Long Bench Has Served Bulls Well It has been said that if you cut off the head, the body will die. At this point, most Eastern Conference teams are probably wondering just what part of the Chicago Bulls qualifies as the head. The obvious answer is Derrick Rose, the N.B.A."s reigning most valuable player. Rose is leading the team with a player efficiency rating of 24.8, which qualifies for sixth in the league. He is also leading the team in points (22.8 a game) and assists (8). And yet, in the 22 games he did not play because of injury, the Bulls went 15-7, producing a winning percentage of .682 that is not all that far from their overall mark, .768. The only team in the conference to produce a better winning percentage than the Rose-less Bulls entering the weekend was the Miami Heat, .736. Richard Hamilton, the Bulls" most notable off-season acquisition and starting shooting guard, missed 38 games in which the team went 29-9, for a .763 winning percentage. Luol Deng, the team's starting small forward, has missed nine games, and the team went 6-3 without him. The projected starting lineup of Rose, Hamilton, Deng, Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah has shared a court for just 166 minutes, with only Boozer playing in all 56 games. The unit has outscored its opposition by 35 points in that time. In a shortened season in which depth was predicted by many to be the key to success, the Bulls have proved the point. One key has been Ronnie Brewer, a defensive specialist who has filled in admirably for the frequently injured Hamilton. The same lineup, with Brewer substituting for Hamilton, has played 284 minutes together, producing a far better plus/minus of plus-112 points. The Bulls will face the Knicks on Sunday at Madison Square Garden and on Tuesday in Chicago; they would be first-round playoff opponents if the season ended Sunday. Unlike the stunningly consistent Bulls, whose longest losing streak of the season is two games, the Knicks have had an up-and-down season caused by injuries, strife among coaches and players, and other issues. The Knicks have had two winning streaks of five games or more but also endured two six-game losing streaks. They lost their coach (Mike D'Antoni resigned); their breakout star, Jeremy Lin (knee surgery); and their starting power forward, Amar'e Stoudemire (back injury). Stoudemire, still recuperating, is not expected back before next Sunday. The Bulls juggernaut is expected to be at full strength for just the 11th time this season against the short-handed Knicks, which would seem to give Chicago an advantage. If the Knicks, a far better team at home than on the road, win on Sunday, it will give them some relief in the standings and give their fans hope that a first-round playoff exit is not a foregone conclusion. Considering the unlikely series of events that has put the Knicks in position for the No. 8 seed, and the fact that they are 9-3 in games Stoudemire has missed, perhaps anything is possible. Missing, but Not Exactly Missed The Chicago Bulls have shown a knack this season for continuing to win even when their stars are unavailable. Power forward Carlos Boozer is the only starter who has yet to miss a game. Player Winning Pct. With Without Games Missed Richard Hamilton Derrick Rose Luol Deng Joakim Noah