Bulls win 97-81 Rose 30, 8 assists Deng 23 Boozer 14, 12 rebounds Kudos to Bogans for his D on Allen!
Bulls win 97-81 Very important win against a good team. Bulls are now 4 games ahead of Miami and Boston. And have only 4 games left to play. Looks good to secure the #1 seed for the Bulls.
I've heard a number of people question whether the Bulls are capable of taking their game up a notch when needed. Are there any other questions?
CJHoop K.C Johnson Bulls drop magic number to 1. Heat officially eliminated from earning No. 1 seed in East.
Was there a reason you guys were playing your starters at the end of the game? You know, with like 50 seconds left, up by 20 something, while we clearly showed signs of defeat with our bench out. Show of class. Oh well, enjoy this while you can. Your time will come in the playoffs.
It's an ongoing issue with Thibodeau. I blame Doc Rivers (and you) for not beating it out of him. Seriously though, Boozer was out for three games last month after Kwame Brown delivered a cheap shot in a blowout. There was no reason for Boozer to be on the court. So we hear you. There's nothing to really be done about it. As to the game, that was a technical beatdown. Everyone and their mothers are still picking the Celtics to come out of the East and I just don't see it. I watched the game on my DVR so when it was finished it switched immediately to the Jazz-Blazers game. The pace of play looked like a college game compared to the Bulls's defense. It takes a moment like that to realize how quick the defense is at making rotations. Great game by Noah, Deng and of course Rose . . . I just wish we could get Noah in the mix.
Celtics just don't seem to want it much anymore. Perhaps they will turn it on in the playoffs this year. Surreal experience as a Bulls fan here. #1 seed in the East. Unbelievable. Anything can happen in the playoffs, but the Bulls have the talent, desire, youth, energy and coaching to win the NBA title. Can anything stop Derrick Rose? He's not going to stop coming at you. He wants it more than any Heat, Celtic or Magic. So does Thibbs.
You guys were just absolutely shutting us down in the paint. And our guys had no choice but to shoot forced jumpers (which even worse weren't going down) all the time with seconds left on the shot clock.
Yeah, that was interesting. For those who missed it, with 2:51 left in Q4 and Bulls up 14, Rivers pulled his starters and Thibodeau put his back in. Lead was down to 12 at 1:32 then Bulls' starters built the lead back up to 17 with about a minute left. Only then did Thibs begin pulling his starters. 14 points with 3 minutes left is hardly insurmountable. I was more surprised that Rivers pulled his guys than I was that Thibs brought his back in. Not sure what the etiquette is in these cases, but if I'm up or down 15 with 2 minutes or less I think it's safe. However, you shouldn't be required to call a timeout to remove players. Looking back on it, Thibs shoulda pulled his guys at 0:59.3 when Rose was shooting FTs.
Did Rivers really pulls his guys though? I have to go back and look at the tape. I know he was running Delonte West instead of Rondo but that looked like it may have been because Delonte was just playing better than Rondo last night.
Yeah, he pulled the starters with at least 2 minutes left and a 14 point deficit. Watching Deng get kicked in the head makes you wonder if it's worth the risk at that point.
OK. I've just finished watching the game. Outside of all the well deserved accolades for Derrick Rose - Luol Deng might be one of the most understated and underated players in the league right now. His defense is outstanding. There was a play last night at the beginning of the 3rd quarter where he slid into the lane and helped out on Garnett and knocked the ball loose, Rondo regatherd and went to passs it off to Pierce , Deng had stuck with the play when he knocked it loose and came up on Rondo's blindside and knocked it loose again through the passing lane to Pierce , Deng regathers and then takes off ( and smartly glances over his shoulder to ensure he's right for the dunk even though there were two Celtic defenders chasing him ) then elevates and cocks his right arm back and goodnight. That play might be one of the best defensive plays I have seen all season. The length , the smarts , the desire ....leading to the offensive finish. Its what its all about. Or should be. Luol Deng ladies and gentlemen. But this play just punctuated a stellar all round performance from Deng who was exceptional on both Pierce and Green throughout the game. I'll say it now , if Luol Deng doesn't earn at least 2nd Team All Defense then something is very very wrong in the league. He really should be 1st team but I know that more celebrated "names" enter into deliberations which are not always rational. So moving on from my Lu love in .....our front line concerns me. I have felt this for sometime but have kept quiet on my concern but Carlos Boozer can't perform against size .....you have seen it with the Jazz /Lakers playoff match ups and you saw it last night against the Celtics. Put taller wood on him and he has that half drive fade away move that nearly always falls short. Furthermore his release slows down because he drags it back further to get arc . With a shotblocking defense ...it becomes easier to defend. In short , I don't like Boozer's prospects against the Celtics and Magic in the East , and if we can come out of the East , I don't anticipate him being effective against the Lakers, Thunder and then Mavericks. Carlos Boozer could be our weakest link in the playoffs if we are there to win it all. In his defense though ( and on his defense ) I think he did a creditable job last night and got to make some plays in poking balls loose , gettting up in the grill ( most of the time ) and manning up on the defensive boards. Kyle Korver was a pleasant surprise defensively last night too and Taj and Ronnnie did their usual good job. I am not sure what's up with Joakim right now . He just hasn't seemed to have the same energy since he's come back and he seems out of rhythym.Hopefully he can round into a bit of form in the last few games and into the first round against the Pacers given that the Pacers front line will give him a battle with their size ( Hibbert ) athleticism ( McRoberts ) and will ( Hansborough )
