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Open Game Thread #75: Bulls at Cleveland Cavaliers

82486_160_tiny by bullshooter on

[Thanks to bullshooter for tonight's game preview, even though he's a pain in my ass in the comments section :) -Matt]

Top 10 Reasons to watch tonight's game:


  • The youngsters. Noah, Sefolosha, and Blogabull favorite son Tyrus Thomas have seen their minutes go up as the Bulls have fallen farther out of the playoff race.  The future is upon us.

  • Ben Wallace.  It always feels good to get the better end of a deal.  As long as Larry Hughes is sitting on the bench, it's not even close.

  • Be a Witness.  Hey, LeBron is pretty good even if none of his teammates are...

  • The end of an era.  Small ball as interpreted and implemented by Skiles/Boylan is coming to an end.  You may never get to see BG, Duhon and Hinrich on the court at the same time ever again (at least in the same uniform).

  • An old school central division matchup.  How many times do you think they will show Jordan over Ehlo?  Can you ever get enough?

  • EJ, Kenny and Charles.  Maybe Chuckles will come up with something new about the Bulls other than "They're too small."  He'll most likely say something mildy controversial and definitely politically incorrect.

  • The game's on TNT.  For those of you who are Bulls diehards and don't pirate game feeds, this is your one game per fortnight, and it's on at 6pm CDST [have no fear, it's at 7. -ed.], so you can catch the game and still do something else tonight.  And how many times can you really watch Law & Order?

  • The NBA: Where Mascot Mayhem happens.  That guy should have walked up behind Posey and ...

  • Did I mention the youngsters?  You might even get a little Aaron Gray, if you can get just a little Aaron Gray...

  • Who am I kidding, there haven't been 10 reasons to watch this team since late January.  But if you are true Bulls fan like me, you'll start missing them as soon as the playoffs start.   So even if they are playing for ping pong balls, sit back, have a beer and enjoy it while it's on...

Blogging with the enemy:
Cavalier Attitude
Brian Windhorst

FanPosts are user-created posts from the BlogABull community, and are to be treated as the opinions and views of that particular user, not that of the blogger or blog community as a whole.

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Ugh, 6PM?
Is my schedule fubared?

No.  NBA.com says 8PM EST, 7PM CST.
http://www.nba.com/games/20080403/scoreboard.html

TNT confirms.
http://www.tnt.tv/sports/

I was worried about doing 30 minutes of work from the bar(thanks WiFi), but 90 minutes would have been pushing it.

The Kids Must Stay In The Picture!!!

by NBA Observer on Apr 3, 2008 5:05 PM CDT   0 recs

yeah, I'll update that
once again, Bullshooter is a pain in the ass.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 3, 2008 5:10 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

My only reason for watching is to observe
TT, Noah and Thabo in action.  Anybody have a clue or prediction on how many minutes of PT they'll get, especially my favorite pogo stick, Tyrus?

Am I paranoid by thinking Boylan will be on the sidelines chomping at the bit to find any excuse  to send TT to the back of the bench for the slightest of miscues?  (i.e. 2 fouls, take an innoportune jump shot, fail to cover the perimeter, laughing at one of Duhon's jokes about the coaches)

by Tyrusmancrush on Apr 3, 2008 5:25 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Sorry I am in EST
so when I saw 7pm, I assumed it was EST.  I miss CST...
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:06 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

look for Ben Gordon to be showcased off the bench
Stephen Curry is the lowpost answer!

by hscs on Apr 3, 2008 5:41 PM CDT   0 recs

I want us
to win this one and i wish Noah rebounds 100 times in the face of Ben Wallace
LET'S COLECT SIGNATURES TO FIRE BOYLAN AND GET RID OF HUGHES

by bull83 on Apr 3, 2008 5:51 PM CDT   0 recs

Ben Wallace
The Bulls may be in trouble...big Ben missed last night's game...lets all pray for a quick recovery so we can laugh instead of suffer as we watch him force the Cavs to play 4 on 5.  If he does play, I'm sure Boylan will find some combination in the rotation to cancel out any advantage that may give us.

by Tyrusmancrush on Apr 3, 2008 6:51 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Bulls
can't catch a break
I vote for Thomas to play, play more and play regularly.-Sam Smith

by tyrus4prez on Apr 3, 2008 6:53 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

props graciously received.
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:12 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

I'm looking forward
to watching the Corpse!!  Everyone needs a smile!
I vote for Thomas to play, play more and play regularly.-Sam Smith

by tyrus4prez on Apr 3, 2008 6:48 PM CDT   0 recs

They just
said on tv that he's not playing and neither is Gooden.

by sue369 on Apr 3, 2008 6:58 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Looks like he is playing
He's on the court right now.  Good for the Bulls.

by Big D on Apr 3, 2008 7:17 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Guess I
shouldn't believe everything I hear on TV.

by sue369 on Apr 3, 2008 8:24 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Tyrus showing Delonte who's boss
And Gordon is on fire. Me like.

by Illini15 on Apr 3, 2008 7:34 PM CDT   0 recs

I'll never understand
why BG ever tries to pass.
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:34 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

And then there's Larry, who doesn't try to pass...
It takes a special coach to make Aaron Gray a guy you can see.

by wjb1492 on Apr 3, 2008 7:36 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Which makes it doubly bad
when BG passes to Hughes...
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:40 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

It's kind of funny that Kirk was hitting 90%+
on free throws back when the rest of his offensive game was absolutely in the toilet, and now that he's shooting much better he seems to be going 1 of 2 from the line a lot.
It takes a special coach to make Aaron Gray a guy you can see.

by wjb1492 on Apr 3, 2008 7:34 PM CDT   0 recs

Kirk
Am I the only who really doesn't mind when he's not on the floor?

by Illini15 on Apr 3, 2008 7:35 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

I daresay you aren't the only one,
but I prefer to have him out there.
It takes a special coach to make Aaron Gray a guy you can see.

by wjb1492 on Apr 3, 2008 7:41 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Me too
and it's pissing me off that Hughes is in there so much tonight. Kirk gets taken out after he has one turnover and freakin Hughes has 4 and still plays. I hate Boylan and I hate Hughes.

by sue369 on Apr 3, 2008 8:27 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

I'm noticing good things:
I can't watch the game right now, buy every player has an assist [except Noc, who played 0 minutes, and the guys who haven't entered the game].
Ben Wallace has 4 points! Zomg. He's on FIRE. Too bad they're losing by 7.

by Prevenge on Apr 3, 2008 7:37 PM CDT   0 recs

Bulls passing very well tonight
Where was this all year?

by Illini15 on Apr 3, 2008 7:38 PM CDT   0 recs

Are kidding me?
Unless you are talking from almost everyone except Hughes... What was that pass to TT? Fuck...
LET'S COLECT SIGNATURES TO FIRE BOYLAN AND GET RID OF HUGHES

by bull83 on Apr 3, 2008 7:40 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Huh?
Hughes has 3 assists. The pass to TT wasn't that bad, it's just that Tyrus wasn't expecting it.

by Illini15 on Apr 3, 2008 7:42 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Hughes
Amazing how much better he looks when he decides to make a good pass instead of putting up a bad shot. He's a really good passer when he wants to be.

by Illini15 on Apr 3, 2008 7:41 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Thabo should have shot that
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:43 PM CDT   0 recs

I'm so ready for the Noc era to be over
be prepared for an obnoxious celebratory post when it finally happens.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 3, 2008 7:46 PM CDT   0 recs

Noc at the 4!!!!!!
You have to be kidding me. Someone make it stop.

by Illini15 on Apr 3, 2008 7:48 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Gray
not a strong start...
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:50 PM CDT   0 recs

Nightmare stats night so far
0-3 shooting, 2 fouls, 1 TO - way to fill up the boxscore there.  Somewhere Red is crying while sucking on his Bit-o-Honey.
It takes a special coach to make Aaron Gray a guy you can see.

by wjb1492 on Apr 3, 2008 7:57 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

ha!
also, Reggie Miller blasting Gray's lack of fundamentals, and his need to slim down.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 3, 2008 8:20 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

I'm hoping
that Boylan is leaving Hughes in so that he can get all his minutes in the first half.
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:52 PM CDT   0 recs

even a blind squirrel
finds a nut every once in a while.  
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:54 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

BG breaks up the 2 on 1
well done.
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 7:59 PM CDT   0 recs

4/5ths of the way there
thomas & noah with deng & gordon is treat to watch.

by khandor on Apr 3, 2008 8:07 PM CDT   0 recs

jump hook over Z
was a thing of beuaty for noah

by khandor on Apr 3, 2008 8:08 PM CDT   0 recs

bail out plays
hinrich makes silly plays when he helps off his own check unnecessarily ... leaving open threes for delonte west

boylan shoulda sub hughes in for kirk not gordon

and then gone with nocioni for deng.

by khandor on Apr 3, 2008 8:13 PM CDT   0 recs

Hughes looks great, don't he?
The guy may have 4 assists, but he also made 4 TO... Don't forget that...
LET'S COLECT SIGNATURES TO FIRE BOYLAN AND GET RID OF HUGHES

by bull83 on Apr 3, 2008 8:30 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

now I know they're tanking
how do you bring Duhon in cold with 2 minutes left in the half?
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 8:18 PM CDT   0 recs

who's the short Millhouse looking guy
holding the clipboard during that timeout?
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 8:21 PM CDT   0 recs

TNT Announcers:
A comment after the bulls went down 10:
'You know, the Bulls were spacing the ball well and doing ball movement and all that, but from what we've heard, Boylan didn't want that - he wanted the team to go inside first, go inside and then kick out for a jump shot every possession.'
Well, that worked.
I'm ROTFL.

by Prevenge on Apr 3, 2008 8:21 PM CDT   0 recs

Another painful half of basketball
  1. I'm not sure how you can justify playing Gray.  A minute.
  2. If Hinrich is a point guard, he's among the NBA's worst.  On multiple occasions Noah rolled to the basket and was open for a dunk, and recieved no pass.  Goodbye, captain.
  3. Boylan's matchups are striving for new levels of absurdity.  Hinrich guarding Szerbiak.  Tyrus at the 5.  Nocioni at the 4.  Duhon on the court.
  4. Noah, Tyrus and Sefolosha continue to show promise.
  5. Sefolosha showed promise for 6 minutes.  No shots, but he defended and passed well.
It's a bad season when you're bright spot didn't shoot.  

Go Bulls?

by Freethefro on Apr 3, 2008 8:28 PM CDT   0 recs

could you give me a time stamp
on these supposed missed plays, because I am not really seeing them.  Unless you expect Hinrich to just blindly throw the ball up behind his back...
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 8:50 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

On the two pick and rolls
he missed Noah rolling to the basket.  I hope he won't have to throw the ball behind his back; it would be nice if he used some slick point guard skillz to throw, I don't know, a bounce pass. ;)

by Freethefro on Apr 3, 2008 9:08 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

when?
I'm really not seeing it.
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 9:10 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

It was earlier in the game
and one of them was the play before he got benched in place of Duhon. I don't have TIVO though, so I can't give an exact time.  

by Freethefro on Apr 3, 2008 9:36 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Um
4 and 5 contradict each other.  Hinrich always guards bigger players.

by nobullishbasketball on Apr 3, 2008 8:53 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

"Um"
no, 4 and 5 don't; Sefolosha merely played well for a period of time that was too brief by my estimation.  And Hinrich guarding of players - while this happens frequently - is even more of a problem in that it happens frequently.

by Freethefro on Apr 3, 2008 9:07 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

At this point
Hughes has proven to be just about as worthless as Wallace on the Bulls.
I can hardly stand to look at how ugly he is, and the lazy way he plays and shoots....absolutely pathetic.
And I will be so glad when this horrible season is officially over.

And with the rep that Chicago has built around the league now, it's hard to imagine anything good happening in the near future with this team - short of a complete makeover.

Geez.

Baseball is finally here...YES!!

by Bluelou on Apr 3, 2008 8:32 PM CDT   0 recs

now now
I don't think he's ugly.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 3, 2008 8:37 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

not in the least

That's a sharp-dressed man.

Now the shot selection, that be ugly.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 3, 2008 8:40 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

His brothers funeral picture, real class Matt
Justin Hughes died of a heart transplant 10 years after at age 20.  Nice of you to take a picture of a Larry Hughes, your Bulls player at his brothers funeral and take a dig at his clothes?  How cheap of shot can you take?  Little do you know that Larry actually while his mother worked two jobs actually took care of his brother medically while in grade and high school.  But you, anything for your little website, no class (something you might learn from Hughes, whether he is 0-10 or making a 180K a game.  Pull me off your site, don't wan't anything to do with it. You crossed the line in sportsmanship.
You a little about hoops, for less about life.
You wouldn't give credit for a good game if you had to, but to post this is the worst I have ever seen by someone running a site.

by Homegrown on Apr 3, 2008 9:00 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

haha
man, I was complimenting him. I just grabbed the first well-dressed random image I could find. I suppose it makes sense that one of the first ones to come up would be at the funeral.

Pull you off my site? Um...go yank yourself, man, nobody's stopping you.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 3, 2008 9:09 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

dumbass
he complemented the clothes...
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 9:09 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Was that post in English?
LSU 38 OHIO STATE 24 - LSU IS THE NATIONAL CHAMPION AND I AM THE KING OF BOURBON STREET!!

by 1958ChiTown on Apr 3, 2008 10:59 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

he's not a bad looking guy
the tats make him look worse

by Illini15 on Apr 3, 2008 8:41 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

well that's kinda what I was referring to...
those ridiculous tatoos...
They have seem to have become prevelant in the NBA, and the more I see of 'em, the more I can't stand 'em.
...at least in Baseball, we don't have to even HEAR the name BOYLAN!

by Bluelou on Apr 3, 2008 8:47 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

trib did an article about the tats
they have pretty cool meanings, they arent pointless....still they do wierd me out...but at least they have some deep emotional message...or so he says.
Kirk Hinrich. The FORMER Best White American Point Guard in the NBA, Will Soon be Traded :(

by piccolomair on Apr 3, 2008 10:50 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

And listening to Chuck-steak Barkley on TNT
...I SWEAR I've never heard such a fat-ass, pompus dickhead that stumbled over his own horrible english as bad as he does...
It seems the fatter he gets, the more stupid he becomes.

The idiot never even won a ring...how do they justify forcing his ignorant shit on TNT viewers?

Good grief....

...at least in Baseball, we don't have to even HEAR the name BOYLAN!

by Bluelou on Apr 3, 2008 8:41 PM CDT   0 recs

It's true ...
I was wondering how old you have to be to start turning senile, because it appears as though he's done it a bit early.

by Prevenge on Apr 3, 2008 8:44 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

no kidding
so angry tonight, Bullish.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on Apr 3, 2008 8:47 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

I actually have a lot of fun
when I'm not watching the Bulls.    :-)
And it just magnifies everything bad....of which there is a great deal of this year.
...at least in Baseball, we don't have to even HEAR the name BOYLAN!

by Bluelou on Apr 3, 2008 8:49 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

As pissed off as I am to see Ben Wallace
play reasonably well, it's kind of fun to listen to them complain about Larry always being hurt while in Cleveland.
It takes a special coach to make Aaron Gray a guy you can see.

by wjb1492 on Apr 3, 2008 8:49 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

And I know we've all asked this
but WTF does Boylan play Hughes over Thabo?
Thabo plays better ball....period.

Sorry guys....I'll try to stop venting.   :-)

...at least in Baseball, we don't have to even HEAR the name BOYLAN!

by Bluelou on Apr 3, 2008 8:53 PM CDT   0 recs

did LBJ
just take that ball out of Deng's hands on the dribble?
Don't tell anybody, but here's hoping TT puts it all together.

by bullshooter on Apr 3, 2008 8:59 PM CDT   0 recs

HAHA
Wallace took the ball right out of Dengs hands!
Deng was like, "what happened"?
...at least in Baseball, we don't have to even HEAR the name BOYLAN!

by Bluelou on Apr 3, 2008 8:59 PM CDT   0 recs

Cheap site, pull me off Matt

[new] His brothers funeral picture, real class Matt
Justin Hughes died of a heart transplant 10 years after at age 20.  Nice of you to take a picture of a Larry Hughes, your Bulls player at his brothers funeral and take a dig at his clothes?  How cheap of shot can you take?  Little do you know that Larry actually while his mother worked two jobs