2011 Chicago Bulls Playoff Thread (5/26 7:30pm CST - TNT)

[WrigleyField 22]

I think you're remembering wrong, but I don't have game tape to prove it, so I'm not gonna keep trying to convince you otherwise.

[bukie]

I watched the game twice, and here's what I noticed, at face value*:

 

1st half: Open shots galore, terrible Bulls defense. Rose was bad at preventing Collison drives, second level of D not rotating fast enough.

3rd quarter: Much better Bulls defense, Granger and company hitting some silly shots to maintain the margin.

4th quarter: Indy still hitting silly shots until the last 3 minutes, where the Bulls didn't allow a single uncontested shot.

 

*Boozer, however, failed to play D the whole game.

[17 Seconds]

i just remember saying "are you [expletive] kidding me" over and over as hansbrough kept knocking them down

[WrigleyField 22]

I said the same thing, but it was in reference to our weak d.

 

Game is being played on NBATV at 3pm tomorrow according to my Comcast menu. I may record it and check it out if i have time after work.

 

(Edit- it says its only an hour, which means they must play it commercial free, straight through. no fast forwarding? awesome if so)

Edited April 18, 2011 by WrigleyField 22

[SouthSideRyan]

i just remember saying "are you [expletive] kidding me" over and over as hansbrough kept knocking them down

 

That was because it was Hansbrough. Boozer couldn't have defended him any more lazily.

[Careless]

I watched the game twice, and here's what I noticed, at face value*:

[snip]

4th quarter: Indy still hitting silly shots until the last 3 minutes, where the Bulls didn't allow a single uncontested shot.

 

*Boozer, however, failed to play D the whole game.

The last 3 minutes being right after Boozer literally handed the ball to a Pacer, tried to flagrantly foul him as he scored, and picked up his fifth foul. Boozer was insanely bad and managed to peak in terrible play in his last moments before he was yanked

[Flames24Rulz]

Kelvin Quarter and Chris Webber have the call on TNT tonight.

[Guest]

Kelvin Quarter and Chris Webber have the call on TNT tonight.

 

 

hahahahaha

[apete6]

Kelvin Quarter and Chris Webber have the call on TNT tonight.

 

Please tell me this is on Comcast as well.

[bukie]

The Bulls so far have the second most efficient offense of any playoff team, with a 122.6 offensive rating (New Orleans finished with a 122.7 offensive rating).

 

We'll just not mention the defense for now.

[bukie]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

Edited April 18, 2011 by bukie

[Banedon]

The Bulls so far have the second most efficient offense of any playoff team, with a 122.6 offensive rating (New Orleans finished with a 122.7 offensive rating).

 

We'll just not mention the defense for now.

 

If we had to be weak in an area in a game we won anyway, I'd rather it be defense. We know that the defense will be there in the long run.

[tfarks]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

 

Career stats for Hansbrough aren't gonna tell you much. He's basically a rookie due to his vertigo last year and had very inconsistent rotation minutes/buried on the bench until JOB got fired. His midrange jumper since he started playing under Vogel has easily been his most improved attribute, and made him basically the most viable pick n roll threat to pair with Collison. When his jumper gets going he's a damn good player and Boozer can only watch hopelessly as Hansbrough utterly devours his life soul.

[bukie]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

 

Career stats for Hansbrough aren't gonna tell you much. He's basically a rookie due to his vertigo last year and had very inconsistent rotation minutes/buried on the bench until JOB got fired. His midrange jumper since he started playing under Vogel has easily been his most improved attribute, and made him basically the most viable pick n roll threat to pair with Collison. When his jumper gets going he's a damn good player and Boozer can only watch hopelessly as Hansbrough utterly devours his life soul.

I initially posted career numbers, but changed it to his numbers for the year. Hansbrough doesn't hit 70% of his long jumpers in an open gym, so I don't expect the rate to continue. 43% of long jumpers is average to above average for an NBA player. The Bulls defense is designed around locking down the paint, playing off to allow long 2's, and limiting 3's. The Pacers hit some open 3's in the first half, but Granger was hitting some silly shots in the 3rd, and Hansbrough was hitting shots at a clip he couldn't maintain in an empty gym. I doubt Indiana will have that type of offensive performance from long range again this series.

[bukie]

HoopData shows it better than I can...Bulls lock down paint, Pacers (Hansbrough in particular) light it up from long range: http://hoopdata.com/blogengine/post/2011/04/16/Bulls-Heat-Survive-Early-Scares.aspx

[Exile on Waveland]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

 

Career stats for Hansbrough aren't gonna tell you much. He's basically a rookie due to his vertigo last year and had very inconsistent rotation minutes/buried on the bench until JOB got fired. His midrange jumper since he started playing under Vogel has easily been his most improved attribute, and made him basically the most viable pick n roll threat to pair with Collison. When his jumper gets going he's a damn good player and Boozer can only watch hopelessly as Hansbrough utterly devours his life soul.

I initially posted career numbers, but changed it to his numbers for the year. Hansbrough doesn't hit 70% of his long jumpers in an open gym, so I don't expect the rate to continue. 43% of long jumpers is average to above average for an NBA player. The Bulls defense is designed around locking down the paint, playing off to allow long 2's, and limiting 3's. The Pacers hit some open 3's in the first half, but Granger was hitting some silly shots in the 3rd, and Hansbrough was hitting shots at a clip he couldn't maintain in an empty gym. I doubt Indiana will have that type of offensive performance from long range again this series.

 

You're seriously underestimating Hansbrough and NBA players in general. Almost every played in the NBA would hit 70% of "long" 2-point jumpers in an open gym. Those guys are really, really good -- even the non-shooters.

 

Now, I doubt Hansbrough hits seven of 10 again this series, but it's not like most of his shots were really contested. The Bulls are still going to win this series in five or four games, and will likely win by a whole lot tonight. However, the Pacers are better than some have given them credit for -- they were above .500 and Vogel. I also think the Bulls are a bit of a "regular season team," as they're going to struggle against better teams as they advance because they have literally one player that can get his own shot (he's a stud, no doubt, but as you advance, other teams have studs too).

[bukie]

Also, not that Rose should make a habit of shooting 9 3's in a game he absolutely dominates from the paint, but when the Bulls are pulling down half the offensive rebounding opportunities, a missed 3's almost as good as a lob pass.

[tfarks]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

 

Career stats for Hansbrough aren't gonna tell you much. He's basically a rookie due to his vertigo last year and had very inconsistent rotation minutes/buried on the bench until JOB got fired. His midrange jumper since he started playing under Vogel has easily been his most improved attribute, and made him basically the most viable pick n roll threat to pair with Collison. When his jumper gets going he's a damn good player and Boozer can only watch hopelessly as Hansbrough utterly devours his life soul.

I initially posted career numbers, but changed it to his numbers for the year. Hansbrough doesn't hit 70% of his long jumpers in an open gym, so I don't expect the rate to continue. 43% of long jumpers is average to above average for an NBA player. The Bulls defense is designed around locking down the paint, playing off to allow long 2's, and limiting 3's. The Pacers hit some open 3's in the first half, but Granger was hitting some silly shots in the 3rd, and Hansbrough was hitting shots at a clip he couldn't maintain in an empty gym. I doubt Indiana will have that type of offensive performance from long range again this series.

 

What's with referencing an open gym not once but twice. That's just weird and no one said he would maintain a 70% shooting percentage. It's very simple, he's improved his midrange jumper dramatically in the latter half of this season and its not a miracle he hit 7 of them in 1 game, especially considering he has Boozer the disappearing act defending him.

[UMFan83]

I gotta believe what bukie says to be true, most players can't hit 7 of 10 with any consistency from outside 15 feet. I wonder what Luol Deng's numbers were in that sweep against Miami 4 years ago. I just remember him draining mid range jumper after mid range jumper. Not saying Psycho T is the caliber of player Deng is, but I guess its possible that its sustainable over a 4 game series. That said, I doubt you'll see a ton of Boozer on him for very long if he starts doin that [expletive] again.

 

If Boozer is on him and he starts draining those, I'd like to see Boozer actually get up in his face and put a body on him. If he has to shoot FTs, so be it. If he pump fakes and drives past Boozer, he has to trust his help D, and not stupidly foul. Like bukie said, the Bulls defense is designed to lock up the paint, so its obvious that if someone is draining those shots, the shots that the Bulls defense is designed to force you to take, the defender should be up on top of them preventing those shots from occuring.

[SouthSideRyan]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

 

He was also 3-9 from inside 15 feet.

[wolf stansson]

If anyone here missed this, listen to it now.

 

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/?podcast_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.podtrac.com%2Fpts%2Fredirect.mp3%2Fnyc.podcast.play.it%2Fmedia%2Fd0%2Fd0%2Fd0%2FdX%2FdD%2FdY%2Fd5%2FXDY5_3.MP3%3Fauthtok%3D5561433211957648079_4EkUFaA3hSQFuEOfVo2h2BG5p8&podcast_name=Producer+Chris+Tannehill+Bulls+montage&podcast_artist=Laurence+Holmes&station_id=391&tag=pages&dcid=CBS.CHI

[bukie]

You're seriously underestimating Hansbrough and NBA players in general. Almost every played in the NBA would hit 70% of "long" 2-point jumpers in an open gym. Those guys are really, really good -- even the non-shooters.

 

Now, I doubt Hansbrough hits seven of 10 again this series, but it's not like most of his shots were really contested. The Bulls are still going to win this series in five or four games, and will likely win by a whole lot tonight. However, the Pacers are better than some have given them credit for -- they were above .500 and Vogel. I also think the Bulls are a bit of a "regular season team," as they're going to struggle against better teams as they advance because they have literally one player that can get his own shot (he's a stud, no doubt, but as you advance, other teams have studs too).

 

On average, NBA teams historically make about 75% of their free throws. That is a 15-foot shot from straight on, no contesting, and every player in the league shoots and practices them constantly.

 

The best shooters in the NBA make 3's at about a 60% clip in the 3-point shootout (that's just the average make % of the winners, it's much lower if you average all contestants). Again, that's unguarded, spot up shots from the 5 highest percentage spots behind the line, and only counting the best shooter in the NBA each year.

 

The average NBA player does not make 70%+ of their 15-23 foot shots in an open gym. Tyler Hansbrough is an above-average jump-shooter, and he hit 43% of his long twos this year, making under 2 per game. He is not going to continue to hit 7+ long range shots a game, even if Boozer is playing off to prevent him from getting actual high percentage shots.

[bukie]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

 

Career stats for Hansbrough aren't gonna tell you much. He's basically a rookie due to his vertigo last year and had very inconsistent rotation minutes/buried on the bench until JOB got fired. His midrange jumper since he started playing under Vogel has easily been his most improved attribute, and made him basically the most viable pick n roll threat to pair with Collison. When his jumper gets going he's a damn good player and Boozer can only watch hopelessly as Hansbrough utterly devours his life soul.

I initially posted career numbers, but changed it to his numbers for the year. Hansbrough doesn't hit 70% of his long jumpers in an open gym, so I don't expect the rate to continue. 43% of long jumpers is average to above average for an NBA player. The Bulls defense is designed around locking down the paint, playing off to allow long 2's, and limiting 3's. The Pacers hit some open 3's in the first half, but Granger was hitting some silly shots in the 3rd, and Hansbrough was hitting shots at a clip he couldn't maintain in an empty gym. I doubt Indiana will have that type of offensive performance from long range again this series.

 

What's with referencing an open gym not once but twice. That's just weird and no one said he would maintain a 70% shooting percentage. It's very simple, he's improved his midrange jumper dramatically in the latter half of this season and its not a miracle he hit 7 of them in 1 game, especially considering he has Boozer the disappearing act defending him.

I'm saying that even if Boozer plays off him all the time, it's still more challenging than hitting them in an empty gym, and he's not hitting 70% of his shots there, so I'm not expecting it to continue. The Bulls defensive strategy was apparently to make the Pacers beat them with long-range shots, and the Pacers hit 60% of them. I don't think that should make the Bulls change their defensive strategy, because that's unsustainable.

[UMFan83]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

 

Career stats for Hansbrough aren't gonna tell you much. He's basically a rookie due to his vertigo last year and had very inconsistent rotation minutes/buried on the bench until JOB got fired. His midrange jumper since he started playing under Vogel has easily been his most improved attribute, and made him basically the most viable pick n roll threat to pair with Collison. When his jumper gets going he's a damn good player and Boozer can only watch hopelessly as Hansbrough utterly devours his life soul.

I initially posted career numbers, but changed it to his numbers for the year. Hansbrough doesn't hit 70% of his long jumpers in an open gym, so I don't expect the rate to continue. 43% of long jumpers is average to above average for an NBA player. The Bulls defense is designed around locking down the paint, playing off to allow long 2's, and limiting 3's. The Pacers hit some open 3's in the first half, but Granger was hitting some silly shots in the 3rd, and Hansbrough was hitting shots at a clip he couldn't maintain in an empty gym. I doubt Indiana will have that type of offensive performance from long range again this series.

 

You're seriously underestimating Hansbrough and NBA players in general. Almost every played in the NBA would hit 70% of "long" 2-point jumpers in an open gym. Those guys are really, really good -- even the non-shooters.

 

Now, I doubt Hansbrough hits seven of 10 again this series, but it's not like most of his shots were really contested. The Bulls are still going to win this series in five or four games, and will likely win by a whole lot tonight. However, the Pacers are better than some have given them credit for -- they were above .500 and Vogel. I also think the Bulls are a bit of a "regular season team," as they're going to struggle against better teams as they advance because they have literally one player that can get his own shot (he's a stud, no doubt, but as you advance, other teams have studs too).

 

As someone who once saw Ben Wallace knock down 8 out of 10 3 pointers shooting around before a game, I'll give you the first point.

 

The funny thing is that the Bulls beat every single 'elite' team they played after December 8th this year, and struggled against a lot of the mediocre teams like Indiana, Charlotte, Philly, etc. Sure maybe we beat some of those elite teams because we caught them on a low energy night, but to beat all of them (we're talking Orlando 3 times, Miami 3 times, Boston 2 times, LA, OKC, SA, Dallas, and a lot of those were without Boozer and/or Noah) to me shows that beating good teams is not the issue despite the 1 guy offense. I think its a certain style of team we have trouble with, and Indiana fits that bill.

 

I'm personally not expecting a blowout tonight. I'm thinking the first 45 minutes will be an exact opposite of game one where the Bulls lead most of the way, but never by more than 8-10 points, and Indiana keeps hitting big shots to stay in the game, drawing it to within 2, then back up to 7, etc. My hope is the last 3 minutes will be in the Bulls favor too.

[bukie]

In game 1, Tyler Hansbrough was 7-10 outside 15 feet.

 

For his career, Tyler Hansbrough is a 43% shooter from outside 15 feet, and makes an average of under 2 per game.

 

He was also 3-9 from inside 15 feet.

Inside 15 feet, the Bulls were contesting shots more closely, and Noah/Thomas/Gibson/Asik (for a minute) were getting involved. 15-23 feet shots were mostly on Boozer only.

 

EDIT: 2-8 at the rim, so he only took one shot from 3-15 feet?

Edited April 18, 2011 by bukie