Jerome James hopes to make turnaround with Bulls

James, 33, played in just 4 games the past two seasons with the Knicks and made only a brief stop in Chicago last spring to get checked out by doctors.

He was in uniform at Friday's media event, though, and vowed to play this season.

"I'm about 65 percent," James said. "This (injury), every time I try to speed it up, it slows me down. So I'm sticking to the program the Bulls gave me and hopefully here in a month or two, I'll be ready to play."

Many expected James to simply retire, but he listed his main reason for wanting to come back.

"My kids, they're starting to read stuff on the Internet that just isn't true about me," he said. "A lot of people out there don't know me or have no idea who I am, what I'm about, what I stand for. So I decided, if I'm going to go out, I'm going to go out on top. Get back right, get back healthy and play basketball again."

The highlight of James' NBA career was averaging 12.5 points and 6.8 rebounds in the playoffs for Seattle in 2005. The Knicks signed him to a five-year contract that summer, but he contributed little in New York.

Bull horns: Injured center Jerome James shot around following Saturday's practice, moving at a slow jog. James played in just two games for New York last season because of a torn Achilles tendon, but hopes to be ready to play in a couple months.