Bulls' Rip Hamilton continues to sit during crunch time

Richard Hamilton was once the key closer on an NBA championship team, but recently he has found himself on the bench for the Chicago Bulls in crunch time. That role could change as the Bulls have lost three in a row for the first time under Tom Thibodeau. Hamilton is seeking more playing time, especially int he closing minutes, as the Bulls look to right the ship this weekend in Milwaukee:

"You’re going with the group that’s playing well at that particular time. It’s not about individuals, it’s about the team," Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau explained. "This team [Houston] is a tough team to cover defensively. So, I thought Taj and Jimmy coming in got us going in the right direction."

Hamilton is averaging 12.5 points per game so far during the 2012-13 season. Those numbers come in 26 minutes per night, while he is also dishing out 2.3 assists per game. His percentage from beyond the three-point arc has slipped noticeably, however. so far Hamilton is shooting only 28.6% from long range. It is is lowest percentage from beyond the three-point line since the 2003-04 season when he played for Detroit.

Hamilton's overall field goal percentage is actually up from past years to nearly 46%.