Its been a long time...sorry about that. With Jesus losing access to his computer for the longest time, and Atiq B. being in Pakistan for the last month, i figured no one would actually visit or read the blog. Turns out I wasnt completely wrong, but those two it seems still checked up on the site regularly. So in case those two are still checking, or in case there are some lurkers out there, heres a post to test the waters...
The bulls played the Pacers in a pivotal (i guess) game 5, and I'd be lying if i didnt say i wasnt excited.
The bulls have looked bad, to worse and at crucial times down right disgusting. Aside from the constant that is LUOL DENG (though i would say rose huh) everyone else has been mediocre at best. Including our MVP derrick rose. Sure rose has been the ones who pretty much won our games for us in crunch time, but its not to say hes played great all series. Hes missed so many jumpers, has not finished so many layups, and has just been abysmal in passing the ball and setting up his guys.
Speaking of his guys, they didnt help much either. Especially the guy who was supposed to be the answer to the bulls age old problem of consistent scoring, Carlos Boozer.
If you want to believe recent reports, hes been fighting a bad case of turf toe, which in this game got to its worse where he couldn't play anymore.
Is this possible, sure...but it almost makes no sense that it was never mentioned before, since boozer has sucked all series long, and even the last couple games of the season. However, he has also shown several games in a row where he was a huge factor, at least on the offensive end (lets never discuss how bad boozer is on defense...cuz its like...DUH!)
Todays game though didnt dissapoint, you got that energy feeling from just watching the crowd and the team on tv, BEFORE the game even started. Everyone looked focused, and then tip off happened, and i sort of realized it was over then...
The tip is won by noah, who pushes the ball to rose, and rose is immediately faced with a trap. I gotta say i got worried. Would rose's ankle hold out okay, would the pacers just start punching us in the mouth off the bat and beat us physically again? Indiana Interim coach Vogul even announced before the game that if the Pacers won game 5, they would win the series. So i worried, worried if this game would be just like the rest.
But it wasnt, and you could tell from that first play. Rose is trapped, he quickly passes it to deng, who is trapped as well, its a smart and unexpected defensive play, but...the bulls were ready. noah and boozer take to the ft line extended, closest to the ball they yell for the ball....they are decoys
Deng skips over noah to hit a bogans standing ready at the right hand corner 3 spot. Swish. Bulls up 3-0.
Thats how the game started, and it shook any nervousness i had, and id imagine the bulls had. If there was any question if the bulls would have this game won by the end of the night, that questioned was answered with the next several plays.
Whether on defense, or on offense....the bulls played, played hard, and they looked like the better team. The defense was tight, the offense was smooth, but most of all the bulls just looked like the better team.
And that was the most troubling aspect of this entire series. The bulls, the overall number 1 team in the nba, were looking as good as the 8 team in the east, thats like the 19th best team in the entire league. And it was enough to make critics cheer, and bulls fans worry.
Noah had to be the mvp of the game, him and his gramps. Noah played with more energy than he has shown since January, he came out smiling, and yelling, and even had his share of ironic Kevin garnett-esque plays (elbowing mcroberts, then walking away as if he did nothing after McRoberts shoved him back.) but noah kept the energy up both for the team and the fans watching in the U.C. clapping hard, high fiving nearby fans, screaming and yelling. It was a great experience for bulls fans.
And bulls fans should be glad, for as far as Revenge Games go, the bulls dished out true vengence on a pesky indiana team that was embracing SMASH MOUTH thug-ish basketball. We didnt just blow them out like we should have done since game 1, we also beat them playing Chicago Bulls circa 2010-2011 basketball. We killed them with out defense, chopped up their defense with roses slashes to the rim, made them pay when they doubled rose by hitting KEITH BOGANS (TERRIFIC GAME BY THE WAY) and Luol Deng for a barrage of 3s, and when they stopped double teaming rose, and waited for rose to penetrate, ROSE HIT HIS 3s, not to mention bashing them with physical play equivilant to what they dished out at rose all series long.
3pt shots were key in this game. Me and Sergio were discussing thoughts on Rose shooting 3pt shots this series. He shot only 17% from 3 pt land, going 0-9 and 1-9 in the first and 4th game. So there was reason to ask rose not to shoot anymore 3s. But is it a coincidence that the bulls made their game winning run in the 3rd quarter when Rose finally started to his 3pt shots? I think Not.
Rose learned to shoot that 3pter for a reason, it opens up his true game for him. Its like his setup move before he starts dishing out his knockout punches. Its the reason he made such a huge jump in ability this year. rose has constantly come out in interviews talking about 'confidence'. Suggesting that confidence was the one thing that teams should not give rose, because once he has confidence, he feels he is unstoppable.
So its never been about percentages or stats for rose in games. its not about how many shots he missed in a row, its about how many shots he hits after the first one. Rose is that kind of special player that needs to take shots to get out of his slump, the kind of player that understands his body well enough, that the idea of muscle memory can truly exists. If it goes in, he knows why and how to make it go in the rim again and again.
So my argument to serge wasnt that rose should just stop shooting 3pt shots, it was that he needed to be smarter with them. shoot them if he was open, shoot them if he felt he had it, but when it wasnt happening, dont rely on it.
And in this game thats exactly what rose did. He shot 3s early, missing his first 4 early in the first half. And then he went away from shooting htem until mid-3rd quarter. And suddenly, he hit 3 in a row at crucial moments in the 3rd to completely unravel the pacers defense, and take away their confidence. And thats what won us this game.
Pacer fans might want to believe that the bulls only played one real good game of basketball, and that the pacers were with the bulls the whole time...but the players know it really wasnt that close. When rose began to hit those 3pt shots, you saw how the Pacer's players changed. You saw their defense become sloppy, you saw them make more mistakes, you saw them accept defeat.
This was a revenge for sure, and its a shame the bulls didnt go out and play like this since game 1. But in the end its another win, 4 wins...1 round won.
Now its off to a place we havent been since kirk hinrich was awesome...now its off to the second round. But this isnt 2007, this is 2011...and this team isnt being led by a strange combo of ben turnover gordon, or kirk bricking hinrich....its led by drose...
...M....V...P....
Spot on. In addition to what you wrote, I was glad to see the Bulls push the ball more and not let Indiana setup their halfcourt defense. That running pressure led to many of those open threes. Boozer had twice as many fouls as points. Should we be concerned that the United Center was actually happy when Boozer got in foul trouble and Gibson had to be brought in early on? Can the Bulls beat an Orlando or Atlanta team without a contribution from him?
ReplyDeleteCan the bulls beat orlando or atlanta without boozer. Honestly...yes. Its just a bit harder. And it puts more pressure on rose for sure. Atlanta are just a sloppy team on both ends of the court, kirk hinrich is often left alone with the opposing pgs, so if hinrich can shut down rose, rose will find easy ways to the rim. And i love hinrich, but hes not stopping rose. Bulls should win.
ReplyDeleteAgainst dwight howard, boozer wont do much to begin with so i dont think he is key for that series, except to give dwight some fouls.
I think the fear with boozer is that he might be the next ben wallace to chicago...but imo its not true. Boozer has worth, and ill buy his 'injured act' though thats another concern.
Hope im sitting next to you at the uc nxt time kirk and rose are on the court at the same time
http://www.foxsportsohio.com/msn/04/29/11/Double-Dribbles-Second-tier-superstars/landing_cavaliers.html?blockID=513208&feedID=3724
ReplyDeleteIf it doesn't work you can always put Second Tier Superstars in Google and the article should come up.
Read this article recently and thought it might interest you. It is short, but touches on a few different players and the way they are perceived. Reminded me of some of our conversations. Looking back over the past thirty years what five players would you name off the top of your head to be in the first tier? I would probably go Magic, Bird, Jordan, Kobe, and Duncan. Would you include more, less, or someone different. I think for his dominance I'd want to put Shaq, but he always came off as being able to do even more. I shouldn't feel that way about a first tier superstar. There shouldn't be unrealized potential or you shouldn't feel like they should have won more, but with Shaq I do.
Ah, unfortunately you will never be able to read my initial post. I started writing and thinking at the same time, which is probably one of the most annoying and interesting ways of writing. I debated while writing who i would pick, going through the list and several candidates most notably including lebron james and scottie pippen. It probably wouldve been more pleasing to you than the actual answer. Yet i forgot to 'log in' before i began typing, and so when i tried to post and log in via that, an error resulted in my long ass post resulted in its death. Yes...its a shame...
ReplyDeleteAt any rate here is a shorter cleaner, and thus less interesting answer
My 5 top tier players
Magic
Jordan
Bird
Duncan
Shaq
To put it simply, these are the 5 guys who for their position have set the standard. To me Jordan Magic and Duncan were the easiest. All three are easily the best at their position ever in the history of the nba. It really shouldnt be an argument. If you want to test the knowledge of a supposed nba follower, ask him who was the best sg, if they say anyone other than jordan...stop talking to them. The same when asked about the best PG and PF. Its not even close
Magic is a hybrid of Chris Paul and Jason kidd, only this hybrid also exists within a dominating 6'9 frame and could literally play with any player at any position AS any position.
So then we get to the final 2. Bird and Shaq. I chose shaq mainly because of his dominance, something that hadnt existed in the nba since Wilt the Stilt. I think whats the scariest about shaq is that he never really played to his potential. can you imagine if he had Kgs killer instinct and desire to win? Then theres this overlooked fact that unlike most superstars that exist or have existed, shaq was one of hte rare ones who could be inserted on any team and have a dominant impact. Shaq with his skillset should seemingly fit in with great shooters around him, but he actually played some of his best years with a bunch of high usage ball handling slashers in penny, kobe, and dwade. He was terrific at passing out of double teams, and creating offense out of tight spaces and situation (i guess u dont need much room to just turn around and dunk the ball) and after watching Dwight howard have less than dominating seasons with orlando despite being far more athletic than shaq, and just as big, its even more remarkable at how terrific shaq was even without the ideal basketball mindset.
For bird, i was in constant debate. My main reason for questioning bird was this thought that a guy like pippen or lebron james might have simply been better than bird in a skillset point of view. However i ended up opting for bird for a singular reason; Every draft theres several players who are considered with the potential to be the next Jordan, Or Stockton, or Pippen, Or a baby shaq. Hell that one 6'9 chinese pg was quickly compared to Magic before even coming into the nba. However, when was the last time a player was compared to larry bird?
NEVER.
Larry bird is perhaps the most unique player to ever play in the nba. His unselfishness, his endearing leadership, his never say die attitude, his ability to remain calm at all times, but most of all HIS COMPLETE UNCONVENTIONALISM. He was an unathletic, tall, poorly mechanized shooter. And yet he succeeded at the highest level as one of the top 3 players of his time.
And thats where ill define what i think it means to be a top tier player.
continued....
ReplyDeleteIts not about winning the most rings, or being the most productive at your position. to me the top tier player has this legendary aura around him. Where future generations who watch the vidoes, listen to the stories, and have chance encounters with these players can do nothing more than shake their heads and say "how could such a man have ever existed?"
From Birds lack of athleticism, to magics 6'9 frame, to Jordans unfathomable drive to win, to shaqs incredible size and singular train of thought (DUNK THIS BALL) and ending at Tim Duncans simply flawless (and i mean this in the LITERAL SENSE) these guys were not just the best at their position, but represented the closest thing to ideal and at the same time surreal ability to play the game at their positions.
They are top tier because you can take anyone at thier position before them, or after them, and no matter how big the name was or would be, it would be an underdog when faced with the lore of these 5 players. Perhaps not in the 1v1 setting, but always in the 5v5 setting.
So heres an impossible challenge, is there any lineup in the nba..EVER that could simply keep up with (forget beating) a starting five of
pg:MAGIC JOHNSON
sg:MICHAEL JORDAN
sf:LARRY BIRD
pf:TIM DUNCAN
c:SHAQ O'NEAL
probably not...
I am going to need some time to come up with a team, but the first two players that come to mind are Pippen and Kobe. Those two will definitely be on my team. On another note, I don't see how you can admit that Shaq never lived up to his potential and still put him on top tier status...
ReplyDeleteThought about it some more. A weakness for your team might be your perimeter shooting and defense. Bird is your only knock down shooter from the perimeter. Jordan was streaky and Magic was a low percentage perimeter shooter. Also, Bird and Magic were never known for their individual defense. Bird was one of the great basketball minds and with him, Duncan, and Magic you have three of the better teammates in basketball history. Some people think great players can't play together, but I disagree. Look at the Olympic teams and you see a team where guys are not worried about how many shots they get. The leading scorer, in fact, is usually not the best player. Barkley led the 92' Dream Team in scoring and Carmelo led the 08' team.
ReplyDeleteI think I would have to counter your Jordan pick with Kobe. The closest thing to Jordan on both ends of the court and he is probably a better perimeter shooter than Jordan was. I like Pippen for his defense, probably the best perimiter defender ever, and his sidekick complex. As great a teammate as anyone you have on your side. I think the hardest to pick against position by position will be Duncan. I cannot think of anyone else at that position that was as money as Duncan. You have a Karl Malone statistically, but he was not a big game player. I also don't want to go back too far. I think this should be limited to the last thirty years or so. Sorry, no Russell or Oscar Robertson. Even though the Big O might be just the right counter to your picking Magic. I am debating Howard and Lebron, but they are too young and we still don't know how their careers will end up. I would love to just throw Howard on Shaq and let those two guys go at it. I think we forget about Shaq's postseason departures. He is similar to Howard in many ways. I would call Howard's season dominating this year. Shaq had season's like that and then his team crashed in the playoffs. Shaq had a run of three or four years in which his team was swept out of the playoffs. He had very good teams that never won anything. Those Magic teams were solid and I don't think Howard has played with anyone that was a good for a three or four year stretch as Penny was. Yikes! I am going to be late for work...
A friend brought up an interesting player...hakeem. Hakeem though did play in the 70s, he also played in the early 80s, while he was getting older sure, he might also have been one of those guys that aged real well, in the sense that his contribution would always be constant. If i could do it over id pick him instead of shaq cuz hakeem had the right work ethic. Still im fine wtih shaq as well (the reason i think shaq still didnt hit his true potential, he wasnt as driven as a jordan or bird. If he had been he wouldve been even more dominating, and like u said, his teams as good as they were crashed deeper in the post season. He needed the kobes and wades just as much as they needed him) So u should take hakeem
ReplyDeleteso ure team thus far is
Kobe
Pippen
Hakeem (if u take my suggestion)
Howard (perhaps)
?
Maybe u pick up isiah? Or pick rodman instead of hakeem, surely he can peave duncan and shaq, especially shaq
I did think of Hakeem. I even texted you while at work probably right around the time you were posting this comment. Weird that we were thinking of it at the same time. Olajuwon played in the 80s and 90s. He was from the same draft class as Jordan. The 84' draft went Hakeem, Bowie, Jordan. The Dream went number one overall. He won back to back championships and in the second of the two he helped the Rockets sweep Shaq's Magic in the Finals. He also destroyed Robinson as seen in the infamous youtube clip. I will definitely take Olajuwon and I feel good about that matchup.
ReplyDeleteI had forgotten how much I liked Hakeem. Maybe the most agile big man ever. Great in the low post and great at turning and facing. Better range than Shaq. A wider array of moves. Seemingly more driven. One of the best shot blockers ever. Given how great he moved for a center I am still undecided whether I want to play him at that position or at power forward.
ReplyDeleteha i for some reason confused hakeeem with Kareem Abdul Jabbar...
ReplyDelete