CHICAGO (AP) The Chicago Bulls have been busy in the five days since their last game. They hired a new coach. Got three new players. Put in a new offense.

And, after a dismal beginning, they hope they're getting a new start.

``We're looking forward to it,'' center Eddy Curry said after Monday's shootaround. ``We're ready to go. I'm excited about it. Excited to get the new guys in here.''

After beginning the season with such high expectations _ the first playoff appearance since the dynasty days didn't seem that farfetched _ the Bulls quickly settled into their bad old ways. They've lost seven straight and were 4-12 going into Monday night's game against Milwaukee.

They've won only once at home and lost all five games on a West Coast swing, falling to 0-32 on that trip over the past five years.

So a week ago, general manager John Paxson started shaking things up. He fired Bill Cartwright and hired former Phoenix coach Scott Skiles.

Skiles scrapped the Bulls' triangle offense _ one of the few holdovers from the dynasty _ and put in a new, up-tempo scheme. The team even had two practices Saturday, as if it was training camp all over again.

And Paxson wasn't finished. After weeks of speculation, he finalized a trade with Toronto on Saturday that brought Antonio Davis and Jerome Williams to Chicago. The Bulls sent Jalen Rose, Donyell Marshall and Lonny Baxter to the Raptors for Davis, Williams and Chris Jefferies. The deal became official Monday.

Though the Bulls were counting on Curry and Tyson Chandler to make big progress this year, it hasn't quite worked out that way. Curry has struggled and Chandler has been limited by a nagging lower back injury. He was put on the injured list Monday, and will miss at least five games. He'd already missed six.

``On days off, I feel better,'' Chandler said. ``Then I get out there and play, and I'm in pain again after the game. It's one of those things that wears on with me.''

Williams also will make the Bulls tougher inside. Nicknamed ``Junkyard Dog,'' he's averaging 5.1 points and 8.5 rebounds a game.

``We really have a nice mix,'' Skiles said. ``We have a couple of young players, a couple of middle players and a couple of older players. I think that's what you need. Look at the teams that are successful, and that's what they have.''

Skiles had a reputation as a no-nonsense, in-your-face coach in Phoenix, a style that rubbed some players the wrong way. He's only been in Chicago a few days, but so far, the Bulls like what they've seen.

``It feels,'' point guard Jamal Crawford said, ``like it's a new start for our team.''

A new start for Toronto, too. Though Rose is shooting just 38 percent from the floor, he'll take some of the scoring load off Vince Carter. Marshall can score, too, and he'll be a solid addition defensively.

``It's a completely different team,'' Toronto coach Kevin O'Neill said. ``There is some uneasiness. I've always wondered how they do these mail-order bride things. I mean, you are going to marry someone without knowing them? In actuality, we are all married now and we really didn't know each other very well.

``As we get more familiar with each other it will be easier.''