The team balked because Johnson was seriously injured in a Sept. 13 car accident. He suffered four cracked vertebrae, will miss all of this season and the Hawks aren't sure if he will play basketball again. Johnson sat on the Atlanta bench on Saturday night wearing a thick neck brace.

"We have no assurance that he will ever be able to play again," said Atlanta GM Pete Babcock. "The prospect of a head-to-head collision or a fall is frightening. The results could be catastrophic.

"There's no way we could commit that much money, not knowing what DerMarr's future will be. Doctors have assured us that he will recover fully and live a normal life, but they cannot tell us if he can play basketball again or, if so, when."

Replay shows no basket: The Bulls saw their first instant-replay review of the season on Saturday. At the end of the second quarter, Fred Hoiberg swished a 60-foot heave from beyond half court.

Hoiberg clearly released the ball after the buzzer. But the new NBA rule requires replay to be checked any time a shot goes in with no time on the clock.