Bulls/Heat an Emerging Rivalry
There was more to the game the other night between the Heat and the Bulls than the take-down flagrant foul that resulted in the ejection/suspension of James Posey and the sprained wrist for Luol Deng. The game was physical, hard-fought, and wrought with emotion and intensity.
Heat Coach Pat Riley was upset at what he felt was a dirty play by Kirk Hinrich that resulted in an injury to superstar Dwyane Wade, and there was a lot of talk between the teams before, during and after the contest that wound up in a Bulls victory. These two teams are growing to seriously dislike one another, and that stems back to their playoff series from a year ago. If they meet again in this postseason, it’s going to be well worth the effort to obtain Bulls tickets to see what unfolds.
Bulls Show Depth in Win Over Raptors
One of the signs of a good team in the NBA is the ability to have different players step up and perform when needed. The Bulls are beginning to look like one of those teams, and last night’s win over the Raptors is a perfect example of their depth. Last night, it was Luol Deng, playing with a sprained wrist from a hard foul against the Heat, who led the Bulls with 25 points, 19 of which came in the second half as the Bulls held won their 15th straight against the hosts in Toronto.
The Bulls parlayed a dominant second quarter, in which they outscored the Raptors 28-14, into their 18th win of the season overall and they kept pace with the Pistons and Cavaliers in the division. If you want to continue to see this team continue to rise, go to StubHub.com for Bulls tickets.
Posey suspended for taking down Bulls’ Deng
The Chicago Bulls were outraged at Miami’s James Posey for taking down Luol Deng in Wednesday’s game. The NBA agreed on Friday, suspending Posey for a game for the flagrant foul.
The play happened in the fourth quarter of Chicago’s 109-103 win over the Heat. Posey pulled Deng down from behind, although Miami coach Pat Riley tried to claim Posey was just trying to block Deng’s shot.
“There was no intent except to block the shot,” Riley said after the game. “He didn’t go after his head.”
Riley also complained about Kirk Hinrich injuring Dwayne Wade earlier in the game when Hinrich allegedly grabbed Wade’s wrist on a screen. Wade also suffered a sprained wrist.
The Bulls begged to differ. Ben Gordon said Posey’s play, “was way more blatant.” Posey was suspended for a game last year when he took down Hinrich in the playoffs. Deng sprained his wrist on the play but looked fine on Friday, scoring 25 points in Chicago’s win over Toronto. Posey missed Miami’s game with the Nets on Friday. The Bulls face the Heat at home on Jan. 27. That should be a most interesting night at the United Center.
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Bulls hanging tough
Despite that hiccup on Dec. 22 (an inexcusable loss at the New York Knicks), the Chicago Bulls have been keeping a strong December going. After Friday night’s 107-97 win at Toronto, the Bulls are now 13-3 in December heading into Saturday’s home game against Cleveland.
The Bulls are now 18-12 on the year, tied with the Cavaliers for second place in the Central Division.
Luol Deng showed no ill effects from his sprained wrist, suffered in Wednesday’s win over Miami. Deng scored a game-high 25 points as the Bulls beat the Raptors for the 15th consecutive time. Deng was 11 of 16 from the floor.
It was also a big win because it came away from the United Center. Chicago is just 5-10 on the road this year and had lost its last three - including that terrible loss to the awful Knicks.
As the Bulls head into the new year, they have put themselves in good position for a run at the playoffs. In the Eastern Conference - the NFC of the NBA - finishing the season over .500 should be good enough for a playoff berth. Finishing 10-16 games over .500 should earn home court advantage in the early rounds.
After Saturday’s game, Chicago is off until Tuesday when it hosts Pacific Division leading Phoenix, which recently had a 15-game winning streak snapped. The Bulls have several key games in January, including Jan. 6 (hosting Central Division leading Detroit), Jan. 15 (hosting San Antonio), Jan. 20 (hosting Northwest Division leading Utah) and Jan. 25 (hosting Southwest Division leading Dallas). That’s a home schedule worth checking out.
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Is Ben Wallace Proving to Be Worth the Investment?
People around the NBA shuddered when the Bulls gave Ben Wallace a four-year, $60 million contract. The common cries included such “points” as he’s not an offensive player, he’s on the downside of his career, he’s never going to dominate again and the rest of the Pistons made him better.
However, Wallace is proving all the critics wrong. His statistics are consistent with previous years, and he’s one of those players whose stats simply don’t tell the story. He got off to a rough start, as did the rest of the Bulls, including the ridiculous controversy over wearing a headband, but he’s overcome that, and the Bulls’ record is showing it.
Wallace is delivering the defensive presence the Bulls need in the paint, and his passing is letting sweet shooters like Ben Gordon light it up from the outside. If you want to see true intimidation on the basketball court, go to StubHub to secure some Bulls tickets, and you won’t be disappointed.
Ben Gordon - Is there a Deadlier Shooter in the NBA?
If a basketball coach could draw up the perfect jump shot, all he or she would need to do is check out a video of Ben Gordon. Gordon simply doesn’t miss if he’s given any room, and many times that room isn’t even necessary. Even though Gordon has been the topic of several trade rumors in recent years, he’s found a nice niche in Chicago coming off the bench.
In fact, national writers are beginning to notice, as Gordon’s role as a sixth man is headed to potentially-historic levels. Gordon can go off for 40+ points on any given night, and his presence makes everyone around him instantly better. If you want to see a truly beautiful stroke, pick up some Chicago Bulls tickets and see Gordon live.
It’s All Starting to Come Together
After a horrible start to the season, the Bulls have been putting things together quite nicely over the past couple of weeks. They’ve won seven of their last ten games, and the players’ rolls are beginning to take shape. The Bulls recently won a thriller over the defending champion Miami Heat, and that game was a microcosm of what this team can achieve over the long season. Ben Gordon, one of the sweetest shooters in the game, had 40 points and Ben Wallace had 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks. They’re still chasing the Cavaliers and Pistons, but they’re gaining ground quickly.
Bulls fans have been waiting for nearly 10 years for this team to rise towards the top of the NBA once again, and Bulls tickets now offer fans a chance to see the team do just that. There may not be a more complete team in the league, as the Bulls can score, rebound, defend and share the ball. Come see what’s causing all the excitement at the United Center, and you’re sure to be entertained by a top-notch display of team basketball.
Bulls take Lakers, continue winning ways
The Chicago Bulls got a big win on Tuesday, beating the Los Angeles Lakers, 94-89 at the United Center. Chicago has now won 12 of its last 13 games and is in second place in the NBA’s Central Division with a 15-10 record entering Friday’s game at New York.
Most of the Bulls hot streak has come against weak teams in the Eastern Conference. But Tuesday’s win comes against one of the marquee teams in the NBA, even though the Lakers are currently playing without Lamar Odom.
Chicago’s defense held Kobe Bryant to just 19 points on 6 of 19 shooting. Bryant fouled out of a game for the first time in a year. Bryant had scored 98 points in his past two games.
Luol Deng was the big man on the stat sheet with 23 points and a season-high 12 rebounds. Ben Gordon added 22 points.
Now the Bulls return to the scene of the crime - Madison Square Garden. That’s where Ben Wallace wore a headband in defiance of coach Scott Skiles in a game on Nov. 25. That’s also the night Chicago started it’s current streak. The Bulls follow that game up with a Saturday home game against Charlotte, then take two days off for Christmas.
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Bulls conclude winning homestand with Bucks
The Bulls are streaking, thanks to an eight-game homestand that concludes on Friday when Milwaukee comes to town. Chicago has won six of the first seven games and has won nine of 10 overall.
The hot spell has improved the Bulls’ record to 12-10, good for third place in the Central Division, a game and a half behind Cleveland and Detroit. Chicago is one of just four teams in the Eastern Conference with a record over .500. Orlando (15-10) is the other.
Even better, Ben Wallace has seemed to respond to headbandgate and is playing his best ball of the season. In a 99-84 win over Seattle on Wednesday, Wallace scored 15 points and grabbed 20 rebounds, both season-highs.
Bulls coach Scott Skiles said after the game that he wants Wallace to be part of the Chicago offense, saying, “We throw Ben the ball quite a bit in the course of games.” Skiles didn’t comment if it was harder for teammates to see Wallace when he isn’t wearing a headband.
As for everybody’s favorite NBA story, the Bulls are supposedly not interested in trading for Philadelphia’s Allen Iverson. But the team has been rumored to be part several three-team scenarios involving Iverson. One report has the Bulls sending P.J. Brown to Denver for Marcus Camby as part of a three-team deal with the 76ers. Philadelphia would end up with expiring contracts and draft picks, Denver would get Iverson and Chicago would get Camby. The Bulls would reportedly use the oft-injured Camby as a “Rasheed Wallace” to Ben Wallace up front.
Tony Mejia on CBSSportsline.com reported the Nuggets are the favorites in the Iverson race so the Bulls very much could be in play here.
Meantime, the current Chicago team finishes up the homestand with Milwaukee. Then, it’s a quick trip to Atlanta on Saturday followed by a home game with the suddenly vulnerable Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday.
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There’s no place like home for Bulls
Sometimes the NBA is really simple. The Bulls were reeling a couple of weeks ago, losing the first five games of the annual Circus trip before lucking out and finishing the road trip at New York.
Now, Chicago has a seven-game winning streak going. The streak started with that win over the Knicks, which also happened to be the Ben Wallace headband game. On Friday night, the Bulls beat the Toronto Raptors, 93-90.
Some pundits have suggested the Wallace incident triggered the turnaround (Sports Illustrated among them) but we beg to differ. We think the reasons are simpler than that.
1) Five of the seven wins have come at the United Center. The Bulls are in a stretch of 10 games where they play nine at home. Yes, this is an extreme example, but it’s easier to win at home and harder on the road.
2) As they said on Blogabull.com this week, “The Atlantic Division is a cure-all for any team.” Five of the seven wins in the streak have come against Atlantic teams (Knicks twice, Celtics, 76ers and Raptors). This theory will be tested starting on Saturday when Chicago hosts Minnesota as the Bulls are done with the Atlantic for a while.
Wallace has played better after a poor start. But Chicago has gotten bigger contributions from two other sources: Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng. Hinrich scored nine of his 13 points in the fourth quarter on Friday to help hold off a Toronto rally. Deng has been going off of late, scoring 25 points against the Raptors after burning the 76ers for 21 points and 10 rebounds in a 121-94 victory on Wednesday.
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