Waiting awhile after this game to post was therapeutic

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Mar 7, 2007 11:16 PM CST in News

Alright, lets talk about what went wrong tonight:

Name	Min	FG	3Pt	FT	Reb	Ast	TO	PF	Pts
L. Deng	35	3-14	0-0	2-2	6	1	2	0	8
B. Gordon	36	6-18	1-6	1-1	8	4	2	4	14
K. Hinrich	30	5-11	1-3	0-0	2	1	6	4	11

Um, that's pretty much it.

Kindof funny that it happens on a day when the idea is floated that they could all potentially average 20 a game.

This happened against Detroit too: There may have been points where the team made huge runs and stayed close, but if you step back from the in-game roller coaster ride and just realize that their three best players all didn't play well, then it's not hard to see how the Bulls lost. Losing this big doesn't make that any less or more true, methinks they just packed it in getting ready for Orlando on Thursday.

And it's not all about the 'core' being perimeter players and the inconsistencies of being reliant on the jump shot. When the shot isn't falling they should all be at least getting to the line. They had 3 FTAs against the Heat, a team whose perimeter defense has long been labeled suspect. Perhaps replacing Dwyane Wade with Eddie Jones helps in that department, but it shouldn't this much.

They're allowed to have off nights, but not all 3 at a time, and this was beyond 'off'. When their individual games suffer to this level, the Bulls have no chance. We should hope that it doesn't happen often. Because that's not being inconsistent, it's being average. And 3 average guys isn't good enough to make a playoff run this season. (luckily in this conference they don't have to be 3 studs, either)

But, eh, chalk it up to just a real bad game. Personally it was important (just because of Heat-hate), but for the team it is no more important than Orlando tomorrow or the last 3 they won. Lets all forget this mess happened...the Heat just as easily shook off the opposite result on opening night.

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Wait for it.....wait for it....

Duhon: 4-7 FG, 3-4 3PT, 12 PTS

Don't Underestimate Matt's Brilliance

by Colossus on Mar 7, 2007 11:32 PM CST 0 recs

Duhon's irrelevant

That's my point, there's no chance if the aforementioned three don't perform. And (surprisingly) that's not anything against Duhon or any other bench players, no teams can get wins when their best all suck.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Mar 8, 2007 12:13 AM CST up 0 recs

I dunno

I'm waiting on Duhon dropping 50 on Orlando.

Deng, he's good!!!!!!!!!

by cubbybear on Mar 8, 2007 1:21 AM CST up 0 recs

Ugh

Glad I missed this one. "These things happen. Eight dollars."

Anyone else going to the Celtics game next week?

Deng 4 MVP, 2008!

by corey williams corey benjamin on Mar 7, 2007 11:40 PM CST 0 recs

Great quote reference

Don't Underestimate Matt's Brilliance

by Colossus on Mar 7, 2007 11:42 PM CST up 0 recs

This is what happens

to jumpshooting teams on off nights. They scored 17 points in the final 17 minutes. Did these guys hit South Beach last night?

by bullshooter on Mar 7, 2007 11:43 PM CST 0 recs

by the final 17 minutes

they were thinking about tonight.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Mar 8, 2007 12:14 AM CST up 0 recs

with 18 min left

the bulls were down by 3.

by bullshooter on Mar 8, 2007 9:44 AM CST up 0 recs

At least

They capitalized on their opportunities at the line.

Deng, he's good!!!!!!!!!

by cubbybear on Mar 8, 2007 12:09 AM CST 0 recs

Totally Agreed, Matt

And said much the same over at my place.

by BenGo07 on Mar 8, 2007 1:27 AM CST 0 recs

im going to disagree

i think the heat just completley outplayed the bulls.....we obviously could have played better, but even if our shots were falling we weren't going to win. to piggyback off of shameless self promotion, i break down the heat stats at

sweethomesports.com/bulls

if you care for a different opinon

by milesgmsu on Mar 8, 2007 10:43 AM CST up 0 recs

Ouch

I didn't expect to see that sort of score after I came home last night.

I definitely support the "Too much fun in South Beach" theory.

In Pax we Trust!

by Jobu on Mar 8, 2007 7:44 AM CST 0 recs

Skiles' dream lineup

We were joking last night that Skiles' dream lineup was: Duhon, griffin, krapperz, Allen, and Sweetney. Then he used an almost identical lineup when we were still close. Why does skiles intentionally tank games?

by dcarioca on Mar 8, 2007 8:39 AM CST 0 recs

Exactly written

It's a bad game that the Bulls will just shake off, so should we.

AIM screen name : Option27

by Option27 on Mar 8, 2007 10:10 AM CST 0 recs

Matt . . .

do you still think the Heat aren't going to make the playoffs?

On another note, to fuel the Heat-hate, check out O'Neal's quote after the game, the first part of which is rather dismissive and disrespectful:

"They've been a little bit more serious in playing us than we were in playing them," O'Neal said. "So we knew that we owed this team. They hate us for some reason, which is fine. They use as one of their stepping stones, so we had to let them know that we're still here."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=270307014

I'd love to see a Bulls/Heat series in the playoffs, but I'd hate to see the Bulls lose a Bulls/Heat series in the playoffs.

B-jizzle my nizzle!

by preverbal on Mar 8, 2007 10:27 AM CST 0 recs

answer..

uh, yeah they'll probably make it. But they've also played a majority of recent games at home, so hopefully this win streak of theres is fools gold.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Mar 8, 2007 1:46 PM CST up 0 recs

Strangley enought

this was a three point game about mid-way thru the third, but as Matt put it, "the big three" could hit anything, and everyone else had some awful moments too.

Chalk it up to a bad shooting night, nothing more, nothing less, besides James Posey donating to the referee's retirement fund. (Some of the flops he took were ridiculous. This game should be sent to the league as point one for the reason a flop is way over-called.)

Sweet Home Sports

by james@lifeinthecell on Mar 8, 2007 10:28 AM CST 0 recs

Technicality

Kirk was actually shooting at his average last night, it was the third consecutive night of high TOs that did the Bulls in with respect to his game. I think I'm more concerned about that than the bad shooting. It's bound to happen occasionally, but I think the odds are pretty low that we'll see many nights of BG and Lu both shooting so abysmally poorly. Kirk, on the other hand, doesn't surprise me as much on an off shooting night, but I do count on him to be fairly low turnover.

by wjb1492 on Mar 8, 2007 2:28 PM CST up 0 recs

but it was an empty FG%

meaning....hitting 1 three and zero free-throws.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Mar 8, 2007 2:33 PM CST up 0 recs

I know,

I was more trying to highlight the recent TO problem than excuse the rest of Kirk's game. Obviously on a night when no one else is on and he's shooting at average or better the Bulls would need him to step up and take more shots/score more than 11 points to make up for another guy's off night. But still, I was less concerned about that with him than the TO rate.

by wjb1492 on Mar 8, 2007 5:01 PM CST up 0 recs

Nocioni

I'll say it because no one else will. It would have been nice to have Nocioni as the fourth option (off the bench) when the Big Three were sub par.

(and I'm still hoping my Sweetney loyalty will pay off. I didn't see the game, but I'm wondering why he only got three minutes against Shaq when he did a decent job in the playoff last year).

GWKD

by GWKD on Mar 8, 2007 11:00 AM CST 0 recs

we coulda had jordan and pip and wilt

and woulda lost that game the heat played out of their minds

by milesgmsu on Mar 8, 2007 3:36 PM CST up 0 recs

if you want to play the hypothetical game

(which I wasn't). . . .

if the Bulls played

Michael Jordan

Scottie Pippen, and

Wilt Chamberlain

the Bulls would have KILLED the Heat last night.

GWKD

by GWKD on Mar 8, 2007 4:17 PM CST up 0 recs

wait

is Nocioni coming off the bench?!?

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Mar 8, 2007 4:21 PM CST up 0 recs

nocioni is

on the bench. I'll give the Heat Rony Seikaly just to make it interesting. I'll even through them a Robin Ficker as Jordan heckler for them too. ; )

GWKD

by GWKD on Mar 8, 2007 4:33 PM CST up 0 recs

I like your

last paragraph Matt. We move on to tonights game.

Adam Haluska....#1 in scoring in the Big Ten this season.

by sue369 on Mar 8, 2007 11:31 AM CST 0 recs

They will

come out with ferocity against Orlando. Don't forget the Bulls DID beat the Heat by 42 WITH Wade, so last game was a fluke. I just feel sorry for Orlando. They're gonna get donkeypunched by a bunch of pissed off, furious Bulls. No matter how you look at it, they won't lose in Orlando. They should be too pissed off.

by vlad001 on Mar 8, 2007 5:40 PM CST 0 recs