Chicago Bulls Thread

[Andrew]

Yeah, I guess he was bored.

[shadowgrin]

Rose is definitely inferior to Wade who can get a triple double with his turnovers if he wanted to, but Wade is bored so he doesn't do it very often.

[Andrew]

Stop rubbing it in!

I need to be alone.

[benji]

Work it off by making a list of the best SFs in the three point era.

[Andrew]

I have been meaning to get back to that thread.

[shadowgrin]

Yes! A Sixers win over the Bulls! It's been a long time since I've been able to taunt the Bulls in this thread.

[Jackal]

Yeah, I guess he was bored.

Fucking post of the year right there. That's the funniest non-Conan/Simpsons/other stuff I dont watch thing you've said in perhaps 3 years. You just got promoted to legend status.

The fact it came from you made me literally laugh out loud.

[NovU]

Lolz. I didn't expect these from Andrew. Maybe he was bored. Nonetheless, good laugh.

[George7]

Dang,what a bad loss....

[Andrew]

Fucking post of the year right there. That's the funniest non-Conan/Simpsons/other stuff I dont watch thing you've said in perhaps 3 years. You just got promoted to legend status.

The fact it came from you made me literally laugh out loud.

Hey, guess I was due for one.

Yes! A Sixers win over the Bulls! It's been a long time since I've been able to taunt the Bulls in this thread.

There was January 7th of this year.

[shadowgrin]

I usually taunt here when it's near playoff time. I'll take what I can get since the Bulls will eventually end up being the 1st seed.

[George7]

Is it me,or are the rest of the contenders(except Lakers) losing many easy games as of late??
Boston lost several games,like the one in Charlotte and Indiana,Knicks(if they're considered one after Melo trade)are losing more and more games,Heat lost to Cavs,Spurs lost 4 straight.

Isn't it somewhat concerning?

I don't know if I have to be more sure that the rest teams are on a bad period and Bulls are going to get the Homecourt and a big advantage on the playoffs, or if they're just doing it to rest players in order to appear better in the post-season.

[Andrew]

The Spurs are currently without Duncan (sprained ankle) and Ginobili's also limping at the moment. The jury's still out on the Perkins/Green trade, but it could just be a bad patch for the Celtics. The Heat had a respectable winning streak prior to dropping the game to the Cavs. I wouldn't make too much of it just yet.

[Andrew]

Ah, much better.

[George7]

For sure At last Booze is back on form... Hopefully he can keep this kind of performance...

[Andrew]

Still not in the clear yet, but things are looking pretty good as far as ending up with that top seed.

[Dan's Brain]

I've started playing closer attention to the Bulls' record vs the Lakers' record. They're highly likely to be the team that comes out of the West and having homecourt advantage against them, while it wouldnt solve all of the problems, is going to be essential. There is a bee's dick between them at the moment.

The Raptors are also fighting their arses off at the moment.

What do we think the Bulls need to do to prep themselves for the playoffs at this stage?
I like that they've been going to Boozer more in the last few games and he's been able to get the job done after his very subpar March campaign. I still think Deng's minutes need to be cut back a little. He's had a terrific year so far, which I hope he gets some sort of official acknowledgement for. At this stage however, it's better to have him at 100% in the postseason.

[Andrew]

Looks like a solid win over the Raptors. Fine game from Rose and some solid performances all around, 60 wins certainly seems to be a possibility.

Since it seems a Finals appearance isn't that far fetched, staying on top and locking home court advantage is absolutely essential now that they're there. Who knows what they could do if they make it to the Finals with four of the seven to be played in Chicago? It's a longshot and even with homecourt advantage a lot could go wrong before a shot at the Larry O'Brien trophy is even in sight, but I like their chances of making some noise a lot better the more time they spend in the United Center.

Even though they've been able to win without Noah, they absolutely need him healthy for the Playoffs. If it means reduced minutes or sitting out a few more games between now and the regular season, so be it. It's not like he demands a lot of touches so I don't think it'll be too much trouble to work him back into the rotation if he plays sparingly for the last few games. They can't afford losing him in the postseason, so give that ankle some rest and fingers crossed he'll be fine sooner rather than later.

I also like the idea of getting Boozer more involved. I think the problem with reducing Deng's minutes is that they still need to fight to keep the top seed and he's having such a good season and been a bit part of their success, so they need him out there. Same goes for Rose, though I'm not a fan of sitting players out for the last couple of games even if the top seed is locked up. Even with the risk of injury, I think you want to enter the Playoffs with some momentum. Lighten their minutes if you can but don't phone it in. Of course, given that Thibodeau is prone to calling a timeout after a sloppy play when the Bulls are up big in extended garbage time, I don't think sustained effort or the possibility of phoning it in is too much of a concern.

[Dan's Brain]

I see your point about Deng, my thing with him is the same as it was a couple of months ago. He is a historically injury-prone player, despite his impressive resilience this year, and as far as I'm concerned, that question mark is still there. I've loved his season, and am very proud of the way that he's progressed. He's definitely provided justification for the Bulls not trading for Carmelo Anthony.

And I'm not suggesting that Thibs sits him out of games completely, but I do believe that they should certainly be restricting the amount of games that he plays 42+ minutes in. An extra 5 or 6 minutes' rest will work wonders. Play a Brewer/Korver swingman combo, and they're still in pretty good stead on both ends of the court.

I may be voicing a minority or even controversial opinion here, but even when Noah and Boozer have been healthy this year, Luol Deng has been the Bulls' second best player.

[Martti.]

Korver with 7 points in the final 1.39.

[Andrew]

If the opportunity is there to give Deng (or anyone else) a bit more of a breather before the Playoffs, then by all means. If they can beat the Cavs and Nets handily, those could be a couple of games where they can let the starters rest in the fourth.

[rise]

I may be voicing a minority or even controversial opinion here, but even when Noah and Boozer have been healthy this year, Luol Deng has been the Bulls' second best player.

Agreed. He's been great for them this year.

How about Rose's big block last night?!!!

[Andrew]

That was pretty awesome. Worth another look, in fact.

phpBB [video]

[puttincomputers]

[Andrew]

Another nice play from that game:

phpBB [video]