Season Series 3-0 Bulls

Center Match Up
Noah vs Anthony/The Nihilist(Big Z)/Bosh Spice-ADV Noah


The Heat have messed with the center spot so I am not sure who they will go with. I would guess Anthony if I had to. They seem to like him more right now and in a lot of ways he is like Noah with all the garbage work he does. Anthony lacks all the basketball skills but makes up in effort. Noah should have his way in this match up. Noah is  bigger and more skilled. Plus he will beat or match Anthony's efforts on 50/50 balls and rebounding. Anthony didn't even see the floor in the last game vs the Bulls so its hard to see this match up.

Big Z will give off a different challenge. Noah will have to respect his jumper on pick and pops. Big Z won't be scared to goon it up either. He will push some buttons. Noah had his way with Horford which surprised even me since I thought it would be a wash.

Even if Noah gets switched on to Lebron he has great feet to at least stay in front of him some what as he showed on the last play of the Bulls vs Heat game in March. Noah might not even see these two that much since he may be locked up with Bosh most the series and let Boozer handle these two randoms. Noah will challenege Bosh on every play and should be the kind of player that frustrares Bosh pretty good for a long playoff series. As good as Bosh is I just see Noah winning the war under the hoop and the mental games but whatever happens I expect a big series out of Noah.

Power Forward Match Up
Boozer vs Bosh in a pillow fight/Anthony/The Nihilist(Big Z)-Toss Up


No but really. These guys get called soft all the time. Boozer can be a post banger when he wants to but Bosh just seems to wonder around the 18 feet area shooting jumpers. I doubt we really see them match up to often as Boozer would have issues if Bosh ever decided to get his ass on the block. I expect Boozer to being guarding the other two and should be ok doing it. He just needs to make sure he puts his big body into Anthony since he will hustle for rebounds.

On offense they may put Bosh on him to have his length give him issues and it will. Boozer has a hard time with those big long forwards. He finally is out of the slump and looks better but Bosh will cause him issues. The other two he should have some success. If he is matched up with either Big Z or Anthony he should go right to the block and get a touch. This is a major advantage for the Bulls if he can get easy buckets on Anthony and Big Z.

The Series may come down to Boozer at least going 10 and 10 in all the games. If we cant get that out of him then we will lose and we will have over paid. After his last game I expect him to give us at least 10 and 10 and more. I feel its a bit of a wash of a match up.

Small Forward
Deng vs Lebron-ADV Lebron


Lebron is pretty much as tough as it gets of a match up. He can do it all. Deng has done a pretty good job on him in the 2 games they matched up. I mean 26 and 29 pts isn't great but hes not going off for 30+ so Deng's length and defense does have some effect.

The Playoffs he is playing on a whole different level and if he hits jumper hes pretty hard to stop. Deng will just try to limit his going to the hoop.If he makes the jumpers then he does. Not much you can do.

On offense Deng will still need to get his 17-20 pts for the Bulls to win this thing. He had 20-18pts vs the Lebron this season so as long as hes not cold he should get there. He has been playing focused basketball and will put it all out of the court.

Lets hope Lebron has one of those bad shooting nights where much doesn't go right. Thats when his level of play dips enough to call him human. Deng will have his hands full all series.

Shooting Guard
Bogans vs Wade-ADV Wade(duh)


You gotta say Bogans has stepped it up. He was all over Johnson and Granger in the playoffs. He has brought some nice toughness to the court and even shooting the ball with confidence.

Now that we got that out of the way... D.Wade will have his way more then not. He is also in playoff mode and is playing damn good basketball. Bogans will be pretty powerless. Just gotta hope you can make him shoot jumpers and that he doesn't shoot like he did in the Boston series. He made some shots he wouldn't make % wise so we hope that comes back down a bit but I think D.Wade is what makes this team go. If hes going off then the rest will.

The Bulls may throw more double teams here then at Lebron. I think Thibs knows Wade is the key and will see more traps and what not thrown at him. Wade had 20,34 and 30 vs the Bulls. They really need to keep him under 30 in order to have a chance.

Bogans needs to hit his two threes so the % chance of winning goes through the roof(like 32-3 or something when he scores 6pts?). Lets hope he keeps Wade a bit honest because he gonna have a hell of a time on the other end of the court.

Point Guard Match Up
Rose vs Chalmers/Bibby/Wade/Lebron-ADV Rose

Rose will have the whole house thrown at him... Not just the sink. I think all(not Bibby) these players can bother Rose in different ways but not enough from stopping him to get his. Rose is just gonna have be on par every game and be very smart.

If Rose gets into one of those shoot 8 three point and 8 turnover games then the Bulls will lose easy because the Heat will be playing fast break basketball and that =death for the Bulls. Rose needs to be a PG first and keep the turnovers down. Anything silly will cost the team.

He looked to be doing this more at the end of the Hawks series and that is only shooting the 3 when it is there. No need to jack them for no reason(like the Pacers series). Rose needs to attack the rim and keep getting to the FT line. If he does this the Bulls have a great chance. Some of those match ups will give him issues but more then not he figures it out after a while and they will switch someone else to him. If Bibby starts out on him then he needs to smell the Blood and get to rack while he can.

On defense he will get the two PGs and Wade at times. Derrick defense has come a long way and hes gotta make sure a guy like Bibby doesnt have a 4 for 5 three point shooting night. That will be enough from someone other then the big 3 to win a game. On Wade he gotta be careful not to get silly fouls since Wade just falls all over the place and gets calls like no other star in the NBA.

Rose should have an out standing series. He has been waiting for this the whole year.

The Benches
Bulls vs Heat-ADV Bulls 
Korver,Brewer,Watson Toss Up House,Chalmers,Miller,Jones
Gibson,Asik,Thomas>Big Z,Howard,Haslem

I think the benches are damn close but I give the Bulls the edge. I feel like they found new life in that last two games of the Hawks series. Gibson will keep his mins and will be a huge advantage vs Bosh.

The guards are a wash to me just due to not knowing who will show up. Will Korver be hot or cold? Will Watson be Warrior Watson or Bulls Watson? Will Brewer go into his shell? After seeing the PT that went around vs the Celtics its hard to see House or Miller playing much but they are the kind of guys that come in have a big three point shooting game that pushes it to Miami's favor. Jones has played better then expected thus far so I will respect them here and call it a wash.

The Bulls have big advantage at the PF and C I think as Gibson and Asik have been playing out of their minds as of late and lets hope that keeps going. I think Asik play in the Hawks series may have finally sat Thomas for the rest of the year(or career) but who knows. We may need him in tight spots. Howard(old) Big Z(old and slow) Haslem(hurt) don't really stand much of a chance vs our bench unit.

This will be a important time in the game. If the Bench can produce the Bulls chances go up in a big way of winning.

So....Like who's gonna win the series? 



Oh this is so hard. I like our team vs the big 3 but The Heat have been running through people like Clubber Lane in Rocky 3. They seem to have figured it out making this series a 6 to 7 game one. I will say this. If the Bulls win I think its in 7 games. Getting that final game at home will be huge. If the Bulls lose this series it will be in 6.

The Big 3 have avg 80+ points a game in the playoffs. That can't happen vs the Bulls. It will be a short series.
The game in March the Big 3 had 69 points and in Feb they had 70 for an avg of 69.5 for the season. The Bulls got those two wins by a hair. There isn't much room for error there. The Bulls need to keep them around 70pts or lower. Once you get past 75 I feel the % of a loss sky rockets. It will be important to limit one of the 3 and that more then likely will be Bosh.

A big factor will also go into slowing the game down and making the Heat beat them in the half court. Once you play sloppy and let them start running its over. Derrick Rose must take control of the ball and not be careless with it. 

Once again its hard to pick. My heart vs my brain. The level at which Miami has played has been scaring for now and going forward but my heart hasn't done me wrong all year and I think a team wins over 3 very talented players in the end. It can go either way but The Bulls is 7. If they fail... I won't be doing a "FINISH HIM" ms paint with Lebron's head being ripped from his body. That still doesn't mean it hasn't been a great season and lets hope the West can stop the Heat. If they go on to win the title the world will go dark.

If the Bulls win it will be like a dream. Before the season the Bulls seemed to be a solid team but not NBA Finals team. Oh how far they have come. Lets hope the Bulls bring it to the Heat and  play tough smart focused basketball.

Enjoy the Games my Friends.

Round 2 Bulls vs Hawks Preview

      VS








Season series 2-1 Bulls

Center Match up
Noah vs Horford-Toss Up
This is maybe the best match up of the series. Old buddies from Gatorville will square off in the 2nd round. Horford is the only dude on the Hawks I would want(ok maybe Johnson for our 2..) anywhere near my Bulls. Hes a work horse and a lot like Noah in that regard. He will grind out rebounds and do all the dirty work that no one on that roster wants to do. He has added a nice 17-18 foot jump shot that Noah will have to come out and guard.

We do know that Al lit Noah up pretty good for a career high in pts and rebounds in the Bulls loss to the Hawks. That of course was not a healthy Noah. To me this match up is a Toss Up. The dudes are gonna be 1up each other all game and will all come down to hustle. Horford will edge Noah in Points but Noah will edge him in blocks and dimes. They may go out to dinner after the game and talk about the old days when they ruled the College Basketball world but on the court it will be war.

Power Forward Match Up
Boozer vs Josh Smith-Adv Smith

What bothers Boozer the most besides his shadow? Long,leapers with head bands. Josh Smith is a nightmare for Carlos but if Carlos is smart he can out wit him on the block with all his up and under moves and head fakes. Thats the way he will have to play it. If he tries to go right at Smith or settle for fade away jumpers then its gonna be a long series for Boozer(like the picture at the right).

The Bulls have to limit Smith. He can either kill you in a game are spurt a 10-0 run with his blocking,running the court and dunking. He will take bad shots and thats what Boozer and his help defense is gonna have to do. Force him into jumpers. Smith himself can go backwards when his play isn't good so lets hope the Bulls are ready to help and force him to take poor jump shots. I gotta go with Adv Smith just due to how poor Boozers play has been and I do think he will only get worse before he gets better.

Small Forward Match Up
Deng vs Williams-Adv Deng

Williams is a guy that can make some nice athletic plays(like the block on Rose) or be invisible. For a number 2 pick he hasn't done a lot(that pick is cursed so whatever). Deng should own this match up. Deng is just  a way more sound player. Williams is gonna have to cover Deng from sideline to sideline. As long as Deng doesn't hit a major slumps then he should have a great series.





Shooting Guard Match Up
Keith Bogans vs Joe Johnson(highly over paid)-Adv Bogans...oops Joe Johnson

Yeah I kid. Joe Johnson wins this in a mud slide. Bogans will do a nice job on him but Joe will get hot at times. Hes just such a good pure shooter. To me he is really a taller Ben Gordan but maybe not as clutch. Joe Johnson will see many defenders. Deng,Brewer and Bogans will all take turns trying to limit him.

If the Bulls do find a way to keep his production down then the Bulls have a great shot at winning the series in 4. If they let him go off then it maybe a bit harder then that. IMO the Bulls have to make him put the ball on the floor. He can stroke it fast and quick(ewwww) and is right there with Ray Allen when it comes to pure shooters.

Point Guard Match Up(LOL!)
Derrick Rose vs Randoms-Adv Rose

With Kirk out or limited it will be hard for the Hawks to stop Rose. He should be able to get to the hoop at will. They will try a number of defenders. Teague,Crawford,Marvin(?) will all get their chance. Hell maybe the Hawks will bring Gerald Wilkins to be the Rose stopper like the Cavs did in 93 for Jordan... We all know how that turned out.

I hope Rose lets his 3pt shot come to him(wide open looks) since he should be able to get to the rack at will vs Crawford or whoever. If Kirk does make a game then he should be a bit slowed but he is tough and would make it harder on Rose. Kirk did maybe the best one on one job all season on Rose. But its Playoff time now and I expect Rose to have his way with the 50% Kirk if he does dress.

Bench
Bulls vs Hawks-Adv Bulls
Crawford,Teague,Wikins > Brewer,Korver,Watson
Collins,Head Butt Dude,Armstrong < Gibson,Thomas,Asik

Depending on how the Hawks go with the starting line up their bench is just bizarre to me. They could have up to as many 4(!) centers on the bench if they start Crawford or Williams. That leaves just Teague at PG and a paper bag at SF. Its a pretty uneven bench and roster to be honest. I like the Bulls bench in this match up and that's even with Crawford coming off it and a crapping showing thus far by the Bench Mob. As a whole the Bulls are better.




I like the Bulls is 5. The Hawks are a glorified AAU team in my eyes. They play one on one ball a lot. Don't really look for each other and can take a ton of bad shots. Basically this team would end Larry Browns coaching career with a heart attack if he were the coach.

This kind of basketball plays into the Bulls defense pretty nice. The only way this series gets tough is if the Bulls come out flat again. They need to bring energy because the Hawks will. Also limit Crawford and Johnsons easy looks. The 3pt shot will get them going. If the Bulls bring it and stick to their Ps and Qs then this series should be a sweep or in 5. Six would suck but not out of the realm. Derrick should have a field day if Kirk can't go.

Enjoy the games friends. 


IN YO FACE JON KONCAK!!!!!