Even though he didn?t play for five straight games, power forward Michael Sweetney can still fill a necessary role for the Bulls.

Sweetney got back on the floor Wednesday with 9:06 left in the third quarter, with the Bulls trailing the New Orleans Hornets by 15 points.

?We talked to the guys several times tonight about going inside,? coach Scott Skiles said. ?We had a problem doing it. So I brought Mike into the game, took a timeout right after and sort of demanded that we go down low. For not playing for a while, I thought Mike did a nice job tonight.?

Sweetney scored 5 points in the first five minutes he was on the floor. He ended up playing 11 minutes.

?It was cool to get out there for a little bit and try to get my timing back,? Sweetney said. ?I always know I?ve got to be ready with Skiles, because you never know when you might play or not. So you have to be ready mentally, and once you?re ready mentally, other things will take care of themselves.?