Brewer back; other Bulls moves in the offing?

The Bulls have added one veteran for the playoff push.

Ronnie Brewer filled the roster spot vacated when the Bulls released rookie Erik Murphy on Thursday.

Murphy was claimed off waivers by Utah, which is what the Bulls had in mind all along. With the payroll precariously close to the luxury tax threshold, the remaining portion of Murphy's salary now comes off the books.

Will the Bulls sign anyone else? League sources have suggested the possibility, and the Bulls still have two available roster spots.

The most likely addition would be a point guard to provide insurance in case Kirk Hinrich or D.J. Augustin get injured during the playoffs. And yes, the longer the Bulls survive in the playoffs, the questions about Derrick Rose's potential return will increase. For the time being, he's considered out for the year.

So veteran Mike James, who spent training camp with the Bulls and knows the system, is a logical addition. They're in better shape with big men, so that position seems less likely.

"Gar (Forman) and John (Paxson) are looking at people," said Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau on Monday. "If something makes sense and it's a good fit for us, we'll add. We're in an unusual situation with our roster. We're always looking."

Brewer in familiar spot:

Ronnie Brewer talked about what it was like to walk into the Bulls locker room roughly two years after he left. Brewer, who will wear his former No. 11, visited the Berto Center for a solo workout last week, but that didn't remain a secret for long.

"When I came up to work out, I guess the word kind of got out. Some guys were hitting me, seeing if I was up here," he said. "Nothing was solid yet, so I couldn't be like, 'Yeah, I am and I'm going to be on the team,' because I hadn't signed yet.

"So it was good to go in the locker room and see the smile on (Carlos Boozer's) face and Joakim (Noah), Jimmy (Butler), be able to see D-Rose, Taj (Gibson). And I knew some of the other guys from around the league, so it was good to meet those guys and be on the same team as them."

Bull horns:

Scottie Pippen was at the Berto Center during Monday's practice, wearing Clark Kent glasses. He went onto the court to give some instruction to rookie Tony Snell after practice ended. ... The Bulls' magic number to clinch homecourt advantage in the first round is three.