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Veteran Boris Diaw was back where he began the season Thursday night.
Starting for the Utah Jazz.
With Derrick Favors sidelined with a nagging knee injury, Diaw opened at power forward in Chicago's 85-77 win at Vivint Smart Home Arena.
"He's in a good place right now," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said before tip-off. "I think he's going to start to get [more] time."
According to Snyder, Diaw's 22 minutes against the Bulls resulted from a couple of factors, including the performance of backup forward Trey Lyles and whether Utah wanted to use a smaller lineup.
"We haven't played small a whole lot because we haven't had enough [healthy] wings," Snyder said. "We've got some depth at the point … but playing small is another way we could look at that situation."
Coming off a five-game absence because of a leg contusion, Diaw returned in Monday's 102-96 loss to Memphis. He finished with six points, one rebound and one assist in 21 minutes.
With Favors missing his second game of the season, Diaw started against the Bulls and, like the Jazz, held his own early.
Diaw air-balled a 3-point shot on Utah's opening possession but came right back to bury one from the corner, after a drive-and-kick by Dante Exum.
Snyder took Diaw out with 5:37 remaining in the first quarter. Chicago owned a 16-15 lead.
Diaw returned for a six-minute stretch of the second quarter. He didn't score and committed a turnover.
In the end, Diaw finished with three points, one rebound and two assists. He made one of six shots, and is 5-for-21 this season.
Asked if the Jazz's plague of injuries has put more pressure on him regarding starting lineups and rotations, Snyder said, "It can definitely be more complicated game-to-game — even within a game — because Favs hasn't been able to go. So you just have to adapt.
"One thing about this job — one of the most important things you can do as a coach — is adapt. To your personnel. To an injury. … There are always things you have to factor into it."
Twitter: @sluhm Diaw's day
• With Derrick Favors sidelined, Boris Diaw returns to the Jazz's starting lineup Thursday night against Chicago.
• Diaw finishes with three points, one rebound and two assists in 22 minutes. He shoots 1-for-8 from the field.
• Favors misses his second game of the season with a nagging left knee contusion.