Joakim Noah has insisted that the Chicago Bulls will not try to lose in order to face an easier route to the NBA Finals.

In the current standings, the Bulls would play the Brooklyn Nets in their opening playoff game, before taking on two-time defending champions the Miami Heat in the second round.

The center told ESPN: "We're just trying to play good basketball. There's no way in hell we're going to try and lose games to match up against anybody.

"I think whatever happens, happens, so we're just going to keep playing our game, keep winning as much as we can, and then [we] can't wait for the playoffs.

"I think losing games to try to play somebody, I think that's soft. That's soft. We're not soft."

The Bulls currently sit fourth in the Eastern Conference standings.