I love Bill Simmons. The dude just knows basketball. He should be on ESPN SC everyday. He wrote his end of the year NBA Power Poll. Here some great gems.

Six reasons we need a lockout ...

$16,324,500
$18,038,573
$19,752,645
$21,466,718
$23,180,790
$24,894,863

That's what Atlanta owes Joe Johnson, by year, through 2016. You know, because any time you can totally overpay someone hitting his 30s who isn't one of the best 15 players in the league, you have to do it. To be fair, at least Johnson played the best basketball of his career once he locked that money do- ... oh, wait, that's not what happened at all. He had his worst season in six years. 

I have said for some time that Joe Johnson is a taller Ben Gordan. His contract will be one of the worse if not the worst contract in the NBA in the coming 2-5 years. The next R.Lewis contract really.

Seventy-Fifth team: I really think they should add this one. Who were the five worst players who played at least 700 minutes this season? My picks ...

• Jonny Flynn: Ranks seventh from the bottom with Hollinger's PER and can't guard anybody. But hey, at least that draft pick made no sense.

• Rasual Butler: I watched him for a year and a half -- he doesn't possess a single averagebasketball skill. He's a 3-point shooter who can't make wide-open 3s. I think the Bulls acquired him so their fans would feel better about Keith Bogans.

• Yi Jianlian: I have no idea what he does or why he's in the league. You know what really scares me? Danny Ainge was ready to take him fifth in 2007 if the Ray Allen trade fell through. Yikes. I'd be talking about my dad in the past tense.

• Juwan Howard: Because he looks the same, it's almost like Miami is trying to pull a Jedi Mind Trick on opponents. Look, it's Juwan Howard! That guy scored 20 a game not too long ago! I wouldn't leave him open if I were you ...

• Travis Outlaw: A one-dimensional player who lost that dimension (making just 29 percent of his 3s this season) just one year into a five-year, $35 million deal. Anytime you're a wealthier, cap-killing Rasual Butler, you're my Least Valuable Player. I'm glad we settled this.

Our own Rasual Butler makes his All NBA all 57th Team! Also what did happen to Outlaw? He was flying around for the Blazer for a while. Got some money... He is no Bo Outlaw(the dude who didn't hit a jump shot in his whole career).

With 20 seconds left in a blowout, Carlos Boozer got tangled with Nenad Krstic and decided to shove him six feet, got called for a foul, then stared him down before sauntering back to his bench and being greeted by smiling teammates. Honestly, it was like watching a deleted Cobra Kai scene. 

This is reason alone to pay Boozer. Also any Cobra Kai reference is a win in my book.

The 2011 Bulls are better than any 2010 Eastern team. There's no comparison, actually. All season long I've been watching them with the same frightened look that Mickey had during Clubber Lang's fights in the beginning if "Rocky 3."

Bill knows basketball. Hes a hardcore Celtic fan and never backs off that. He is in love with this Bulls team and he wishes it were his own.

  Rose carries his team's offense more than anyone else carries their team's offense. He's the Bulls' only player who can create his own shot, and he's their only player who can create shots for others. Night after night after night, he walked onto the court knowing that Chicago's entire offense hinged on how he played. His usage (32.4 percent) and assist (39.4 percent) rates tell some of the story; in crunch-time per 48 minutes, he's averaged the second-most field goal attempts, the eighth-most free throw attempts and the ninth-highest assists (nobody else made the top-15 for all three categories, much less the top-10). The dude does everything for Chicago offensively

I wish he had an MVP vote but he is pretty much the most respected guy in NBA circles and voters will soak this column up. It can't hurt how he gives all the right reasons to vote Derrick MVP.

I could quote that column for the whole post but we must move on to.... TOYS!
Yes thats right you can now get your very own Carlos Boozer figure at Toys R Us

Its really not very good. Besides the shoes and the jersey and tats it looks nothing like Boozer. He has some light hair, no huge nose, wrong facial hair. But its something cool to add to the Bulls collection.

Doug knocks it out of the park again with his Celtics Preview.

 I mean Shaq can't even make it onto the court anymore, so he has Jermaine 'knees' O'Neal no less as his stand in. TNT's lucky Kenny and Charles were off after their NCAA Lousiest Finals ever gig

Read more: http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/chicago-bulls-confidential/2011/04/celtics-put-the-no-show-in-showdown.html#ixzz1J6tlzuyx


Oh how I miss NBA on NBC. Brings back my Saturdays as a kid. Plus Bob was the shit.