE</p>
