NBA Playoffs Thread

The Heat are doing a brilliant job defending Rose. There are no open lanes for him to drive through. They're pretty much daring every other Bulls player to score, knowing they can't. For all the talk about the big three (and Bosh is certainly taking advantage of the Bulls overplaying James and Wade), Anthony and Haslem have come up big to shut down Boozer and Noah inside. Sure, Boozer's numbers were good last night, but they were like Bosh in game one -- big, but of little impact. It was apparent in the Indiana series that it was very easy to get Chicago's offense out of rhythm, and now that the Bulls are facing a team with the talent to pull it off for 48 minutes, they're in trouble.

The thing is, the Bulls are playing good defense, even though they have no one to match up to James. For Rose and the Bulls to get to the Finals, they are going to have to acquire a great scorer. Luol Deng ain't it.

And, by the way, thanks to Joakim Noah and his Kobe-style gay slur for helping to prove Danny Granger right about what a jerk he is.

 

It's a good question, but moot. The answer is: That's not how Thibs rolls.

 

Boozer had 26 points and 17 rebounds last night. He's had three double-doubles in the past five games (and just missed one in another with 14 and 9). He's not played up to expectations at times in the playoffs, game two of this series being one of them, but a much bigger issue for the Bulls is that they haven't been able to hit outside shots when the Heat clog the middle against Rose and their big men.

 

Also, it's been hard for Boozer and Noah to be good at the same time. As Boozer's numbers have improved, Noah's have gone in the toilet, and while Noah doesn't score, his passing and offensive rebounding are a big part of the offense. As for Gibson, the Heat are fine giving up some to him if it means Rose isn't running free, so I wouldn't get too excited over his production.

 

Boozer's big problem is he's a defensive liability. He's not big enough to guard a significant power forward like Bosh.

 

That last line made me laugh. So random. Must have been posted from your phone.

 

Why isn't anyone talking about the NBA?

Is it because LeBron won again?

Buncha HATERS!!!!!!!

[/dorks]

 

Yeah, amazing the way that always happens. Except when it doesn't.

And, btw, I noticed there were also no comments on Saturday's Mavs/Thunder game, to what deep-seeded board bias can we attibute that silence?

 

Hatred of Tyson Chandler.

 

Yep, damn auto spell. But I bet his defensive reactions (really lack thereof) makes you think Thibedoeau need a handkerchief at times.

Sometimes, defensive players make really stupid decisions, like Noah trailing Bosh on a Bibby screen and going over it, which leads to a Bosh dunk. Bosh is not Rip Hamilton, why not go under the screen?

 

I don't quite get all of the fawning over Miami's defense.

Miami plays good defense. But its offense is the reason it is winning this series.

How "brilliant" is it to double Rose? Certainly the Heat have done a better job than anyone else of forcing the ball out of his hands, and are running much higher-quality defenders at him.

Put it this way: What was more impressive in Game 3, from a purely defensive standpoint: Miami holding Chicago to 85 points, or Chicago holding Miami to 96?

 

What Miami is doing, that others aren't, is quickly switching defenders so that Rose is never unguarded, and doing so in ways that do not create open lanes. When Rose does drive, they're on him so fast that he doesn't have time to make a decision on getting rid of the ball.

To answer your question, the Heat holding the Bulls to 85 is more impressive. The Bulls' weren't an offensive juggernaut, but that is still 13 below their average. Plus, the Bulls only gave up 91 per game, so Miami does well to go above that number. The thing is, Miami doesn't have to score in bunches. As long as the Heat get 90, they win. Their defense has put the screws on the Bulls, and unless Korver and Deng start hitting shots, and Noah starts wreaking havoc on the offensive boards, Chicago is going to have a hard time winning another game, much less the series.