CHICAGO -- Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose could take the next step in his return and have his minutes increased in the team’s sixth preseason game Sunday, coach Tom Thibodeau said on Saturday.

Rose hasn’t played more than 22 minutes in any of the Bulls’ first five preseason games. The Bulls have three preseason games remaining. They play the Charlotte Hornets in Chicago on Sunday.

“I want to see how it unfolds in terms of where he is, where we are in the game,” Thibodeau said after practice Saturday. “Ideally, he plays more. I think he’s ready for that. I want to see it first. I want to make sure.”

Rose cut himself off after 21 minutes in the Bulls’ last preseason game Thursday. Rose said then he wasn’t concerned about not playing a larger workload yet.

"I think my body is going to hold up," Rose said Thursday. "I think I worked too hard. I'm not worried about minutes. I could care less about them. Just trying to be patient and do exactly what they tell me to do.”

Thibodeau said Saturday the priority was how Rose’s body was feeling, but Rose’s minutes were also important to him.

“Everything is important,” Thibodeau said. “I want to feel him good. That’s the biggest thing. The only way he’s going to shake the rust off is by playing. But we’ll see. We’ll see how it unfolds. I think the next game will be good, will be a good test for him.”

Dunleavy back: Bulls small forward Mike Dunleavy is expected to play Sunday after missing the last two games with left knee soreness, Thibodeau said.