Chicago Bulls Playoff Thread

[SpongeWorthy]

I don't think being the #2 seed would be all that bad. You play New York in the first round with Amare gimping around trying to be reincorporated in the fold. Indiana would be a tough out in the 2nd round but then you're likely setting up Boston and Miami in the other semifinal.

[Banedon]

I don't think being the #2 seed would be all that bad. You play New York in the first round with Amare gimping around trying to be reincorporated in the fold. Indiana would be a tough out in the 2nd round but then you're likely setting up Boston and Miami in the other semifinal.

 

I might be crazy, but I think I'd rather play Boston than Indiana. I know Boston has played well lately, but I think I'd still rather see that series than playing Indiana again.

[SpongeWorthy]

I don't think being the #2 seed would be all that bad. You play New York in the first round with Amare gimping around trying to be reincorporated in the fold. Indiana would be a tough out in the 2nd round but then you're likely setting up Boston and Miami in the other semifinal.

 

I might be crazy, but I think I'd rather play Boston than Indiana. I know Boston has played well lately, but I think I'd still rather see that series than playing Indiana again.

 

In a vacuum, I'd probably rather play Indiana. But the idea of Boston making things tough for Miami or even bouncing them intrigues me.

[CubColtPacer]

I don't think being the #2 seed would be all that bad. You play New York in the first round with Amare gimping around trying to be reincorporated in the fold. Indiana would be a tough out in the 2nd round but then you're likely setting up Boston and Miami in the other semifinal.

 

I might be crazy, but I think I'd rather play Boston than Indiana. I know Boston has played well lately, but I think I'd still rather see that series than playing Indiana again.

 

In a vacuum, I'd probably rather play Indiana. But the idea of Boston making things tough for Miami or even bouncing them intrigues me.

 

Did you mean that in a vacuum you'd rather not play Indiana? The but confused me since obviously if you get Indiana, you get the benefit of Boston playing Miami too. That wouldn't be an either/or.

 

Both teams have been playing well down the stretch. Since March 17th, Indiana is 16-4 while Boston is 14-5. Boston obviously has the wealth of playoff experience as a group while Indiana's new guys are the only ones with significant playoff experience (West, Hill, Barbosa, Amundson).

 

I'm trying not to be a homer, but I'll say Chicago would want to avoid Indiana for one big reason. Both Boston and Indiana have roughly equal chances of upsetting Chicago (if push came to shove, I'd say as I did last week that Indiana has a little better chance against Chicago while Boston has a little better of a chance against Miami, but that's irrelevant to this point). But with the Bulls having so many guys already with nagging injuries, having such a bruising series against Indiana would be a huge detriment to the Bulls being healthy going into a potential Miami series. Hopefully not from anything dirty, but those will be highly physical contests between two long, physical type teams. Playing Boston might give just as long of a series, but the wear and tear from those games will likely be less.

[Banedon]

I don't think being the #2 seed would be all that bad. You play New York in the first round with Amare gimping around trying to be reincorporated in the fold. Indiana would be a tough out in the 2nd round but then you're likely setting up Boston and Miami in the other semifinal.

 

I might be crazy, but I think I'd rather play Boston than Indiana. I know Boston has played well lately, but I think I'd still rather see that series than playing Indiana again.

 

In a vacuum, I'd probably rather play Indiana. But the idea of Boston making things tough for Miami or even bouncing them intrigues me.

 

Did you mean that in a vacuum you'd rather not play Indiana? The but confused me since obviously if you get Indiana, you get the benefit of Boston playing Miami too. That wouldn't be an either/or.

 

Both teams have been playing well down the stretch. Since March 17th, Indiana is 16-4 while Boston is 14-5. Boston obviously has the wealth of playoff experience as a group while Indiana's new guys are the only ones with significant playoff experience (West, Hill, Barbosa, Amundson).

 

I'm trying not to be a homer, but I'll say Chicago would want to avoid Indiana for one big reason. Both Boston and Indiana have roughly equal chances of upsetting Chicago (if push came to shove, I'd say as I did last week that Indiana has a little better chance against Chicago while Boston has a little better of a chance against Miami, but that's irrelevant to this point). But with the Bulls having so many guys already with nagging injuries, having such a bruising series against Indiana would be a huge detriment to the Bulls being healthy going into a potential Miami series. Hopefully not from anything dirty, but those will be highly physical contests between two long, physical type teams. Playing Boston might give just as long of a series, but the wear and tear from those games will likely be less.

 

Honestly, I'm not terribly afraid of losing to either Boston or Indiana if the Bulls are at full strength. Obviously a big "if".

 

For me, we've seen the Bulls vs Indiana series last year, and I didn't find it to be so compelling that I want to see it again.

[Old Style]

For all the media talk about how the #1 seed is in danger, the percentages are still greatly in the Bulls favor, though they've slipped a bit....

 

Team           AvgW    Play    Div     HCA       1       2       3       4       5       6       7       8
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chicago        49.3   100.0   100.0   100.0    91.0     9.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Miami          47.7   100.0   100.0   100.0     9.0    91.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Indiana        43.1   100.0     0.0   100.0     0.0     0.0    99.3     0.0     0.7     0.0     0.0     0.0
Atlanta        39.6   100.0     0.0    72.2     0.0     0.0     0.7     0.0    94.2     4.7     0.4     0.0
Boston         38.7   100.0    98.3    25.1     0.0     0.0     0.0    98.3     0.0     0.5     1.2     0.0
Orlando        38.1   100.0     0.0     2.7     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     5.1    86.2     8.7     0.0
New York       36.0   100.0     1.7     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     1.7     0.0     8.6    87.4     2.3
Philadelphia   33.9    90.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     2.3    87.7
Milwaukee      31.6    10.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0    10.0
Detroit        24.2     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Toronto        23.4     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
New Jersey     22.8     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Cleveland      19.7     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Washington     19.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Charlotte       7.5     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0

Have to beat the Pacers.

[CubColtPacer]

I don't think being the #2 seed would be all that bad. You play New York in the first round with Amare gimping around trying to be reincorporated in the fold. Indiana would be a tough out in the 2nd round but then you're likely setting up Boston and Miami in the other semifinal.

 

I might be crazy, but I think I'd rather play Boston than Indiana. I know Boston has played well lately, but I think I'd still rather see that series than playing Indiana again.

 

In a vacuum, I'd probably rather play Indiana. But the idea of Boston making things tough for Miami or even bouncing them intrigues me.

 

Did you mean that in a vacuum you'd rather not play Indiana? The but confused me since obviously if you get Indiana, you get the benefit of Boston playing Miami too. That wouldn't be an either/or.

 

Both teams have been playing well down the stretch. Since March 17th, Indiana is 16-4 while Boston is 14-5. Boston obviously has the wealth of playoff experience as a group while Indiana's new guys are the only ones with significant playoff experience (West, Hill, Barbosa, Amundson).

 

I'm trying not to be a homer, but I'll say Chicago would want to avoid Indiana for one big reason. Both Boston and Indiana have roughly equal chances of upsetting Chicago (if push came to shove, I'd say as I did last week that Indiana has a little better chance against Chicago while Boston has a little better of a chance against Miami, but that's irrelevant to this point). But with the Bulls having so many guys already with nagging injuries, having such a bruising series against Indiana would be a huge detriment to the Bulls being healthy going into a potential Miami series. Hopefully not from anything dirty, but those will be highly physical contests between two long, physical type teams. Playing Boston might give just as long of a series, but the wear and tear from those games will likely be less.

 

Honestly, I'm not terribly afraid of losing to either Boston or Indiana if the Bulls are at full strength. Obviously a big "if".

 

For me, we've seen the Bulls vs Indiana series last year, and I didn't find it to be so compelling that I want to see it again.

 

I understand that opinion. Just giving you a reason you don't want to face Indiana even if you are 100% sure you will beat them. They'll take a lot out of your tank going forward.

 

The second point I don't understand as much. This Indiana team is dramatically different from last year's version. They run their offense differently, they have 2 new starters and 2 key bench players that are new. Whether last year's result was compelling has very little to do with this year because other than the name on the uniform and a couple of key players, the team they'll be facing is dramatically different. Of course there's some satisfaction in knocking out the Big 3 for the last time, so I can see why a Boston series might be more entertaining in that way.

[Banedon]

For all the media talk about how the #1 seed is in danger, the percentages are still greatly in the Bulls favor, though they've slipped a bit....

 

Team           AvgW    Play    Div     HCA       1       2       3       4       5       6       7       8
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chicago        49.3   100.0   100.0   100.0    91.0     9.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Miami          47.7   100.0   100.0   100.0     9.0    91.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Indiana        43.1   100.0     0.0   100.0     0.0     0.0    99.3     0.0     0.7     0.0     0.0     0.0
Atlanta        39.6   100.0     0.0    72.2     0.0     0.0     0.7     0.0    94.2     4.7     0.4     0.0
Boston         38.7   100.0    98.3    25.1     0.0     0.0     0.0    98.3     0.0     0.5     1.2     0.0
Orlando        38.1   100.0     0.0     2.7     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     5.1    86.2     8.7     0.0
New York       36.0   100.0     1.7     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     1.7     0.0     8.6    87.4     2.3
Philadelphia   33.9    90.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     2.3    87.7
Milwaukee      31.6    10.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0    10.0
Detroit        24.2     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Toronto        23.4     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
New Jersey     22.8     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Cleveland      19.7     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Washington     19.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0
Charlotte       7.5     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0     0.0

Have to beat the Pacers.

 

All bets are off if the Heat don't win out.

[Banedon]

I understand that opinion. Just giving you a reason you don't want to face Indiana even if you are 100% sure you will beat them. They'll take a lot out of your tank going forward.

 

The second point I don't understand as much. This Indiana team is dramatically different from last year's version. They run their offense differently, they have 2 new starters and 2 key bench players that are new. Whether last year's result was compelling has very little to do with this year because other than the name on the uniform and a couple of key players, the team they'll be facing is dramatically different. Of course there's some satisfaction in knocking out the Big 3 for the last time, so I can see why a Boston series might be more entertaining in that way.

 

I'm not trying to bag on the Pacers, cuz I think they've been very consistently good all season, and really have flown under the radar. But I dunno, I just don't find the team all the compelling. That could be completely unfair, as I haven't watched them much this year at all. But I feel like the Bulls have developed a rivalry with both Boston and Miami over time that just isn't there with Indiana. Yeah, there was the playoffs last year, but as competitive as they were, I don't think there's a "rivalry" to speak of there.

[Banedon]

While much of Derrick Rose's injury-plagued season can be blamed on simple "misfortune," as his coach, Tom Thibodeau, likes to put it, some of his travails could have been avoided, according to a source close to Rose.

 

Rose's frustration with feeling isolated by his fame was documented in a recent article in GQ Magazine, but the All-Star point guard is also troubled by the lack of attentiveness to concerns he's raised to the Bulls, a member of his camp told CSNChicago.com.

 

Among those issues is the fact that Rose's most recent ailments-a sprained right ankle and sore right foot-were exacerbated by the team's training staff's insistence on taping his ankles, a practice Rose has consistently fought against, opting instead for ankle braces.

 

http://www.csnchicago.com/basketball-chicago-bulls/bulls-talk/Did-ankle-taping-further-Roses-injury?blockID=693194&feedID=10332&awid=9037224312838277866-914

[UMFan83]

The training staff should be fired immediately after the season. Heck, if you could find a replacement you could trust, I'd fire them now.

[cubbyvirus00]

Stupid bulls

[SpongeWorthy]

For the longest time I thought Aggrey Sam was some inside joke nickname for Sam Smith.

 

Anyway, I'm not sure how Rose or Aggrey Sam would know if his ankle problems have been exacerbated by the treatment and preventative stuff he's been getting.

[Sammy Sofa]

Oh Christ; if this was a star on another team complaining about the training staff the meatballs above would be laughing about what a drama queen they were, but since it's the Bulls, hey, suddenly he's Dr. Rose.

[UMFan83]

Oh Christ; if this was a star on another team complaining about the training staff the meatballs above would be laughing about what a drama queen they were, but since it's the Bulls, hey, suddenly he's Dr. Rose.

 

uh yeah, i thought that was obvious

[cubbyvirus00]

Oh Christ; if this was a star on another team complaining about the training staff the meatballs above would be laughing about what a drama queen they were, but since it's the Bulls, hey, suddenly he's Dr. Rose.

 

All this crap is a non issue, but for distractions and injuries this late in the season to arise is both annoying and fatal.

[Sammy Sofa]

No, not FATAL!!!!!!

 

!!!!!!!!

[UMFan83]

Wait the training staff is trying to kill DRose? Oh no

[bcl412]

3 more regular season games? I know we're playing for a number 1 seed still but it almost feels like preseason to me at this point.

[SouthSideRyan]

Oh Christ; if this was a star on another team complaining about the training staff the meatballs above would be laughing about what a drama queen they were, but since it's the Bulls, hey, suddenly he's Dr. Rose.

 

lol, Queen James can't have his poor ankles taped up.

[BCVM22]

Rose playing tonight.

[Magnetic Curses]

oh that ghetto is going to burn with jew and gentile alike.

[cubbyvirus00]

No, not FATAL!!!!!!

 

!!!!!!!!

 

Man your posts are [expletive]

[Sammy Sofa]

They're straight lethal, nukka.

[Careless]

Why did some bull whip the ball off the backboard?