Bulls’ Tyrus Thomas will not play against Cleveland

 Tyrus Thomas will not be with the Chicago Bulls when they face the Cleveland Cavaliers. The forward continues to battle a nasty illness and did not travel with his team. Chicago coach Vinny Del Negro told the press that Thomas could join the team for Thursday night’s game after doctors evaluated him. When reporters pressed the issue, the coach admitted the chance was remote. Thomas reported that he’s battling a high fever and a sore throat, as well as nausea. Del Negro said, “He showed up (Wednesday) morning still pretty sick. We want to make sure he gets healthy.” Thomas missed Tuesday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks, but did show up at the Berto Center before his teammates arrived for practice to visit the athletic trainer Fred Tedeschi. The Bulls have isolated Thomas from his teammates so he can’t infect them. Chicago has assigned Luol Deng to cover LeBron James in Thursday’s contest. Although Deng recorded his first 20-20 game on Tuesday, he knows covering James will be no small task. He called James “arguably the best player” in the game. Deng continued to say playing against James is a challenge since he is so “big, quick, and versatile.”

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