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CHICAGO - The Chicago Bulls made the hard sell for Carmelo Anthony and brought their stars along for the presentation on Tuesday. That included Derrick Rose, no fan of recruiting. Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson were there, too, trying to convince the New York Knicks free agent to choose the Bulls. Anthony arrived at a decked-out United Center in the afternoon with agent Leon Rose and coach Tom Thibodeau, a police SUV trailing their oversized limousine. He walked past the Michael Jordan statue, waving to a small group of cheering fans as he went inside, where he spent much of the afternoon before getting a look at the soon-to-open practice facility across the street. The Bulls believe they have a strong pitch and a simple selling point: Anthony can transform a playoff team into a championship contender. They believe uniting Anthony with Rose and Joakim Noah would put them in position to contend for their first title since Jordan and Scottie Pippen led the way to two three-peats in the 1990s. And they certainly made their feelings clear on Tuesday, turning the arena into one big welcome mat. Two giant digital images above the entrance on Madison Street showed Anthony in a Bulls No. 7 jersey dribbling next to a championship trophy, fans stopping to take pictures. Another image around the corner also showed him in a jersey dribbling. Signs wrapping around corners of the building and stacked on top of each other read, "Carmelo Anthony and Chicago basketball" and "Melo" with a cropped Bulls logo. Anthony, a top target in NBA free agency, is expected to visit other teams. If he signed elsewhere, it would probably bring back memories for Bulls fans of failed attempts to woo stars. "It should work out," said James Babbitt of Chicago, who stopped to take pictures of the images above the entrance on Madison. "He can go anywhere and win now — or maybe later. But if he comes here, he can win now and later." The Bulls tried to reel in Tracy McGrady under Jerry Krause in 2000, with mascot Benny the Bull and the Luvabulls dancers greeting him at the airport, only to lose out to the Orlando Magic. In 2010, Chicago had enough salary-cap room to land two stars and went after LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. When those three wound up joining forces in Miami, the Bulls turned to Carlos Boozer — now a candidate to be amnestied — and added depth. They went on to win 62 games on the way to the Eastern Conference finals, with Rose capturing the MVP award. A year later, their championship hopes got derailed in the playoff opener against Philadelphia when Rose tore the ACL in his left knee. He sat out the following season, and his comeback got cut short when he tore the meniscus in his right knee in November. With two season-ending injuries, Rose is one big question mark. He has played in just 49 games the past three seasons, and it remains to be seen if he can approach his dominant form. If he does and Anthony lands in Chicago, the Bulls would be a strong contender in the East. The fact that Rose and Gibson were involved in Tuesdays presentation was notable for several reasons. Gibsons presence was a strong indication that the Bulls intend to keep him rather than trade him to make room for Anthony. Roses participation might quiet critics who have blasted his aversion to recruiting. The point guards stance stems from his reserved personality, his loyalty to his teammates and his belief that he can play with anyone — and beat anyone. 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It didnt take long for them to find out via social media that coach Randy Carlyle was coming back — with a two-year extension — and assistants Greg Cronin, Scott Gordon and Dave Farrish were being let go. Blake Swihart Jersey . Future Hall of Famer Ricky Ray is in his prime and back for a third season in double blue. The 34-year old was magnificent in 2013, throwing for just under 2,900 yards despite missing eight games, tossing an impressive 21 touchdowns against just two interceptions, completing 66 per cent of his passes in the process. BARCELONA, Spain -- With Cristiano Ronaldo missing his scoring touch, Real Madrid needed defender Pepe to score in the second half to secure a 1-0 victory at Espanyol on Sunday to pull within three points of the Spanish league co-leaders. Pepe was left unmarked to head in Luka Modrics corner kick in the 55th minute, as Cristiano Ronaldo failed to add to his league-leading 20 goals. Ronaldo is favoured to win the FIFAs Ballon dOr on Monday over Lionel Messi and Franck Ribery. The Portugal forward uncharacteristically wasted two clear scoring chances, while goalkeeper Kiko Casilla denied him on another three occasions. "The win is important because winning on the road is key to winning the league," said Pepe, who defended Ronaldo despite his off day. "I would vote for Cristiano because what he did last year is very important and he deserves it." Third-place Madrid took full advantage of Saturdays scoreless draw between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, which left them level at the top of the table at the leagues halfway mark. "The important thing today was to cut into Barcelona and Atleticos lead," said Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. "We have to feel satisfied." Also on Sunday, Real Betis remained in last place after slumping to an error-plagued 2-1 loss at home to Osasuna. Rayo Vallecano won 1-0 at Getafes foggy Alfonso Perez Coliseum to end a five-game streak without a win in league play, and Levante edged Malaga 1-0 at home thanks to David Barrals 19th-minute header. Led by striker Jhon Cordoba, Espanyol surged forward at the start and almost took the lead when Christian Stuani steered his point-blank header past the wrong side of the post four minutes in. Madrid weathered Espanyols initial push and turned to Karim Benzema and Ronaldo to provide the attacking threat. Ronaldo scuffed Benzemas pass in the 18th before drawing two awkward saves from Casilla with a powerful strike in the 31st and a dipping free kick in the 37th. Espanyol, which was without suspended forward Sergio Garcia and coach Javier Aguirre, was fortunate to make it to halftime not trailing after Angel Di Maria squandered Madrids four-on-two counterattack seconds before Benzema headed wide in the 42nd.dddddddddddd But Pepe made good on Madrids dominance by thumping Modrics pass under Casilla, who got a hand on the ball but not enough to keep it out of his net. Ronaldo had two more great looks to increase his impressive tally this season, but Casilla bettered him one-on-one in the 82nd before saving Benzemas shot in the 89th and watching Ronaldo fire the rebound wide with the goalmouth beckoning. Nothing went Betis way against Osasuna, a direct relegation rival, in a game both sides finished with 10 men. Betis conceded Roberto Torres header within two minutes, had Jose "Nono" Delgado dismissed with his second yellow card in the 38th, and saw Jordi Figueras score an own goal in the 57th. And when Osasuna goalkeeper Andres Fernandez gave them a sliver of hope in the 62nd when he was red carded for fouling Ruben Castro in the area, Castro deflated the crowd at Benito Villamarin Stadium by sending his penalty kick off the crossbar. Jorge Molina pulled one back in the 80th but Osasuna had two opportunities to widen the margin before the final whistle. The demoralizing loss left Betis winless in its last 12 league matches and seven points from safety. "We took a step backward today," said Betis coach Juan Carlos Garrido. "I wont deny it. It was important to win today, and besides, clearly our first half of the season was very poor. There has to be a radical turnaround in every facet for us to remain in the first division." Osasuna stayed unbeaten in four rounds and edged five points clear of the drop. Rayos win at Getafe still left it in the relegation zone. Forward Alberto Bueno scored what proved to be the winner in the 29th after Alejandro Galvez was quick to cross a rebounded shot. Levante climbed past Malaga into the middle of the standings. ' ' '