Joakim Noah is on schedule with his rehabilitation and expects to return to the court on Feb. 23 when the Bulls play the Raptors.

"[I'm] very excited," he said. "Just working out. I've got some tape on my hand instead of a cast. I can shoot a little bit and get back on the court as soon as I can."

Noah, who hurt his thumb on Nov. 27 against the Kings and had surgery to repair a torn ligament in the thumb on Dec. 16, had the remaining portion of the cast removed Wednesday.

Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau is happy with the way Noah has responded the rehab process.

"He's doing great," Thibodeau said. "Doing great. [Friday] he went through virtually the entire practice. He's pain-free; still working a little bit on his timing, which is to be expected. [He's] getting bumped a little bit. He's body on body now so that's really the next phase of his rehab. He's shooting the ball well from 15, 17 feet. Going through all his post stuff. So he's coming along very well."

Noah hasn't been cleared for full-contact practices, but he is doing more every day.