He picked up three quick offensive fouls. Josh Smith had him scouted well and flopped on the first two. Pretty smart given the circumstances and the likelihood that Boozer would be pressing. The third came on a somehow monster dunk over Smith where he cleared out with his off arm. It was a good call, but a pretty dominating dunk. I was actually pleased with the way Boozer came out and played. There were a couple of boards where he got no lift and you realize that he's playing at 10%. He somehow grabbed a bunch of rather key defensive boards without jumping just through positioning too. The takeaways? Boozer is playing hurt. But he still managed to be pretty effective.
ESPN on Rose's performance: Before we get carried away about how good it was, guess how many 44 point games Jordan had? A: 38. Christ.
Cool But how many 44 point games did Jordan have in the playoffs by his 3rd season on a bum ankle with the series poised 1- 1 on the opponents home court. Derrick Rose not only put the Hawks lights out in this game - he just put their lights out for the series to pretty much guarantee a trip to the EC finals. Much love to MJ but I don't think he had won MVP in his 3rd season , won 60 plus games or taken his team to the Conference Finals. There are oceans of water to pass under the bridge to truly compare but with the way he's trending , Derrick Rose may end up in the same breath as Michael Jordan MJ was a sacred Bull not sacred cow
Ha. I love how you framed that. Jordan had games of 49 and 63, which is apparently some kind of record, at Boston recovering from a broken foot during his second season. But that series was NOT tied 1-1 and a broken foot is NOT a sprained ankle. MJ also had a 42 point game at Boston during his third season.
That was kinda fun to watch. Rose had a crazy Rose game and Noah had a crazy Noah game. It was easily enough.
Great game! The Bulls shoot 46.8% (thanks derrick!), the minutes move in Taj's direction (and the team benefits!) and Noah has his groove back. The D is solid, the Hawks are flummoxed and Rose is the MVP again. Let's hope the jumper keeps falling.
I concede I was being a bit cheeky m'friend, and MJ's heroics in Boston did come to mind. But so did Derrick's in his rookie season in that briliant 1st round series even though his individual numbers weren't as lofty as Michael's in his 2nd season. My point in the broader context is that we have someone who is fast approaching being considered in the same company in how he is trending at this early stage his career. Different players and people - but uncanny how both have a killer instinct and an ability to find " factor x " when it's time to put lights out. Even though it manifests itself in completely different ways in both players as men
josh smith is our best player! I love it, and thanked him each and every time when he bricked a 3! Keep it up Josh!
Thanks for the synopsis. Didn't watch the game. I liked the stats he put up. I liked the way Thibs handled his minutes. Let him be effective in the time he's out there, and build up his confidence. I don't care what all the pundits are saying, we need the guy to play, even if he can't be 100%. And I really liked that the bench is really starting to contribute. That's what we're going to need against Miami, and Dallas? Go Bulls!
We should have shot much better. The rest of the starters, Boozer aside, we're not doing so hot. Love the use of flummoxed!
