With Noah out, who will step up?

Omer Asik: He has started to look more comfortable as the season has progressed. This would allow Gibson to continue to come off the bench and wouldn't put as much strain on Boozer to learn a new position on the fly. The problem with starting Asik is that he is still very hesitant on the offensive end and he has a habit of picking up fouls in bunches.

Kurt Thomas: The veteran center has seen it all, but it's hard to imagine how Thibodeau could start Thomas and play him heavy minutes after barely playing him at all to start the season.

Taj Gibson: Thibodeau loves him, and the Bulls players have a chemistry with him already. But Gibson's insertion into the starting lineup would mean that Boozer would have to shift to the center spot. Is that a risk that Thibodeau is willing to take, especially to start games?

Luol Deng: As Thibodeau mentioned, Deng could start at the four spot in a much smaller lineup. I think this is far more probable late in games, but to start a game this way would be a challenge -- especially against bigger teams.

Free agent/trade: There is no doubt that Gar Forman and John Paxson have already started to at least discuss what else is out there. If there is a deal that they think will make them better, they are going to look hard at it because they know that Noah isn't coming back for a while. It's worth noting that last month Rasheed Wallace joked during Tom Thibodeau's postgame press conference that he needed a job. If he was serious, I'm sure the Bulls will find out soon.