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      05-04-2011, 04:16 PM   #952
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BTM View Post
Beating the Pacers 4 games to 1 is not what I would consider "barely" beating them. Games were close and the Pacers played solid, physical basketball, you have to give them that. They never stood a chance though, especially when they are playing their best basketball against a team playing mediocre at best and still losing those games.
Well, beating the Pacers decided by +/- 5 points is what I call barely beating (not including the blowout game 6). Regardless if they came out with more wins. You would expect the best team in the league to play a lot better against the worst playoff team with a negative record.

Quote:
You've made the Lebron/Cavs comparison before (at least someone has) and I guess only time will tell. The Bulls are much more cohesive than those Cavs teams ever were IMO, and yes, a lot of their success is predicated on Rose playing well. A major difference I see is coaching. This is Thibodeau's first year as a head coach, he's got the best record in the regular season, coach of the year award, and the youngest MVP ever. Their pieces are also in place, I think Boozer has been playing hurt for a lot of the second half, Noah is starting to turn it on, and our bench players average 26pts per game.
So far in Chicago's playoff games, I do not see any chemistry what so ever. Really reminds me of the early Miami season when they were 8-8. Although Rose is the MVP for the regular season, he is palying a lot worst in the playoffs. His field goal % is ~35% in the first round compared to his season average of ~45%. He is shooting extremely poorly beyond the arc with 21% of the shots made compared to his season average of 33%. Let's not forget about Boozer who is the #2 man on the team. His shooting % dropped 15% against the Pacers.. As the playoffs continue, the Bulls will face much more physical team such as Miami or Boston, which I really can't see the Bulls beating.

Quote:
Insinuating they haven't shown up to the playoffs is a little premature, as the outcome of this series is far from being determined. And if we want to look back at Rose and Noah's playoff history, I certainly wouldn't say they didn't show up to those Boston series, despite the fact that Vinny Del Negro can't coach.

So I guess I'm not seeing a lot of this comparison of the Bulls being a one man team, when the Cavs actually were. They had no coaching, no supporting cast, and failed year after year to get what they paid for out of their players, aside from maybe Mo Williams. They earned that reputation through repeated failure in the playoffs. I wouldn't cast the Bulls in the same light given they've only played 6 playoff games this year, and have otherwise exceeded expectations whether it be previously playoff rounds or their regular season performance this year
Only time will tell if they can beat the Hawks. But they sure have a huge challenge ahead going against Miami or Boston.
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