Read More: Carlos Boozer (F – CHI), Richard Hamilton (G – CHI), Derrick Rose (G – CHI), Tom Thibodeau (A – BOS), Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls announced on Tuesday night that the team will be making a “major announcement” at 11 a.m. on Wednesday afternoon at a press conference featuring point guard Derrick Rose, head coach Tom Thibodeau, vice president of basketball operations John Paxson and general manager Gar Forman. 

Rose wouldn’t mention any specifics after Tuesday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers, but it’s expected that the presser will announce a five-year, $94.8 million contract that’s reportedly been agreed upon already by the Bulls and their star point guard. At this point, the deal is being treated as effectively done, as Carlos Boozer made comments recently:

We’re all very excited for him. He deserves it. He puts in a lot of effort. I wish the contract was for 10 years.”

The Bulls won 93-85 on Tuesday night against Indiana, beating the Pacers in a pair of preseason games to gear up for the regular season. Chicago is expected to be a major contender for the championship once again this season with Rose at the helm, especially given the recent addition of shooting guard Richard Hamilton.

For updates on free agent moves, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For in-depth coverage of the Bulls, visit Blog a Bull. For more news and notes from around the league, head over to SB Nation’s NBA news hub.

The Chicago Bulls overcame the Indiana Pacers on the opening day of NBA pre-season on Friday, while the Cleveland Cavaliers also won.

Point guard Derrick Rose and forward Luol Deng each scored 16 points as the Bulls recovered from an early deficit to beat the Pacers 95-86.

CJ Watson added 15 points, while Tyler Hansbrough (19 points and 12 rebounds) was the best performed for the Pacers, who led 33-22 at quarter-time.

Meanwhile, top draft pick Kyrie Irving impressed as the Cleveland Cavaliers recorded a sloppy 91-87 win over the Detroit Pistons.

The Australian-American, 19, started on the bench but came on to score 21 points in a game that featured several turnovers.

The Philadelphia 76ers eased past the Washington Wizards with a comfortable 103-78 win.

Guard Louis Williams (19 points) top scored for the 76ers, while the Wizards shot at a lowly 33 percent from the field.

Elsewhere, Jarrett Jack’s 24 points led the New Orleans Hornets to a 97-90 victory against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Read More: David West (F – IND), Richard Hamilton (G – CHI), Luol Deng (F – CHI), Derrick Rose (G – CHI), Tyler Hansbrough (F – IND), Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, Chicago Bulls at Indiana Pacers, Dec 16, 2011 7:00 PM EST

The Indiana Pacers and Chicago Bulls hit the hardwood on Friday night in their respective preseason openers, a less than meaningful rematch of their playoff match up last season. Similar to the series outcome, Chicago came out on top. 

The Pacers only shot 34-percent from the field for the game and were outscored 73-53 in the final three quarters after jumping out to a 33-22 lead in the first quarter. A big reason for the first quarter difference was last year’s MVP Derrick Rose getting into early foul trouble and sitting most of the first frame. 

Tyler Hansbrough led all scorers with 19 points on 6-of-13 shooting and also grabbed 11 rebounds for a double-double. Derrick Rose and Luol Deng both had 16 points for the Bulls.

The Pacers’ newest addition David West did not play. The same went for Richard Hamilton who signed with the Bulls after being bought out by the Pistons. 

The Pacers are back at it again on Tuesday against the Bulls again, but in Chicago this time. Tip off is at 8 p.m. eastern.

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird plans to spend a lot of time on the phone with executives from other teams in the coming days.

“We’ve got a lot of cap space and we’ve gotten a lot more calls,” he said. “It’s interesting. It’s just begun, but we figure in the next week or so, it’s going to be pretty active.”

Bird said he can afford to be extra careful because Indiana will be in a strong negotiating position again next year.

“It might be a slower process than our fans want it to be,” he said.

Bird says he wants to add pieces to a solid young core that features Danny Granger, Darren Collison, Roy Hibbert, Tyler Hansbrough, Paul George and newcomer George Hill. Of that group, only the 28-year-old Granger is older than 26. The Pacers for years have targeted a top scoring option to go with Granger and an elite power forward.

As players began to arrive back at their teams’ facilities across the league Thursday, Bird wouldn’t address the team’s rumored interest in Boston point guard Rajon Rondo and Utah forward Paul Millsap.

“Over the course of the next two or three weeks, you’re going to hear a lot of rumors, and there’s going to be a lot of things out there that’s going to have us right in the middle of a lot of it,” Bird said. “I wouldn’t believe any of it. We’ve talked to teams about players. We don’t like to talk about any other team’s players.”

General manager David Morway said the Pacers will be good, even if they don’t make a move.

“We don’t feel like we are in a position where we have to add a player,” he said. “We’ve got very good players right now at every position on this basketball team. We want to continue to add to this team, but we want to do it with diligence and with prudence.”

The Pacers made the playoffs last season and lost to the Chicago Bulls 4-1. Bird wouldn’t make a prediction about this season.

“You don’t know what to expect because of injuries and different things,” he said. “I know we’re a better basketball team than we were last year when we started, and I think we’re going to be even better after we get through this process.”

The process will be unique because there’s no preseason and the players have been working out on their own.

“It makes it a little bit more difficult, but we spent the summer preparing,” Morway said. “I think we have a good game plan, and we’re going to stay disciplined.”

Once the team is assembled, it will need to adjust to a new coaching staff. Frank Vogel had his interim tag removed in the offseason, and he hired Brian Shaw and Jim Boylen as assistants to go with holdover Dan Burke.

“I think they’re excellent,” Bird said. “I think Frank did a great job of going out and getting some guys that’s been on championship teams. They’re all on the same page. They’re excited about the team. They want to go to work.”

Bird said he’s happy there will be a season, not only for the Pacers organization, but for the local businesses that depend on the team.

“I can tell you there’s a lot of people out of work here,” he said. “I think it’s huge for downtown, and it’s big in a lot of other ways. I like to watch our players compete. I like what I do. But I also know that outside of this building, there’s a lot of people hurting because we’re not playing.”

Bird said he can afford to be extra careful because Indiana will be in a strong negotiating position again next year.

“It might be a slower process than our fans want it to be,” he said.

Bird says he wants to add pieces to a solid young core that features Danny Granger, Darren Collison, Roy Hibbert, Tyler Hansbrough, Paul George and newcomer George Hill. Of that group, only the 28-year-old Granger is older than 26. The Pacers for years have targeted a top scoring option to go with Granger and an elite power forward.

As players began to arrive back at their teams’ facilities across the league Thursday, Bird wouldn’t address the team’s rumored interest in Boston point guard Rajon Rondo and Utah forward Paul Millsap.

“Over the course of the next two or three weeks, you’re going to hear a lot of rumors, and there’s going to be a lot of things out there that’s going to have us right in the middle of a lot of it,” Bird said. “I wouldn’t believe any of it. We’ve talked to teams about players. We don’t like to talk about any other team’s players.”

General manager David Morway said the Pacers will be good, even if they don’t make a move.

“We don’t feel like we are in a position where we have to add a player,” he said. “We’ve got very good players right now at every position on this basketball team. We want to continue to add to this team, but we want to do it with diligence and with prudence.”

The Pacers made the playoffs last season and lost to the Chicago Bulls 4-1. Bird wouldn’t make a prediction about this season.

“You don’t know what to expect because of injuries and different things,” he said. “I know we’re a better basketball team than we were last year when we started, and I think we’re going to be even better after we get through this process.”

The process will be unique because there’s no preseason and the players have been working out on their own.

“It makes it a little bit more difficult, but we spent the summer preparing,” Morway said. “I think we have a good game plan, and we’re going to stay disciplined.”

Once the team is assembled, it will need to adjust to a new coaching staff. Frank Vogel had his interim tag removed in the offseason, and he hired Brian Shaw and Jim Boylen as assistants to go with holdover Dan Burke.

“I think they’re excellent,” Bird said. “I think Frank did a great job of going out and getting some guys that’s been on championship teams. They’re all on the same page. They’re excited about the team. They want to go to work.”

Bird said he’s happy there will be a season, not only for the Pacers organization, but for the local businesses that depend on the team.

“I can tell you there’s a lot of people out of work here,” he said. “I think it’s huge for downtown, and it’s big in a lot of other ways. I like to watch our players compete. I like what I do. But I also know that outside of this building, there’s a lot of people hurting because we’re not playing.”

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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/cliffbruntap

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