Bulls Lose

The series was played in spurts and the Pistons did a great job coming out on top of all those.

As Matt said on Blog a Bull:

"Sunday's game will be like a freaking wake."

Hopefully next year things would be better.

Bulls Lose Game 1 to Pistons

Bulls lost.

What can I say, Detroit outplayed them in every aspect of the game. How the Pistons handled everything is pretty much the best way to play Basketball.

I do expect the Bulls to show up in game 2. I mean, a lose like that could only result in two things: the Bulls's moral would be an all-time low the rest of the series or, it could stand as a wake up call and they'd go out on a tear come game 2.

If the Bulls steal one from the Pistons' homecourt then this would become a very interesting series for Bulls fans.

SWEEP WOOHOO!

'Nuff said.

Motor City here we come! Woooohhhhoooooooo!!!

Just One More Win

Bulls gets the road win, 104-96.

In the NBA, 78 times a team have trailed 0-3 in a best of 7 playoff series, 78 times they got eliminated. I'm not saying that it's impossible for the Heat to come back from 0-3 down but, it sure would take more than those all-white seats in American Airlines Arena to get them back into contention (FYI: I really don't like the all-white bit, it's as if a huge cult has converged to watch an NBA playoff game in the AAA).

The big three was great tonight. Hinrich had 22, Deng had 24 and Gordon had 27--and they all performed well from the stripe during those Miami foul barrage in the closing minutes of the game. They just moved well and executed well. Great win.

A "W" on Sunday (Monday here in the Philippines) would mean a sweep--what a great way for the Bulls to win their first playoff series in 9 years.

We're Up 2-0

Bulls takes game 2 at the United Center, 107-89, goes up 2-0 in series.

Luol Deng started the game a bit cold, shooting just 1-6 from the field but he was the main guy in a decisive fourth quarter run that saw the Bulls' Sudanese swing man pile up 14 points. He finished the game with 26. Ben Gordon was all business from downtown in this game, shooting 5-8 to end up with 27 points. Captain Kirk also bounced back from a dismal game one performance which saw him play only 19 min to end up 1-4 in the field. This time around he shot 50% (6-12 from the field) and ended up with 14 points and 8 dimes.

The officiating was also great in this game compared to game 1's officiating, so great in fact that Shaq didn't question it.

"'I have been around a long time and I've been in all these situations before,' O'Neal said. 'Basically, the Bulls did what they're supposed to do and protect their home court. We have to play smarter basketball. We got to come with a lot more energy and play with a lot more effort and a lot more passion.'''

I don't think the Heat played with less energy, at least I think they played with all the energy they could dish out but, the fact is, that the Bulls are younger, and that Wade is playing hurt--they just can't keep up, whatever they do, with the speed and athleticism that the young Bulls team have. It's just a matter of physical wear and tear on this one.

What really troubled me though is the fact that Skiles still stuck to playing Duhon first before Thabo on Wade. Duhon just can't match up with Wade. He's an easy prey when it comes to Wade's favorite fake-wait-for-defender-to-jump-and-then-draw-foul move. Each time Wade does this, Duhon gets caught in it like some crack addict who got busted in a sting operation for the nth consecutive time. He can't also bother Wade off the dribble unlike how Thabo can. I just can't think of any good reason why Skiles wouldn't just go straight away with Thabo as his secondary Wade defender. He did a great job in game 1, right? Still, Wade scored only 21 points--a far cry from what he usually pours on during playoff games.

Anyway, PJ Brown and Wallace also did a great job on Shaq, limiting him to only 17 points while continually pushing him outside of his comfort zone down low. If they keep this up, a series sweep would really be likely.

Great game overall for the Bulls. They executed well and defended well. Now it's time to take care of business on Miami's home turf. I sure wish the Heat fans refrain from putting up that all-should-wear-white bit that they pulled last year. Man that's just creepy.

Quinito Henson Is Overrated (At Least as an NBA Analyst)

I got this post in my personal blog. I wrote this at the time when this blog was inexistent (last Saturday). However, now that I have decided to put up this blog, I believe this is the appropriate place to post this.


A few days ago I had coffee with my dad and my brother and the three of us had a conversation on who is the best Filipino NBA analyst we have right now. "Quinito Henson," my dad quickly and unhesitatingly pointed out. I rolled my eyes at his answer and then said "Mine is Bill Velasco."

My dad and brother then looked at me enigmatically, begging to explain to them why I picked the Half-Brit over the guy people consider as the best contemporary sports analyst in the country. I took a sip off my coffee and then blurted out that Quinito Henson is overrated. I meant it. He's overrated, at least as an NBA analyst, and I'm willing to stick to my convictions.

That's what brings us to this post right now (which is also somewhat a recap of game 1 of the 1st round of the NBA Eastern Conference playoff match up between the Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat).

Quinito Henson's column in today's Star (Sunday, April 22) suggested that the Miami Heat would certainly beat the Bulls in their current first round match up in the NBA playoffs. After that, I switched on the TV set, tuned in to Basketball TV, and watched the game between the Bulls and the Heat. Well, what do you know--Bulls win, 96-91.

Henson pointed out that the Bulls are tougher this season albeit he still picked the Heat because of two names: Shaq and Wade. Well, I don't know if he really is a sports analyst or, if in reality, he's just a Heat, or Shaq, or Wade, or Riley fan who happens to write for the sports section of a major newspaper. The thing is, he didn't point any factual or statistical evidence why he picked the Heat over the Bulls. Basically, he just blurted out that Heat will win because they have more experience, apparently because they're older, because the Bulls doesn't have a deep bench, and because they have Shaq and Wade.

Well, I pick the Bulls over the Heat in 6 and I'm backing myself up with stats and facts that Mr. Henson dismissed in his article. Here are my reasons why I'm picking the Bulls over the Heat:

1. Bulls Defensive Personnel #1

Last year Shaq and Wade trounced the Bulls because the Bulls have yet the capacity to match up with the Heat man-for-man defensively. Last year's Bulls team had an athletic, yet a defensive non-factor when it comes to guarding Shaq, in the form of Tyson Chandler. Of course Chandler was great for the Bulls on the rebounding category but his slim, 7-foot, foul-prone frame could never bother Shaq at any given time. Shaq eats those kind of players (Rik Smits, Scott Pollard, Zydrunas Ilgauskus, Vlade Divac, Brad Miller, etc.). They're totally incapable of guarding Shaq, with or without help from their teammates. To the Big Aristotle, they're just foul fodders to aid him in his in-game Free-throw shooting practice, which, after all these years, have yet to help him shoot better from the charity stripe.

This season, the Bulls signed Ben Wallace to a 60 mil, 4-year contract. Big Ben might not be able to handle Shaq one on one but, with help from the other Bulls players, he might be able to contain Shaq just like what he and the rest of the Detroit front liners did in the Pistons-Lakers championship series back in 2004. I guess that's why they're the Number 1 Defensive Team in the League for the season.

2. Bulls Defensive Personnel #2

Last year, only one guy on the Bulls roster had the capacity to keep up with Dwyane Wade and that was Kirk Hinrich. This year, with rookie Thabo Sefalosha in the line-up, they have two great perimeter defending guys that could potentially contain Wade in those crucial stretches in the game that he usually likes to take over. I guess game one proved that point. Wade shot just 7-16 in the game to finish with 21 points--that's a big factor. Remember, this is the playoffs--Wade should be pouring in 30 or more a game this time of the year. And, the fact that Wade admitted in the post-game prescon that Thabo's length really bothered him just proves me right on this one.

3. LUOL DENG

No one from the Heat team could guard this guy. He moves great with or without the ball, he's got great basketball I.Q., he's a hard worker on both the defensive and offensive end and he doesn't force shots and, well I could ramble on and on why Deng is that good of a player but this post would just get longer than it already is so I'm cutting this one already. Fact is, they can't stop Deng because he's not a Carter or a Kobe who thinks he must score and do everything by himself in order for his team to win. Deng knows what it takes to win and that's by working hard and playing his part on the team exceptionally, to trust his teammates with the rest--something that the rest of the Bulls team seem to have realized along with him.

4. Deep Bench

This is what really pissed me off and what cemented my claim that Quinito Henson does not know much about the NBA. Contrary to what he said, the Bulls DO HAVE a deep bench. They have a high quality ten-man rotation that rivals only the Phoenix Suns in the League. Thomas, Sefalosha, Duhon, Nocioni, and Allen. That's a wide array of guys who could defend and score if needed be. Jesus, Henson should WATCH NBA games first before blabbering something about playoff match up predictions on his column as if he is Madam Auring.

5. Home Court Advantage

The Bulls have the best home winning record in the East during the season. They sold out all of their home games. The home crowd would kill for them. The United Center is the best place to play a home basketball game.

*****

What people say about stats being thrown out come playoff time is only half-true. Stats do tell us something (and they help gamblers pick better). They tell us what a team and an individual could consistently do.

The thing is, passion alone can't win playoff games--having the talent to back it up, excellent team coordination and the understanding that you have to sacrifice things in order to achieve your ultimate goal, the championship, is also as important as passion/heart come playoff time. The Bulls have all of those. I'm not claiming that they'll win the championship, what I'm saying is that they are a great team and could win the championship. Nothing's for certain--I just like their chances. And the fact that they're generally a young team but have, in fact, 3 years worth of playoff experience makes that more likely. yes, I am a Bulls fan and I am biased--the stats and facts I just stated are not.

Today, Kirk Hinrich only played 20 min and was generally a non-factor in the game due to foul trouble way before Wade and Shaq got into foul trouble themselves. Still, the Bulls won because of great defensive and offensive plays. It says a lot, don't you think so?