SB Nation Chicago Editor's Pick
What's Happened These Last Seven Games?
by YaoPau on Apr 6, 2011 6:08 PM CDT
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Print[From the FanPosts. As much as I love stats, I love more when they support my observations. I'm very scared that I don't know what I'm talking about when doing recaps and the like -ed.]
Lots of recent posts about how things feel different recently. The Bulls have won 6 of 7, but no game has been easy on that stretch, and it's particularly concerning with the playoffs a week away.
There have been some ideas about what the cause is: Noah's health, Boozer's health, Rose/Watson/Gibson/Bogans being banged up, teams finding success using small lineups. I looked at the basketballvalue lineup data to try to test these, and you download the spreadsheet here. As a qualifier, because of the sample sizes, this post is meant to try to figure out what happened instead of what's happening, if that makes any sense [ed. note: great line, ha. Much more after the jump].
Individual Plus Minuses
Player Orating, Drating, and Raw PlusMinus, last 7 games:
Player Min Orat Drat Net Raw+/-
Deng 277 113.4 102.5 10.9 55
Rose 266 112.4 105.0 7.4 37
Boozer 223 109.1 109.8 -0.8 -1
Brewer 140 106.5 101.5 5.0 9
Noah 136 104.8 101.6 3.2 8
Gibson 134 112.0 106.4 5.6 13
Bogans 125 108.2 111.7 -3.5 -8
Korver 108 110.5 106.4 4.1 15
Thomas 102 114.6 113.5 1.0 2
Watson 97 105.4 107.6 -2.2 -4
Asik 73 116.2 94.2 22.0 29
OVERALL 336 110.4 105.5 4.9 31
Rose and Deng have been the lead dogs all season, and it seems they've kept it up these last seven games. Asik, who is #1 in the NBA in Net Rating (Bulls are a ridiculous +15.04 per 100 possessions when he's on the court this year) is still on track, and he's been so good I'm wondering why his minutes are going down and not up.
Boozer, Bogans and to a lesser degree Noah stand out on the negative side. Their plusminuses are okay, but considering how often they play with Rose and Deng, there shouldn't be that large a disparity. Lineups with Rose and Deng and WITHOUT Boozer and Bogans outscored opponents 101-68 in 42 minutes.
The Starting Lineup Issue
Bulls' starting lineups (Rose, Bogans, Deng, Boozer, and either Noah/Thomas), last 7 games:
107 minutes played, 106.0 ORating, 113.1 DRating, -7.1 Net
It's important to mention that the difference between a 113 DRating and a 101 DRating in 107 minutes is 225pts allowed vs 200pts allowed, so bad luck could have something to do with it. But it's concerning considering they've played Memphis, Milwaukee, Philly, Minnesota, Detroit, Toronto, Phoenix, a bunch of unremarkable teams, and I wouldn't have expected them to be negative over what was supposed to be an easy 7 game stretch.
Playing Against Small Lineups
Simmons and yfbb mentioned the Bulls seem to struggle against small lineups. I went through the opponent lineups of the past 7 games and rated them on a subjective Small Scale. Here's the system:
0: Opponent played a lineup with two legit bigs (examples: Randolph/Gasol, Brand/Hawes, Davis/Amir)
1: Lineup with one tweener big (Arthur/Randolph, Mbah a Moute/Bogut, Thaddeus/Brand)
2: Lineup with two tweener bigs (Arthur/Powe, Warrick/Frye, Daye/Maxiell)
3: Small forwards playing inside (Battier/Gasol, Iguodala/Hawes, JamesJohnson/Amir)
3's were very rare, so I combined them with 2's for the following table:
Against Min Orating Drating Net
0's 158 112.8 103.4 9.3
1's 152 109.2 107.5 1.7
2's/3's 26 104.1 106.3 -2.2
I'd love to try this for a full season but it's too much work. I'm guessing these aren't significant because of the sample sizes, but it supports yfbb's observation that going small has worked against the Bulls recently.
What should the Bulls do in this scenario? Against small lineups in these 7 games:
Bulls Min Orating Drating Net
Booz+Taj 13 96.2 138.5 -42.3
Kurt 39 103.8 112.8 -9.1
Noah 78 108.9 104.8 4.1
Asik 44 113.6 106.1 7.5
DengPF 4 128.6 50.0 78.6
I listed lineups with Deng at PF for reference because I remember finding last week that the Bulls are like +15 net per 100 poss with Luol playing PF this year. I forgot to save the excel, but I'm gonna dig up that stat before the playoffs, and I think that's one option if the opponent goes super-small. For most small lineups, the easier answer is Noah and Asik seem like perfect bigs to play against small lineups because they move so well.
I suspected the Bulls' two worst options were playing a Boozer/Taj frontcourt (giving up a lot defensively, especially against small teams who can penetrate), and playing Kurt Thomas (not his style).
yfbb specifically brought up the Suns game when talking about the Bulls struggling against small lineups. The lineups that killed us late featured Warrick playing PF. For the game, here's how the various Bulls lineups fared against WarrickPF lineups:
Gibson/Asik: 4.9 minutes, +6
Gibson/Thomas: 2.7 minutes, +2
Gibson/Noah: 1.3 minutes, +2
Deng/Gibson: 2.3 minutes, -3
Boozer/Noah: 1.5 minutes, -5
Boozer/Gibson: 5.4 minutes, -7
Boozer had a tough game. Nevertheless, the Bulls did okay overall vs the small lineups, and I think in general the Bulls are deep and flexible enough to handle any style of play. The bigger issue to me is that the Bulls' starting lineup was never that good to begin with, and with these injuries they've really struggled.
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good stuff as usual
i totally agree on the small lineups not being much of an issue. we have such a deep and versatile bench when thibs actually wants to go to it and switch up lineups.to counter something thats giving us trouble if at all
bogans really has to go. i still cannot find one legitimate argument for why he is starting and barely playing minutes at all.
"I ran into lebron last night, asked him for a dollar. He gave me 75 cents. I was puzzled, then realized he never gives you the fourth quarter"
it's over
There’s no way Bogans leaves the starting lineup or rotation now. In fact at this point it may be a poor idea with so few games left.
That’s always why it hurt more that he started for his 12-18 minutes, it’d be easier to reduce his minutes (even to zero) if he wasn’t starting.
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"Don't nag, flag!"
by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 7, 2011 9:49 AM CDT up reply actions
i'd add to that
by saying I think “starting” is overrated. playing time is far more important and bogans is clearly given the very short leash he deserves. clamoring for korver/brewer/watson as starters won’t change much about the team except the marquee
Great work
Asik, who is #1 in the NBA in Net Rating (Bulls are a ridiculous +15.04 per 100 possessions when he’s on the court this year) is still on track, and he’s been so good I’m wondering why his minutes are going down and not up.
If we get knocked out of the Playoffs in a bad way, I can see myself being very angry at Thibs for 2 things: Not using Omer more, and insisting on staying with Bogans.
For a guy that seems to be very thoughtful and forward thinking when it comes to basketball, I’m pretty surprised that he’s so dug in with the way he utilizes his lineups. I still hate this revolving door at the two, and Omer needs to see more time.
I didn't want to type this sentence, the force from an Omer Asik dunk made my fingers do it.
In a way it makes sense. Noah and Booz need to get in shape for the playoffs
so I’m ok with that if that is the goal.
Otherwise I don’t get it either
by JustAnotherFan on Apr 6, 2011 7:23 PM CDT up reply actions
I almost think Thibs is trying to hide him
Like saving him for a secret weapon during the playoffs. I realize it’s farfetched but nothing else makes any sense.
There are the guys who get you the need baskets," says Bulls reserve forward Brian Scalabrine, referring to the vital hoops that stop runs and close out games. "I have a different word for killers. I call them mother-------. And right now, Derrick Rose is the baddest mother------ in the league by far. He is the reason we win.
I holding onto hope that
Thibs is saving Jomer for the playoffs. Can’t give your opponents film to analyze if they never play together!
if this is true....
thibs truly is a basketball savant.
by JockstrapNoah on Apr 7, 2011 11:04 AM CDT up reply actions
It's possible that the reason Asik has performed so well is directly because of how Thibs is playing him
In other words, Thibs is using him in matchups and with lineups in which he can succeed. If played more, his performance might drop off significantly. I don’t know if this is true, but it’s certainly a reasonable theory.
by berzerkulous on Apr 7, 2011 9:15 AM CDT up reply actions 3 recs
Even if his overall performance dropped a bit
he would still be playing really well, and the bulls would be getting more positive minutes on the floor instead of the Gibson/Boozer minutes of death.
Sure, I'm all for more Omer.
I’d rather test it than just assume he’d fall off tons. But I think it’s reasonable to assume that his statistical dominance in plus/minus has to do with his selective play, and that maybe his actual quality isn’t that high. I.e., he’s not the best defensive center in the league. Maybe, he’s only like the fifth best (which is still why he should be playing more, not fewer, minutes).
His numbers would dip, but that's natural.
Literally, there have been games where Omer has played a total of 4 minutes. He fucking is giving Bogans more minutes. It’s maddeningly frustrating for how well Asik has played defensively.
"The advanced metrics guys do not like Derrick Rose very much." - Bills Simmons podcast 2/4
by RogersPark Kris on Apr 7, 2011 11:52 AM CDT up reply actions
Totally agree
Who knows how good Omer would be given 30mpg. But with the team struggling, with Noah hobbled, with Kurt as basically a niche defensive specialist (down low bruiser who doesn’t move well), you’d think there’d be more minutes for the +15 net guy. Noah and Kurt are +6 net this year. Why wouldn’t it be possible that Omer with a dropoff is still at least +6? And what’s the cost of experimenting to see if that’s true? It’s not like Kurt has needed consistent minutes to find a rhythm.
Thibs seems to be of the "make them adapt to us" school of coaching
Which might explain why he is so intent on playing Boozer/Taj as an answer to smaller line-ups. Unfortunately, from what you’ve shown, it’s not working. Personally, I’d much rather see him match with Noah/Deng and then maybe Rose/Watson/Brewer on the wings. Do you know if the Bulls have even tried that line-up at any point this season? It seems like it has a ton of both offensive and defensive potential in short bursts.
honestly im one of the guys who likes that school of coaching
ive always been a firm believer that if youre the better team you impose your will on the other team and not the other way around.
i feel the problem with small lineups working against our bigs is the fact that boozer isnt being utilized properly to punish teams for putting out such small lineups. i mean if the guy we paid 80 million to over the summer cant post up tweeners and destroy small lineups inside then what the hell did we even pay for that taj cannot already do?
"I ran into lebron last night, asked him for a dollar. He gave me 75 cents. I was puzzled, then realized he never gives you the fourth quarter"
by sin on Apr 6, 2011 6:45 PM CDT up reply actions
That doesn't make sense to me.
I may be the best knife-fighter in the world and as long as others only bring knives, I can beat anyone, but if someone brings a sword (or gun, or whatever), trying to fight with a knife might work, but it might not. You might want to grab your own sword.
It’s like the British fighting the Americans in the Revolutionary War. They continued to insist on imposing their will, but it didn’t matter. If they would have adopted a more guerrilla style, maybe it could have been over before the French finally got in.
In the past 10 years, just four team owners have not paid a luxury tax and are not on pace to pay one this year: Donald Sterling, Jerry Reinsdorf, Chris Cohen (Golden State), Bob Johnson (Charlotte).
Two owners’ teams averaged an operating income of over +$10 million per year while their teams have lost over 60% of their games: Donald Sterling and Jerry Reinsdorf.
There isn't any tactic in the NBA good enough to be described by that analogy. If it there was, Vinny
wouldn’t have been able to coach the Bulls to a .500 record.
by silentpete on Apr 6, 2011 8:18 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Agreed
My sport is tennis, and in that game some players try to get to the net constantly, some pound away from the baseline, and ones like me stood back and always played defense.
Things tend to work well for me when I dictate the style of play to match my game (really slow pace, long drawn out points, no attacking) instead of reacting to my opponent’s. At my level, one strategy is no better than the other, they’re just different. If an opponent tries playing super aggressive I need to know how to react (in Thibs’ case, I think it’s by choosing the correct bigs), but that doesn’t mean I should start playing super aggressive back.
I think maybe if I'm continuing your analogy:
Sin thinks Boozer’s a sword, not a knife.
Your analogies are both situations where someone starts with a clear advantage and the opponent fails to/can’t adjust. I think we shouldn’t be at a disadvantage with Boozer for the same reason as Sin. It’s like we have the sword but we decide to fight with our fists instead.
Having written this, I feel ridiculous. But I think the logic’s good.
I agree with your point but...
Your idea of the Revolutionary war is slightly flawed. The war was won by the fact that we were able to eventually fight the British in open battle once the French arrived. Had the French not intervened we would have lost. We tend to glorify the gorilla warfare as a key factor when really it was a side narrative.
"If you're not going to compete, then I'll dominate you." MJ
by Rankdog on Apr 6, 2011 11:38 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Guerilla, not gorilla, but still an excellent point.
There’s also the fact that a huge ocean separated the British troops from their reinforcements and sovereign, so that their force was much less adaptable than ours.
No, Mel beat the British, but he was Scotish at the time.
"Did Michael Jordan join the Pistons when he couldn't beat them? No. He dug down deep and went out and kicked their fucking ass."
You didn't see The Patriot?!?
I only post cotton candy. Because it's delicious.
I have
but I also watched Braveheart!
"Did Michael Jordan join the Pistons when he couldn't beat them? No. He dug down deep and went out and kicked their fucking ass."
Well, the revolutionary war was longer.
I only post cotton candy. Because it's delicious.
Braveheart was definitely longer
than the revolutionary war.
by JockstrapNoah on Apr 7, 2011 5:15 PM CDT up reply actions 3 recs
yeah, i knew all that but hoped i was just simplifying things and no one would call me out on it
In the past 10 years, just four team owners have not paid a luxury tax and are not on pace to pay one this year: Donald Sterling, Jerry Reinsdorf, Chris Cohen (Golden State), Bob Johnson (Charlotte).
Two owners’ teams averaged an operating income of over +$10 million per year while their teams have lost over 60% of their games: Donald Sterling and Jerry Reinsdorf.
eye test
it’s not that the bulls can’t defend them (with their normal, big guys), but what the smalls can do to disrupt the bulls’ offense, by way of trapping rose or zoning up and forcing perimeter shots. often, smaller = quicker and better able to close out the perimeter, or force turnovers from trapping.
and getting run outs are key to nullifying a good half court defense.
scalabrine runs everything. fuck scalabrine!
Does anybody know why the O-Rating drops
I suspect turnovers become a problem, but don’t have anyway of verifying this.
i hate the boozer/taj lineup
and now i know why! and this is why i’ve been an advocate of, if we are put in the position where we are going to trade one of our bigs, it needs to be taj, and not asik, because i like the three man booz/noah/asik much better than booz/taj/noah.
Look
I didn’t want to offend anyone by saying the "f" word or generalizing my statement to any particular sex by saying "gays" or lesbians" or "bi’s" so "homos" is the most "politically correct" term. I’m just trying to be more tact in a tactless blog.
by Hindut Patrol on Feb 15, 2011 2:51 PM EST
by Jaina on Apr 6, 2011 7:10 PM CDT reply actions 1 recs
in the end taj and asik bring the same: defense
Booz is our only post offense
so no point in trading him
by JustAnotherFan on Apr 6, 2011 7:26 PM CDT up reply actions
wasn't asking you
scalabrine runs everything. fuck scalabrine!
by marionette on Apr 6, 2011 7:41 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
OOOOOooOoOoOOOOOoOOOOo
eat. sleep. hoop. repeat. become legendary.
by Sir Buckets on Apr 6, 2011 8:19 PM CDT up reply actions 5 recs
if you post something on the internet...
really, aren’t you asking everyone?
by SidM on Apr 7, 2011 8:50 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Actually...
The Internet is mostly Porn….
Clinched 3rd seed in the East. MN(SAS): 7 MN(Bos): 3 MN(LAL): 2 MN(Mia): 1 MN(Orl): 0
FUCK RONDO
Teams without Chapu lost 1173 games during the 2009-'10 season.
by chapuforyou on Apr 7, 2011 12:21 PM CDT up reply actions 3 recs
I'd hate to see that porn
"Word of advice, don’t join, Bears fans are crazy."--- D-Jackfan10
by ThorCo on Apr 7, 2011 2:44 PM CDT up reply actions 2 recs
I genuinely think it's funny when people say this on the internet
by Stacey_Is_King on Apr 7, 2011 12:20 PM CDT up reply actions
Taj is good too though
14 PER big man who defends well, there’s good value in that. Before this season I guessed Taj would be the better APM player than Boozer this season, and I’m not sure that’s wrong. The Bulls are slightly better with Taj on the court (7.7 vs +7.0), and he has a slightly higher 2-year APM (0.16 to 0.00). You gotta overpay for scoring, and Rose needs another scorer on the court, so Boozer is crucial, but Taj might be as efficient, maybe more efficient.
Look at the Bulls’ top lineups this year. Of the 9 lineups with 100+ minutes played, two stand out for their crazy efficiency:
Rose-Brewer-Deng-Taj-Asik is +30 per 100 poss
Rose-Brewer-Deng-Taj-Kurt is +28 per 100 poss
You could make a pretty strong argument that Rose/Brewer/Deng/Taj are the Bulls’ best APM players at each position (Korver close to Brewer, Boozer close to Taj), and together they’ve been amazing this year. The Bulls have their mid-level to get a SG this offseason.
my sentiment isn't anti-taj at all, really
he’s a good backup, but that’s what he is – a backup. and i just think if i’m picking a three man rotation, he’d be the odd man out, only because the taj-booz lineup is so ineffective.
Look
I didn’t want to offend anyone by saying the "f" word or generalizing my statement to any particular sex by saying "gays" or lesbians" or "bi’s" so "homos" is the most "politically correct" term. I’m just trying to be more tact in a tactless blog.
by Hindut Patrol on Feb 15, 2011 2:51 PM EST
by Jaina on Apr 6, 2011 11:25 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
I don't like the Suns going small against the 2nd unit
it seems coaches can force Asik off the floor that way.
I think that Boston game will reveal the real problem
let’s see how much they will give on the court
I'm glad the data supports my observations so I don't look dumb
I’m surprised there’s that many minutes with Asik against smaller lineups, as it seems like Thibs abandons it fairly quickly (and especially so in that Suns game).
I think saying that both Asik and Noah ‘move well’ is a bit misleading as Noah (when healthy, anyway) moves a lot better. Asik will still easily foul. But in comparison to Kurt Thomas, Asik is a gazelle.
BaB on Twitter | BaB on Facebook
"Don't nag, flag!"
by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 7, 2011 9:48 AM CDT reply actions
Is this year setting up to be a '91 finals rematch?
Not sure how many old school Bulls fans there are from the Jordan days. But it’s looking more like a rematch of the Lakers vs Bulls in 1991 and this guy has a good article of what it was like from a Bulls fan’s perspective:
http://chasing23.com/2011/03/down-memory-lane-the-1991-nba-finals-2
i really really hope so
this would be the perfect year for that..
la-bulls 20 years after!
yeah i'm rooting for it too
let’s go bulls!
Look
I didn’t want to offend anyone by saying the "f" word or generalizing my statement to any particular sex by saying "gays" or lesbians" or "bi’s" so "homos" is the most "politically correct" term. I’m just trying to be more tact in a tactless blog.
by Hindut Patrol on Feb 15, 2011 2:51 PM EST
This has almost been surreal.
Born in ‘81, here, so the ’91 Championship is really my first “big” sports memory. The chance to recreate something like that is just phenomenal. :) That article was a really good read, and it’s really funny just how true some of it holds out. The Lakers have just been dominating in the last decade, and the Bulls have spent the better part of the year surprising the NBA (as a whole, not necessarily Chicago fans). No finals matchup, to me, could be better than Lakers / Bulls. This part of the article really drives home what you’d love to see happen again:
“And If Game 2 taught the Bulls that they could win the Lakers, Game 3 would teach them that they would win.”
ASIK AND DESTROY
Wait, those who remember Jordan are now "old school Bulls fans"?
I need a drink.
by arjoseph on Apr 7, 2011 3:03 PM CDT up reply actions 4 recs
Well, his rise was 20 years ago.
Hard to imagine, really. The 90s still seem like yesterday to me.
Road to the Number 1 Seed Assassination Missions:
Suns: Mission Accomplished... I guess. Still 3 up in the loss column... I guess. Can't believe we got bullied by the corpse of Vince Carter.
Celtics:
Cavaliers:
Congratulations to the Central Division Champions: The Chicago Bulls!
This will be my last Assassination Missions sig for a month. After the Celtics game I leave to China and will not return until May 9th. I'm sure you all care, of course.
by Dr. Handsome, D.D.S. on Apr 7, 2011 5:19 PM CDT up reply actions
You're not the only one.
"Fast Don't Lie"
by Sandberg's evil twin on Apr 10, 2011 9:53 AM CDT up reply actions
lmao, Thibs
“What’s fatigue? We have an advantage from the standpoint we’re playing 10 guys. And we’ve played 10 guys all season. We should be well-rested.”
lol, that quote kinda sums up Thibs in two words, doesn't it?: "What's fatigue?"
I didn't want to type this sentence, the force from an Omer Asik dunk made my fingers do it.
by Juiceboxjerry on Apr 7, 2011 1:14 PM CDT up reply actions
I rec YaoPau
before reading his posts, then wish I could rec again after his analysis. Good stuff, as usual.
Speaking of guys that get instant recs, what happened to Scotter?
He used to post a few things every now and then that were really interesting
I didn't want to type this sentence, the force from an Omer Asik dunk made my fingers do it.
by Juiceboxjerry on Apr 7, 2011 1:14 PM CDT up reply actions
I have a theory --
Since the Bulls are now at the top of the conference, teams bring their A-game against them. Everyone wants to see how they measure up against the alpha dog.
What the hell, no one downloads the spreadsheet?
That’s the best part of it. You can do filters and look at certain types of matchups! Boo.
I can promise you that the only reason I didn't do it is because I'm dumb
I didn't want to type this sentence, the force from an Omer Asik dunk made my fingers do it.
by Juiceboxjerry on Apr 7, 2011 1:39 PM CDT up reply actions 4 recs
the turkish profit
johnschuhmann John Schuhmann
Fun stat: Only 8 rookies have a positive +/-. Omer Asik is +232. Next best is Gary Neal at +109.
by JustAnotherFan on Apr 7, 2011 2:00 PM CDT reply actions 3 recs
Say, that reminds me of a stat somebody posted in a thread a little while ago.
Something about the Bulls outscoring its opponents in the 4th more than any other team in the league, by an oddly similar margin (200+ for Bulls, nearest team at 100, or something).
Intriguing (assuming I recalled this correctly).
That is a great stat though.
Someone is seriously slackin' today
Where’s the game preview? That thing shoulda been up last week. I’ve resorted to trolling the Celtics board
I didn't want to type this sentence, the force from an Omer Asik dunk made my fingers do it.
the signup sheet says 'dantheman3k'
I’ve been busy trying to get #FuckRondo to trend on twitter.
BaB on Twitter | BaB on Facebook
"Don't nag, flag!"
by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 7, 2011 3:48 PM CDT up reply actions 2 recs
Great job btw
I don’t think I’ve stopped laughing all day
I didn't want to type this sentence, the force from an Omer Asik dunk made my fingers do it.
by Juiceboxjerry on Apr 7, 2011 3:55 PM CDT up reply actions
damn this sbn waiting period
or I’d be right there with ya…. anxious for the preview as well.
by JockstrapNoah on Apr 7, 2011 3:49 PM CDT up reply actions
man i wanted to do this one too
"I ran into lebron last night, asked him for a dollar. He gave me 75 cents. I was puzzled, then realized he never gives you the fourth quarter"
by sin on Apr 7, 2011 5:23 PM CDT up reply actions
So who is like me and got home from work/school/whatever
And put on their D Rose jersey right away?
Bears. Bulls. White Sox.
Fuck that man.
I wore my D Rose jersey to school.
"Did Michael Jordan join the Pistons when he couldn't beat them? No. He dug down deep and went out and kicked their fucking ass."
by Dash2112 on Apr 7, 2011 4:07 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Ahh, take a chance!
Or don’t. That’s probably for the best.
"Did Michael Jordan join the Pistons when he couldn't beat them? No. He dug down deep and went out and kicked their fucking ass."
No, but I fashioned a Rondo jersey into a diaper.
Work’s been, uh, uncomfortable, but oh so full of FUCK RONDO-y satisfaction.
"Smith stripped. Smith stopped! Smith stopped again by Pippen!"
by ColonelFatheart on Apr 7, 2011 4:12 PM CDT up reply actions 3 recs
I haven't properly transitioned from being a childhood fan to being an adult fan.
So I would feel embarrassed wearing the jersey of someone who is 7 years younger than I am.
Road to the Number 1 Seed Assassination Missions:
Suns: Mission Accomplished... I guess. Still 3 up in the loss column... I guess. Can't believe we got bullied by the corpse of Vince Carter.
Celtics:
Cavaliers:
Congratulations to the Central Division Champions: The Chicago Bulls!
This will be my last Assassination Missions sig for a month. After the Celtics game I leave to China and will not return until May 9th. I'm sure you all care, of course.
by Dr. Handsome, D.D.S. on Apr 7, 2011 5:46 PM CDT up reply actions
Just want to get this out there
They are replaying the Boston/Bulls playoff series on NBATV right now. I think it’s on the 5th game right now, they’re playing them all in a row.
"Nothing can happen till you swing the bat." -Haruko Haruhara
by windycitywarrior on Apr 7, 2011 4:10 PM CDT reply actions
It's game 6.
My favorite!
"Did Michael Jordan join the Pistons when he couldn't beat them? No. He dug down deep and went out and kicked their fucking ass."
Yup game 6, My bad :P
"Nothing can happen till you swing the bat." -Haruko Haruhara
by windycitywarrior on Apr 7, 2011 4:13 PM CDT up reply actions
Agreed, except for the Rondo cheap-shot on Hinrich
Best part about game 6 was the walk up 3 pointer by B Miller. I was at BDubs and the entire place went crazy crazy.
Bears. Bulls. White Sox.
by The Voiss on Apr 7, 2011 4:14 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
I have to disagree.
The best part about game 6 was the Noah steal-and-dunk on Pierce and the Rose block on FuckRondo.
But the Miller 3 and then his drive (or was it the other way around?) is pretty damn close.
"Did Michael Jordan join the Pistons when he couldn't beat them? No. He dug down deep and went out and kicked their fucking ass."
by Dash2112 on Apr 7, 2011 4:16 PM CDT up reply actions 4 recs
Oh right forgot that was Game 6 hahahaha
That was the best part of the whole series
Bears. Bulls. White Sox.
Rewatching Game 6 is great.
This one was such a classic game. Though I really don’t think I want to rewatch game 7. :P
ASIK AND DESTROY
It's so depressing
The Bulls start the game so hot, but just can’t keep it going
It's ironic, but watching Game 7 again makes me feel great about a Bulls / Celtics ECF this year.
You watch the ‘09 Bulls and just keep noticing all the places they’ve drastically improved.
The ‘09 Celtics, I don’t know, they’re not that different than this year’s team, just older. Yeah, KG was out, but they had Perkins + Davis playing in the ’09 series. Swap out KG for Perkins (not equal, of course), give the Bulls a new coach who has good insight on the Celtics, and things seem a lot more favorable.
ASIK AND DESTROY
KG is more important to them than Perkins.
But the thing is, we got way better. Our improvement dwarfs whatever uptick they get from a healthy KG.
Entirely true.
But the team isn’t exactly the same, unless you think Gordon and Hinrich were useless in that series… which probably could not be farther from the truth.
"Phil is obviously a good coach. You don't win that many games without being a damn good coach, ... Remember one thing: He's been very fortunate. He picks his spots. That's all I can say." - Red Auerbach
04 + 07 = 11
Gordon was definitely huge that series, and will be the biggest thing we miss.
As good as Korver is, he couldn’t have busted those impossible shots like Allen and BG were.
As for Captain Kurt, well . . . I was/am a huge Kirk fan, but I don’t think we’ll be missing him much at all. His defense was always a little overrated (just a little) because, while he was a bulldog, he didn’t have the athleticism to be a truly lockdown defender. Rose isn’t much of a downgrade there. And on offense? Well, I don’t have to say any more on that front.
Boozer + Taj + Big Sexy + Omer is different than Bradass + Tyrus in distribution of skills, but I don’t think we’ll miss Miller or Tyrus in comparison.
Even when Dwight Howard does PSA's for Diabetes he seems disingenuous
I didn't want to type this sentence, the force from an Omer Asik dunk made my fingers do it.
In related news, the NBA upheld his tech. He's out for Sunday's game.
"Smith stripped. Smith stopped! Smith stopped again by Pippen!"
by ColonelFatheart on Apr 7, 2011 4:52 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Q Rich also won't make it.
Suspended for 2 games.
"Nothing can happen till you swing the bat." -Haruko Haruhara
by windycitywarrior on Apr 7, 2011 5:18 PM CDT up reply actions
Mostly because you can see his eyes reading a sign.
Guess he couldn’t learn those short lines.
Road to the Number 1 Seed Assassination Missions:
Suns: Mission Accomplished... I guess. Still 3 up in the loss column... I guess. Can't believe we got bullied by the corpse of Vince Carter.
Celtics:
Cavaliers:
Congratulations to the Central Division Champions: The Chicago Bulls!
This will be my last Assassination Missions sig for a month. After the Celtics game I leave to China and will not return until May 9th. I'm sure you all care, of course.
by Dr. Handsome, D.D.S. on Apr 7, 2011 5:47 PM CDT up reply actions
so Lebron, Bosh, Dwight, Westbrook, Rondo
who else do you hate?
by Basketball Smurf on Apr 7, 2011 5:52 PM CDT up reply actions
The better question is: Who don't I hate?
And the answer is: Just about no one
I didn't want to type this sentence, the force from an Omer Asik dunk made my fingers do it.
by Juiceboxjerry on Apr 7, 2011 5:59 PM CDT up reply actions
Rose?
BaB on Twitter | BaB on Facebook
"Don't nag, flag!"
by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 7, 2011 6:06 PM CDT up reply actions
That's how I feel about seeing Kobe do his for the earthquake or whatever.
I mean after seeing him lie to everyone about throwing elbows despite obvious video evidence or the fact he was diddling some hotel hostess and had to buy a 3 million dollar rock to keep his wife…I just see so much of what he says as lip service without meaning it. I don’t try to slam him for stuff other than what he does on the court these days…but I don’t trust anything he has to say about what happens off of it. It’s a real luxury to have someone as genuine as Rose has been on your team. He doesn’t seem to think of what he says or run it by a lawyer. I trust he means it. You can see it in his eyes.
"Fast Don't Lie"
by Sandberg's evil twin on Apr 10, 2011 10:04 AM CDT up reply actions
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