Bulls’ Hinrich finds taste of success

? Less than six hours after flying back from watching his son tie his career high with 34 points in a Bulls playoff victory, Jim Hinrich walked into a North Kansas City (Mo.) High classroom at 7:25 a.m. Thursday.

“Sleep,” the elder Hinrich said, “is overrated.”

His son, Kirk, is living in a similarly adrenaline-fueled state.

Scoring 21 fourth-quarter points and leading the Bulls to a 2-0 series lead over Washington in the first round of the NBA playoffs left Hinrich uncharacteristically emotional Wednesday night, snarling at officials, pumping his fists and waving his arms to fuel the crowd.

Such gestures contrast sharply with Hinrich’s body language from late last season, when, for the first time since this coach’s son started playing basketball, a game became a job.

For someone whose first word as an infant was “ball,” the game had become anything but.

“It got to be ridiculous,” Seattle forward Nick Collison said after SuperSonics practice Thursday.

Collison played with Hinrich on Iowa AAU teams and in college at Kansas University. He remains one of Hinrich’s closest friends, and the two talk frequently.

“He knew last (season’s) team got to the point where it would play for 48 minutes, probably lose and then go home and go to the next game,” Collison said. “He said once that attitude set in, it was no fun. He was out there trying to do things, but he felt like everyone else had packed it in.”

Indeed, the typically reticent Hinrich opened up about his disdain for losing attitudes as last season progressed. He finally reached his breaking point after an April 3, 2004, home loss to Miami, lashing out with an accusation delivered in soft tones that belied its harshness.

“We have people who don’t play their hardest,” Hinrich said.

Those who know Hinrich best say that such a moment underscored how difficult his rookie season was and how much it wore on him.

“He doesn’t verbalize a whole lot,” Jim Hinrich said. “Both last year and this year, when I’ve asked him about certain players, he says a minimal amount. When he gets off the basketball floor, he doesn’t want to talk about the game.

“But winning always has been extremely important to him. He lost more last season than he had in his entire career, from grade school on. He knew he would lose some because it’s an 82-game season. But he hoped at least to be in contention. Pride games aren’t a lot of fun.”

Asked Thursday to reflect on last season, the pain on Hinrich’s face looked fresh. This is, after all, a player who won a state championship playing for his father and went to the NCAA Tournament final with Kansas.

“It was real foreign, but, mostly, it was just frustrating,” Hinrich said. “Everywhere you looked around, teams were making their runs and getting ready for the playoffs, and we were just playing for our pride and our dignity. And we didn’t even do that some nights. I hate to say it, but you couldn’t wait for it to be over.”

And now Hinrich doesn’t want this season to end.

“The playoffs are kind of what I thought they would be,” Hinrich said. “Knowing what a great sports town Chicago is, I knew if we did make it, the excitement would be there. And it has been. Playing at the United Center these last two games has lived up to all expectations.”