A Behind the Scenes Look

Instead of talking about the sad occurrences of last night's Bulls game I will instead focus on what happened to me on Tuesday. This past Tuesday I had the honor of working as a Production Assistant for a NBA Entertainment shoot involving Derrick Rose and Ahmad Rashad at Rose's house. Needless to say it was great. I arrived early, the shoot was at 12:45 I got there at 12:30. One of his buddies, or brothers (I'm not sure which) let me in and made me feel at home. Everyone I met at Derrick Rose's house was extremely friendly and no one ever gave off that sense of superiority that you read about all the time (I'm looking at you LeBron). When the rest of the crew arrived we began setting everything up. It was a pretty standard shoot, nothing to shocking. We moved lights in, furniture out, set up the cameras, and got the room ready for when Ahmad and Derrick arrived.

One thing to note, camera guys and light guys will change the setup a million times if they are allowed. Because Derrick was a little late, nothing terrible (Plus he was working out, which is a good thing), the guys changed the lighting about 20 times. Ahmad arrived about an hour before Rose and got settled, and let me tell you he hates AND I MEAN HATES the cold. He complained about it for at least 20 minutes. It's hard to believe he used to play football in Minnesota, in an outdoor stadium.

Rose arrived and Ahmad and him exchanged pleasantries and then sat down for the interview. It was a good interview, nothing to shocking. One thing I really like is Rose comes off as truly humble. I don't think it's an act and he is very thankful for everything he has. Basically, I'm glad he's the Bulls franchise player, it's a pleasure to root for a guy like that.

The interview was a half hour than we broke the stuff down and loaded it up. Rose shook my hand and thanked me for coming and we were out the door. The whole thing lasted a total of 4 hours and paid me a decent amount. It was probably the best work experience I've ever had. Anyway, a bunch of pics below with an occasional comment.




Ahmad with the crew, there is a lot of standing around and waiting once everything gets set up.



Derrick isn't the most exciting interview, but every once in a while he did bust out in laughter.





Rose is one of the nicer guys I've met in professional sports. It really was fun to be in his house and working with him.


Rose's house. It's nothing crazy big and he doesn't have a lot of expensive things lying around. It's good to see him stay humble and also not spending crazy money. Not after hearing about Antoine Walker blowing through a hundred million. It is in a great neighborhood that is nice and quiet and is right down the street from the practice facility. Apparently several players live in the area which makes sense after seeing everything.


Rose does own a sweet Camaro, which as some of you know is my favorite car. Also if you look closely you can see the Skittles machine in the background that was sent to him for free because he loves skittles. Rose did say he eats a lot of candy, but no where near the amount Lamar Odom eats. I thought that was funny.

HERE IT IS!

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=18043

Please check it out. And leave all comments on the HOOPSWORLD website. The more hits I get the better.

TOMORROW!!!

My first 'real' article will appear at HOOPSWORLD.com. It's about the owner vs. the players and the collective bargaining agreement. Needless to say I'm proud of it and I hope everyone takes a few minutes and gives it a quick read. When it comes up tomorrow I'll post a link.

Starting Wednesday or maybe tomorrow night I'll get back to blogging. If I have time I'll break down my day with Derrick Rose tomorrow. I'm working as a PA for NBAE during an interview with Rose at his house. It should be good times.

Sorry For No Updates

But I have been working on a story for HOOPSWORLD.com. Once it's finished I will post a link and I will get back to blogging about my Bulls. But needless to say I don't want to screw this up.

On the Bulls side, they finished the circus trip 4-3 and had 'Melo missed a fadeaway at the buzzer they would have been 5-2. That's pretty damn good and once Boozer gets back this should be one of the top teams in the League, not just the East. One more side note, if Derrick Rose isn't a starter in the All-Star game I'm going to be pissed!

Carmelo Watch

All the media is piling onto the Miami HEAT right now, so I'm not going to. If you want HEAT info you can pretty much find it any and everywhere.

So onto Carmelo Anthony. From what I've seen he is relatively uninterested in playing for Denver. He is still scoring, 25.4 points per game, but he is taking less shots than last year and averaging 3 less points. This is significant because half the team is injured, you would think with guys out Carmelo would be more likely to take over the scoring load, but from what I've seen he's deferring, as in not being aggressive, until the fourth quarter. That tells me he isn't as into the game as he should be and the Nuggets are only 8-6. I think the only way the Nuggets actually keep Anthony is if come the all-star game they are one of the best team's in the league, and the only way that happens is if Anthony plays at a MVP type level. So Anthony wants to be traded and the only way that can happen is if he doesn't put his team in a position to compete for a title. Hmmmm, I wonder why he isn't going 100%? I still think he gets traded because he's made it pretty clear he isn't coming back to Denver no matter what. So here are some teams he could end up going to.

Nets-Derrick Favors, a lottery pick next year, and expirings or Devin Harris. That's a pretty good deal and Favors is probably the best prospect they will be able to get for Anthony. If the Nuggets wait until the deadline there is a good chance that the Nets will be out of the playoff picture which will only increase the likelihood that a deal will happen.

Bulls-Luol Deng (or expiring from another team), Taj Gibson, Omer Asik, the Bulls pick next year (in the 20s), and the Charlotte future lottery pick. This is only going to happen if 'Melo and his people put the pressure on the Nuggets. This is an OK deal for the Nuggets and might even be the second best deal available. But again, it's only happening if Anthony forces it to happen.

Rockets-Aaron Brooks, Jordan Hill, and lots of New York Knick picks as well as there own pick. The Rockets are one of the few teams that will trade for Anthony even without an extension in place. If the Nuggets believe Anthony won't be resigning this is a deal that could actually happen. It involves some young talent and lots of potentially high draft picks it's a win win for both teams, at least until Anthony goes to the Knicks

Mavs-Who knows, but you know Mark Cuban will try to get in on this. I have no idea what he can offer but he is going to try any and everything to pair Carmelo with Dirk Nowitzki.

Knicks-Eddy Curry expiring deal, Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, and a late first rounder from another team. This is the worst deal out there. I can't imagine the Nuggets accepting this under any circumstances. Even if Anthony demands to be traded to the Knicks or he'll walk I see the Nuggets holding onto him and trying to make a deep playoff run. The pieces the Knicks are offering aren't anything you can build around and don't help you this year or in the future, so why not just hold onto the guy that sells tickets for at least one more season?

Magic-I know they want to get involved in this as well, but I can't see them offering anything of value. They don't have any young talent and they are too good so their picks are going to be in the late 20s for the next few years. But again I know they are going to try.

I'm sure there are other teams as well, but these are the ones I have read about. If I had to guess, in order of what I think happens, I think he either gets traded to the Nets, the Nuggets ride it out, he demands a trade to the Bulls (which the Nuggets accept at the deadline), the Nuggets say screw it and accept a ton of picks from the Rockets, or he demands a trade to the Knicks and the Nuggets say no and he still rides it out. I don't think the Mavs or Magic have enough value to realistically get involved in this.

If the Bulls beat the Lakers tonight I'll break it down tomorrow, if not I won't, because I'll be sad, but not surprised.

The HEAT Keep Losing (Hooray)

The HEAT lost again last night to the lowly Memphis Grizzlies. The game was tied with 5 seconds left and Memphis had the ball out of bounds. Rudy Gay gets the inbounds, against LeBron James, drives hard to the right. Elevates, fades, and drills a tough 15 footer at the buzzer to beat the HEAT! It was pure brilliance and more proof that the HEAT are very beatable, at least right now. Dwayne Wade did miss the game last night, but that doesn't matter. A loss is a loss and the way the HEAT are playing I expect the losses to continue. Yes I think they turn it around, but probably not until mid December. And let's not forget they are one injury away from Wade to being the Cavs 2.0. And Wade continues to deal with injuries, like last night's sore wrist. I'm still picking the HEAT to win 60 games, but give it two weeks and I may have to revise that.

Some notes:
Chris Bosh is finally starting to play well because the HEAT have been running things through him. That's not going to last. This is LeBron and Wade's team end of story. Bosh may blow up here and there, but at the end of the day you are looking at a 100 million dollar third wheel who will average between 14-17 points and 7-10 boards a night. And the best part, when he has a shitty game the media is all over him, which he isn't used to. I still say if the HEAT have a serious long term issue it will be with Bosh.

LeBron is always going to be LeBron. He is the best player in the League and puts up crazy good numbers. The thing that I am so surprised by is the amount of dumb things he says and how non-chalante he is about losing or just playing hard. I think this whole HEAT thing and free agency thing has really affected him. This is the first time in his life he is actually being criticized and it is obviously having a negative affect on his psyche. I don't think this will be an issue during the regular season, but it could have affect in the playoffs. I mean look at the way he gave up last year.

Rudy Gay is good, but OJ Mayo sucks. Gay is living up to his contract and is pretty much averaging career highs across the board. On the other hand Mayo has been terrible and is even out of the starting lineup. There has been some small talk that Mayo be on the block come the trade deadline because the Grizzlies cannot afford to pay Zach Randolph, Marc Gasol, and Mayo. And at this point Mayo is clearly the least valuable so I would have to agree that trading him at this point is probably a good idea. If they could get a high level player or decent draft picks in return. It's becoming pretty clear the Grizzlies want Xavier Henry to take over the 2 guard role and if something good comes along I believe he will be trade at the deadline.

One other thought:
The Bulls are good! On Friday night they beat the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas and beat two of the three Texas teams during their dreaded Texas Triangle Trip. This doesn't happen often in the NBA and hasn't happened since Michael Jordan was in town for the Bulls. Derrick Rose is as good as any point guard in the League and is definitely the best scoring PG. Joakim Noah is a beast, Loul Deng continues to do a little bit of everything, Kyle Korver is DRILLING and I mean drilling threes, and Taj Gibson is thankfully still solid. Gibson may have sucked for two straight games, but he blew up against the Mavs and even hit his first three since he was a kid. Chicago is 7-4, 1.5 games behind the Orlando Magic, and their only losses this season are against the Spurs, Thunder, Celtics, and a Knicks team that had a career three point shooting night. That's pretty impressive considering three of those teams have Finals aspirations, which is what the Bulls have to be thinking once they get Carlos Boozer back,

Derrick Rose for MVP

Last night Derrick Rose played the best quarter of his life. Plagued by foul trouble that limited him to only 5 minutes in the third quarter, Rose entered in the fourth and immediately took an 8 point deficit to a 10 point lead. He hit several threes, got into the paint, and generally did whatever he wanted too. The Bulls clearly need Rose to be great, but what he did last night was MVP worthy. He took over a game that was in the hands of the opponent and willed his team to victory. Not that others didn't play well like Korver, Noah, and Brewer, but Rose was the catalyst for everything and if he continues to play the way he has in the early going there is no reason the Bulls can't be a serious contender in the East. And for all the chuckles Rose received when he said he could be MVP those reporters are now eating crow. If Rose keeps up his 24.7 ppg and 9.2 assists he will definitely finish in the top five in voting.

Some Notes:

Ronnie Brewer needs to start, it's that simple. Keith Bogans was a big reason the Bulls fell into a hole in the third quarter, he is just not good enough to be matched up against the other team's starting SG. Kevin Martin abused Bogans in the first and third quarter and the minute Brewer came in Martin was a non-factor. It's not rocket science, Brewer needs to start!

Taj Gibson had his first bad game of the year going 1-9 from the field and being abused by Luis Scola. At first glance you can chalk this up to Gibson having a bad night or even Gibson just plain sucking. But what I saw was a fundamental shift in the second half that could have helped Gibson throughout the night. Gibson guarded Scola one on one pretty much the entire time he was in there. And while he did front him at times most of the time his goal was to just push him as far away from the hoop as possible. Once he went to the bench and Deng started guarding Scola the philosophy changed. Deng fronted him the entire time and then help came when he got the ball. That rarely happened with Gibson. So yes, Gibson sucked, but he also didn't have the same help that Deng had, so I'll give him a slight pass on this one. Let's hope he plays better tonight against Tim Duncan and DeJuan Blair.

Luol Deng was 6-21 from the field and I don't care. If he is going to the hole aggressively, not settling for long two point jumpers, rebounding and playing D I can live with some off nights shooting the ball. Deng is a player that can have a very positive influence on the game regardless of how much he is scoring and last night was one of those nights. He grabbed 10 boards and had 2 blocked shots to go along with his 16 points. The thing I don't like is when he is missing free throws like he did last night going a sad 3-6 from the charity stripe. That should never happen.

Tonight the Bulls go into San Antonio and it should be a pretty good game. I don't expect the Bulls to win, but I do think it is competitive. Noah should cancel out Duncan and Rose is the best player on the floor, so they will at least have a chance. This is a game where they could really use Carlos Boozer's scoring and rebounding, but alas he is still two weeks or so away from returning.

NBA Notes:

The Knicks continue to lose, see below for more Knicks info!

Brandon Roy officially has knee issues that are never going away and some around the league aren't sure how good he's going to be when he comes back from his current trip to the Inactive Roster. He has zero meniscus in either knee and has already had god knows how many surgeries on his knees. Once he loses his explosiveness he is done. Roy is a player that has to have the ball in his hands in order to be affective and isn't the type of player who can just come off of screens and knock down jumpers. I see his career turning into Tracy McGrady very quickly. Within the next two years Roy will continue to act like a star while no longer having the game of a star. My suggestion, trade him and Aldridge and completely rebuild. Even if everyone is EVER healthy (Greg Oden included) what's the best this team could hope for, a second round playoff loss? I say start rebuilding now while Aldridge and Roy still have value. The Blazers won't do this of course, they sell out and the fans love Roy, but give it two years and the fans will quickly turn on this injury plagued team. And Aldridge by the way is just an average starting PF in the league. He has a nice game, but he is way to soft to ever reach the top at his position. Let's go to the Taj Gibson comparison.
Gibson 29 minutes, 55%, 6.3 Rebounds, 1 Stl, 1.8 Blocks, 12.9 points
Aldridge 38 minutes, 45.7%, 7.8 Rebounds, 1.3, Stl, 1.3 Blocks, 17.5 Points
Yeah Aldridge is better, but is he 10 million a season better. I doubt it, plus if you increase Taj's minutes to 38 the numbers are almost identical, hell you could argue Gibson is a better player per minute.

The Los Angeles Clippers have ONE WIN! That's right they are 1-10. Say what you want about injuries and Baron Davis not being ready, but they have enough talent on that team to have more than 1 victory. It's time to start pointing the finger at Vinny Del Negro. I haven't seen much of the Clippers this year, I mean why waste my time, but I know VDN. And he gets about 80% out of his team, so a team that already has issues like the Clippers is pretty much screwed with VDN. He isn't a strong enough personality to get everyone on the same page and has to be one of the worst tacticians in the NBA. Basically, good luck with the lottery LAC, you should be guaranteed at least a top four pick (which means they have the worst record in the league).

Amar'e Already Upset

It only took 10 games and Amar'e Stoudemire is already bitching about his new team. Here's what he said:

"It's definitely something that I'm not accustomed to. It's not fun," Stoudemire said to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. "We're a young team and we make mistakes but we can't keep doing the exact same thing every night. We just gotta find a way to grow up."

"I don't understand why we're not playing with the urgency. I'm not used to that," Stoudemire said. "We're not playing like we're on a four-game losing streak, now five. We don't have that sense of urgency. It's almost as if it doesn't matter and it's not something I'm used to."

"We just can't have guys complacent and comfortable with losing," Stoudemire said. "I can't stand that. It's more attitude. It's more heart. We have to show more heart and go after it."

"We're still not having that sense of urgency to dig for loose balls, get down on the floor. We're not showing that we really want it," he said.

"Maybe the winning mentality has never been here," Stoudemire said. "I'm used to winning."

"It's a foreign land for me right now," he said.

HILARIOUS!!! I guess it's not so great being the man and having to create your own shots. I've always thought Stoudemire was a great player (offensively), but it was insane of him to think leaving Steve Nash would be good for his career. I've said it before, he is going to be double and triple teamed from here on in and the only way the Knicks are going to win any games is when guys are drilling threes, which has happened 3 times this season. Stoudemire is who he is, a scorer who rebounds a little and plays no defense. At no point did anyone other than the Knicks think he was worth 100 million. In fact, I bet the Knicks could have waited a week or two and still got Stoudemire for about 20 million less. So in response to his comments about his team not playing hard or playing with urgency, I say to you...Good job Amar'e. As the Star it is your job to speak up. Call out teammates. And if you don't believe guys are playing hard enough you should complain. it's probably better to do it behind closed doors, but in this 24 hour news cycle we live in it's tough to avoid the media plus it gives me something to write about. So I'm glad Amar'e hates losing and expects more from his teammates, especially since I picked them to make the playoffs. It's easy for 100 million dollar player to sit back and coast and with any luck Amar'e won't be that guy. Hopefully Amar'e can hold himself accountable too, because a guy making that much money should be able to grab more than 8 boards a night.

-New Orleans is the last undefeated team in the League and I'm yet to talk about them. I'll say a couple things and then move on, because this isn't going to last for long. Chris Paul is a beast and David West is back to his old ways of knocking down open jumpers and playing pick and roll with Paul. Monty Williams is doing a great job as a rookie head coach. The team is defending well and playing hard. That's all you can ask for. The Hornets have two good trade chips, a huge expiring contract in Peja Stojacovichehhdnckhsdf and a solid young player in Marcus Thornton. If those two players and a draft pick can bring back a guy like Andre Iguodala this team could be a serious contender.

-Speaking of Philly, they need to get rid of the old and go with the new. AI should be traded for cap space and picks. Elton Brand should be traded for cap space and picks. Andres Noicini and Jason Kapono should be traded for cap space or picks, whatever they can get for them. Then the 76ers should build around PG Jrue Holiday, SG Evan Turner, SF Thadeus Young, and PF Mareese Speights. Two years from now that's a pretty could team, especially with their lottery pick this year and some other late first rounders from the trades. But it all has to start with moving AI's huge deal.

Bulls Hitting their Stride

After falling to 2-3 the Bulls have run off three wins in a row over the Nuggets, Warriors and Wizards. And I must admit, I've been very impressed with the Bulls the entire season, especially during this three game run. Against the Nuggets the Bulls controlled the game from the tap, and other than Carmelo Anthony having another fine day, the game wasn't even close. The Bulls closed out on shooters, pushed the tempo and took advantage of their serious size difference. Against the Warriors the Bulls played just about a perfect game. They jumped out early, didn't let up, and held a high scoring transition team to only 90 points while scoring 120 themselves. Last night the Bulls beat the John Wall led Wizards in a game that featured two of the leagues fastest point guards and the return of Kirk Hinrich. For three quarters the Bulls dominated the game but in the fourth the Wizards got hot from the perimeter. Yes, the Bulls could have done a better job of getting out on the shooters, and yes when guys start hitting threes you need to make them drive even if it leads to a layup. Nothing is more demoralizing than a team hitting two or three 3s in a row to get back into a game. At some point you have to run them off the line no matter what. All that being said, I still liked the way the Bulls closed out on the mid range shooters and I loved the way they finished out the night hitting clutch shots and actually making free throws down the stretch to put the game out of touch.

The Bulls are great shape heading out on their circus trip, which starts Tuesday in Houston. The Rockets are struggling and are missing two of their best players thanks to injuries to Yao Ming and Aaron Brooks. That screams victory for the Bulls. On Wednesday they move to San Antonio to face the second best team in the West. I don't have high hopes for this game, but that's why they play them. From there they move on to Dallas to complete the Texas Swing. This is a winnable game and several of the match-ups actually favor the Bulls, like at PG, Center, and SF. The big issue is can Taj Gibson control Dirk Nowitzki. If Dirk doesn't go insane like he usually does against the Bulls (last season he averaged 27 points a game v. the Bulls), then I give them at least a 50-50 chance to win the game.

The Texas swing is tough, but what follows is four games in five nights surrounding thanksgiving. It starts in LA with the Lakers on the 23rd, then heads to Phoenix on the 24th and culminates with a back to back against the Nuggets on the 26th and the Kings on the 27th. The Bulls have little shot to beat the Lakers unless Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah just go insane, which is possible, but not probable. I expect the Bulls to beat the Suns, the match-ups are all in favor of the Bulls and since they'll most likely be coming off a loss I think the Bulls will be pissed and ready to go. The Bulls just beat the Nuggets and could do it again. That's a 50-50 game. As for the Kings, I think it will be all about how the road trip is going. If the Bulls are say 2-4 heading into that game I think they win cause they will be focused. If they are 3-3 I think they may lose because they will be ready to get back home. Anyway you look at it the Bulls should win at least 3 of the 7 road games which would be a great start to the season. Especially because Carlos Boozer is planning to return as soon as the Bulls get back home.

-One non Bulls note. Am I the only one that is giddy about the collapse of Chris Bosh? I have had this argument for some time with a friend of mine that Bosh is not a top ten player and is not even top five at his position. And right now he is proving me right. All he has to do is grab rebounds, defend, and makeup layups. So what does he have to show for it? A pedestrian 14.5ppg, 6 rebounds per game, and only a block and less than a steal per night. That is what gets you 106 million dollars? Amazing. I've said it all year long, if the HEAT are going to have any 'Serious' issues this season it's going to be because Bosh gets tired of playing third or maybe even fourth banana. Plus the bigger the game, it seems like the less he is involved and the more he shrinks under the pressure. It's great! For comparison sake, Taj Gibson is averaging 14.3ppg, 6.4 rebounds, a steal and almost 2 blocks a night. And he's doing it in less minutes. Taj makes 1.1 million this season while Bosh is making 14.5 million. That's pretty good value for the Bulls!

Bulls Taking it from Deep!

Last night the Bulls had a shoe in victory because they were playing the struggling New York Knicks at the United Center. Amar'e Stoudemire was averaging an un-100 million dollar like 21 points and 7 rebounds per game. Danilo Gallinari was being called one of the worst starters in the NBA. Ray Felton was doing his best Ray Felton imitation. And no one had ever heard of Toney Douglas. But that's why they play the games.

From the opening tip the Knicks hit every three they threw up there. Some of them were open looks, some of them were not. As a team they shot a prosperous 67% from behind the arc hitting 16 threes. Needless to say this was a career day from just about everyone on the Knicks. D-Gallo went 4-4 from the arc, Felton was 4-6, and Douglas was 5-9. That will never EVER happen again. Guys may go off like that, but there is no way everyone will go off at the same time.

Even with all that, the Bulls were close and had several opportunities to make a game of it. Unfortunately, every time the Bulls got within 8 (which happened twice in the second half) the Bulls would turn the ball over and someone would hit a three. There is little you can do when the Shooters are this hot from behind the arc.

Most of the talk from last night is going to be about Tom Thibodeau benching Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah in the fourth quarter. At one point the Bulls were within 9 and there was still almost 6 minutes left to play. I thought Coach would put Noah and Rose in to go with Brewer, Gibson, and Korver, but instead he rode the bench and they lost. It's easy to second guess, but honestly I don't think the Bulls were winning this game. Even late in the fourth the Knicks still were hitting threes as Felton iced it with a deep three a good two feet behind the arc. Would I have brought back Noah and Rose? Yes. Do I think it's a big deal that he rode the bench and was sending a message to guys that if they don't close out on shooters they won't play? No. He's the coach, and I trust him, unlike VDN who wasn't a coach.

Other notes from the game:
Rose was just awesome last night. He played his most complete offensive game of his career scoring 24 points on 17 shots and dishing out a career high 14 assists. It was spectacular to watch, offensively he was everywhere. Defensively he still has some work to do. He still doesn't get through the pick quick enough, but the effort is there and he is doing a pretty good job at recovering to get a hand up on the shooters.

Amar'e looked terrible for most of last night despite being played one on one almost exclusively. In fact, he was the only dark spot on an otherwise flawless Knicks game. Stoudemire was 5-21 from the field, fouled out late in the fourth quarter, and had 8 turnovers. That is some 100 million dollar player. At least he's healthy, unlike our 75 million dollar player.

Ronny Turiaf is the perfect backup big man. He does all of the little things you need, He's quick on the defensive rotation, he's a stud rebounder, and he only shoots within the offense. Last night he dominated the 25 minutes he played grabbing 7 rebounds and scoring 9 points. He was way more effective than Stoudemire.

It's time to Bench Bogans or try him as the backup point guard. Bogans does next to nothing offensively and it seems like every time the Bulls need a big momentum bucket or they need something to go right for them the ball ends up in Bogans hands and he screws it up. That is better than what CJ Watson is bringing to the table right now, but they can't bench him, they isn't a third PG on the roster. Watson is doing nothing and it makes me long for the days of Jannero Pargo, ok that's not ture. Nothing makes me yearn for those days. On the year Watson is shooting 36% from the field, is yet to hit a three, and has almost a 1:1 assist turnover ratio, which is just plain terrible. I think Brewer should be thrown into the starting lineup with Korver backing him up. The two of them can split the 2 guard minutes and it will be a lot more effective than what Bogans is currently giving them. As for Watson, you just kind of half to ride that one out.

Lastly, tonight it's Bulls at Celtics. While I expect them to lose this should be a very interesting game as both teams will be fired up for Coach Thibs return to Boston.

An Orlando Magic Beat Down!

Tonight the Magic beat up on the T-Wolves to the tune of 128 to 86. That's right, a 42 point smack down. The night before the HEAT beat up on the Wolves 129 to 97. You know what that means? The Magic are better than the HEAT. The teams played the exact same Wolves team one night apart and the Magic won by 42 while the HEAT only won by 32. According to my 'advanced' statistics that makes the Magic ten points better. I'm kidding of course. But what this does tell us are the Magic are pretty damn good. Any time a team wins by 40 plus points they are good, I don't care who they are playing. That doesn't happen that often and right now the entire Minnesota organization needs to take a good long look in the mirror, because everything that they are doing is WRONG!

Some numbers from the game tonight:
Dwight Howard was beyond dominant. In only 23 minutes he had 18 points, 16 rebounds, and 8 blocks. That's right EIGHT BLOCKS! In case you were wondering, he's going to win another defensive player of the year award.

Vince Carter actually showed up to play with 20 points on only 12 shots and a very impressive 7 assists. Rashard Lewis on the other hand continues to cash a max paycheck despite barely being starter worthy. Lewis scored a lowly 11 points on 13 shots. Those are not good numbers. But he did chip in zero steals and zero blocked shots, so there's that.

Duhon, Redick, Q-Richardson, Bass, and Gortat is a better starting five than the Wolves through out there and that is Orlando's bench. Seriously Minnesota, what the hell have you been doing with all those draft picks? Oh that's right, drafting PGs who can't or won't play for you. The only player on the Wolves that would crack the Magic rotation is Kevin Love, and yes he's a beast, to bad Coach Kurt Rambis hates him and continues to bench him late in the fourth quarter to prove a point. God (some) coaches are idiots.

Other NBA Thoughts:

The Milwaukee Bucks are in trouble. When a team with as much hype as them starts 1-4 people start pointing fingers. Whether it's a selfish player like Corey Maggette, an overpaid veteran like Drew Gooden, or an amped up coach like Scott Skiles eventually someone is going to start getting pissed. Skiles has worn out his welcome in every city he's coached in and if the Bucks continue losing it's almost a foregone conclusion he will do it again in Milwaukee.

Toronto is terrible, one of the worst teams in the League. So can we (all fans and media) stop talking about them until the Draft Lottery or until Andrea Bargnani does something that is actually worth talking about.

Despite Defensive Guru Tom Thibodeau bolting for Chicago, the Boston Celtics still have a ridiculously gritty defense that makes most teams wither and die before the second half even starts. If Kendrick Perkins comes back close to 100% they will absolutely have a shot at returning to the Finals. Their rotation is crazy good and every big guy on their team is willing to lay someone out (don't underestimate this, especially against guys like Vince Carter and Chris Bosh). In big playoff games Defense wins and it's possible come playoff time the Celtics will be the best D in the League.

Bulls v. Knicks tomorrow. In theory it will be my first regular season Bulls game with my upper rafters season ticket. Needless to say I'm pumped to see my beloved Bulls live for the first time in several years.

Dominating

Last night the Bulls dominated the Portland Trail Blazers 110-98 and really the game wasn't even that close. All the talk has been about Luol Deng and his insane 40 points on only 19 shots. He dominated offensively and also helped turn Brandon Roy into a whiner (non stop complaining from him last night, how he didn't get T'd up is beyond me) who shot a pedestrian 4-12 from the field. Lu has been talked about non stop so I'll spare you. If you want the full break down you can read up on Lu at Bulls.com, Bulls Confidential, and Ball Don't Lie. Back to the Bulls game. In reality, this game wouldn't have been anywhere near as close as it was if it wasn't for LaMarcus Aldridge, who continues to be pissed that the Bulls didn't draft him four years ago. Aldridge hit a variety of jumpers, fadeaways, finger rolls and free throws. The Bulls literally threw every big guy they had at him. It started with Gibson, then he got in early foul trouble. It moved to Noah, but he got in foul trouble. Then it went to Asik, but he is always in foul trouble. And even B-Scals got a shot at him. Unfortunately nothing worked, fortunately his 33 points only made the game seem competitive.

But because of the Bulls relentless 'D' the Blazers had very few good looks and almost everything was on the perimeter. The Bulls held them to only 41% for the game and it has become clear the Bulls are buying into what Coach Thibs is preaching, pack the lane and get a hand up on the jump shooters.

One last thing on the Bulls, last night is exactly the type of game I hope to see from Derrick Rose on most nights. I know he needs to score right now, and I'm fine with that when it is within the offense (except for the last 3-4 minutes of the game when he can do whatever he wants), but on most nights I want him shooting less and setting up more. Last night he played the perfect game, except for the late turnovers (6 in total), everything he did was within the offense and it never felt like he forced anything. He ended the night with 16 points on only 11 shots, he got to the free throw line 6 times, grabbed 5 boards, and ended up tying his career high with 13 assists. I'm much more interested in him setting everyone up for three and half quarters and then taking over than him jacking 30 shots a night.

-Some other NBA thoughts:
Rudy Fernandez was terrible last night and under no circumstances will the Bulls trade the first round pick they got from the Charlotte Bobcats for him. Not after seeing him look uninterested, jack dumb shots, and commit four really dumb turnovers in just over 21 minutes. I think the Bulls would still trade their pick in next year's draft, but that is about it.

After Deng's crazy night some are saying there is no way the Bulls should trade for Carmelo. That is obviously insane, but I will say what I said before the season started. Deng and Noah is dumb, it's way to much and doesn't make the Bulls better. Deng, Johnson, maybe Gibson, Asik and/or the Charlotte pick is fair and I would do that. Anything that involves Noah is stupid. Of course now that Noah is a base year compensation player it is almost impossible to trade him anyway.

All this talk of Portland being a championship contender is waaay to premature. They have a franchise center who can't stay healthy, a sixth man that want's to leave the country, their backup point guard is a rookie, and their offense is still too stagnant. Looking at the offense it makes zero sense. They have all these athletic weapons and yet everything is slowed down and they end up either dumping it in to Aldridge or watching Roy go one on one. Andre Miller isn't being used correctly, Batum is strictly a stand still shooter and their bench is useless if they aren't running. So why don't they push up the pressure and run? Who knows! Nate McMillan just refuses to turn these guys loose and even if they are healthy they still won't have a championship level offense until they get a new scheme which may involve getting a new coach.

The HEAT are good! Shocking I know. But they are still going to lose at least 13 games and they are still going to lose games to some good teams. Yes they crushed the Magic, but that doesn't mean they are going to go 81-1. So let's all calm down. And my prediction of Bosh being the highest paid 16 point per game guy is starting to come true. Although I did forget about Rashard Lewis.

Speaking of the Magic, Vince Carter once again sucks and got taken out of the game against the HEAT after playing only 13 minutes because of a minor back injury. Whatever wimp, suck it up. As for Rashard Lewis, he just continues to do nothing but stand on the perimeter waiting to shoot threes. Seriously, what's the difference between him and Trevor Ariza? I can only think of one thing and that's about 100 million dollars. Lewis is a max player, Ariza is a mid-level exception player. Nice!

Now that I live in Chicago I expect to watch more West Coast games, you know, because they're on an hour earlier. That hasn't happened yet, but I expect it to shortly, so hopefully I'll have some thoughts for those Cally teams in the next few days.

Opening Week Comments

With every team having played at least one game it's time for some early thoughts.

Amar'e Stoudemire is going to get beat up all season long. Unless the Knicks can trade for someone ('Melo) he is going to get double and triple teamed every time he touches the ball. And why not? Danilo hasn't proven anything, Felton is average, and Wilson Chandler can't even crack the starting rotation. To beat the Knicks all you have to do is shut down Amar'e, which is going to happen a lot this year.

Boston is going to beat a lot of great teams this year, but they are also going to struggle at times. For example, the 2nd game of a back to back. Games against lesser teams. And of course the long road trips. All of these things can be attributed to the fact the Celtics are old...Very old. This team is going to get up against the likes of the HEAT, Bulls, Magic, Hawks, Lakers, Mavs, Spurs etc...but against teams like the Cavs (who they just lost to) they will struggle more than a top team should. It's hard for a bunch of mid 30-year-olds to get up for every single game and there is little motivation to play hard against the Warriors or the Wolves.

At some point Rudy Fernandez is going to explode at everyone in the Blazers organization. He has been asking for a trade for months now and in two games he's averaging a mere 19 minutes a night. This isn't going to end well. Either Fernandez is going to force his way out off the team or be a HUGE distraction all season long. There is no in between.

Miami may have lost opening night, but they are going to crush most teams. Losing at Boston is nothing to be ashamed of considering it's the first time the 'Big 3' actually played together. And how did they follow up the big loss? By dominating the 76ers in Philadelphia. The HEAT are going to lose games this year, but rarely will they lose to the likes of the Sixers, Wolves, or Nets. It takes time for players to gel so beating the top teams in the league may not happen right away, but they have way to much talent to lose to the crappy teams.

Speaking of Miami, Chris Bosh is about to become the highest paid 14 point per game scorer in history. Everyone is talking about who will lead LeBron or Wade, but I'm much more interested in watching Bosh become a third banana. If anyone is going to blow up after a few losses it will be Bosh demanding more shots and wanting the ball more. I am really hoping this happens. In two games this season, Bosh is averaging 11.5 points and 7.5 rebounds. Way to earn that max money.

Blake Griffin looked ridiculously good in his first game. His athleticism is unmatched at the power forward spot. He flies around the court like a guard. As soon as this year he could be a top five player at his position and that is really saying something considering he is competing against Dirk, Bosh, Boozer, etc...

The Suns are still going to be a lot of fun to watch, but they are at best a first round playoff team. They have no inside scoring presence and as a Bulls fan I know you can only go so far with a team based on the perimeter. Plus Hedo looks terrible. I'm still confident the Suns will sneak into the playoffs, but they won't be able to repeat their success of last year's playoff run.

So on to some Bulls thoughts. First and foremost for the Bulls to be a great team Derrick Rose cannot shoot 30 shots a night. I know he has to score, but there were several opportunities in the fourth quarter where Derrick took a tough shot despite someone being open either underneath or on the perimeter. One such occasion was during a pick and roll with Noah where he rolled to the basket. The Thunder doubled Rose, but instead of throwing an alley-oop for an easy two, Rose forced up a floater that he missed. That was a key moment in the game that could have helped swing things in the Bulls favor. I'm not saying Derrick shouldn't force some shots, but he has to learn when to force it and when to trust his teammates, and anytime Noah is involved he should always trust him.

Ronnie Brewer looks terrible. He looks slow, his jumper is even worse than I remember it, and he can't hit a free throw. The Bulls desperately need Brewer to be their starter. They need his athleticism on the break and his ability to lockdown players like Kobe and Wade. Without him it's a steady dose of Bogans and that is never good.

Kurt Thomas should never play, Omer Asik proved in the preseason he deserves a shot at being Noah's backup. He runs, he defends, he rebounds, and he blocks shots. Thomas does none of these things. That is the only complaint I had from Thibs first game as a coach and hopefully it will be my last.

Deng had a rough first game, but I'm not worried about that. He actually played pretty good defense on Kevin Durant for most of the game and it was clear that's where his focus was. Moving forward he needs to continue to be aggressive and then the Bulls should be fine.

Boozer gets his cast off Tuesday, with any luck he'll be back before December. Since it's Boozer expect him back in January. Just kidding...Hopefully.

The West

It took a while, but here are my West picks...A little abbreviated, I am a very important and busy person after all.

1. Lakers-This is the easiest pick in the League. Barring a major injury to Kobe or Pau they will have the best record in the West.

2. San Antonio-I think this is truly the last hoorah for them, plus Tony Parker is playing for a contract so you know he's going to be good.

3. Dallas-They are just built for the regular season.

4. Thunder-The West is going to be loaded from 1-8 in the playoffs and I think the Thunder win 50+ games and win the division, but picking them any higher is tough to do when they are so thin up front.

5. Utah-DWill, Sloan, Al Jefferson, they will be too good to fall to far in the rankings.

6. Portland-If Oden can play 55 games they will be even higher, since we know he can't this feels about right. I like to make my West picks based on feel and not any actual statistical evidence.

7. Houston-With or without Yao this team is good enough to make the first round, assuming they don't trade Kevin Martin for nothing.

8. Phoenix-They could miss the playoffs, but the NBA will be a worse place once Steve Nash is finally done. So I'm picking them to eke it out.

Teams that missed: Memphis-I think they take a step back, Gay has nothing to play for and everyone else is already pissed.

New Orleans-As great as Chris Paul is, there just isn't enough talent.

Denver-I think 'Melo gets traded East and this team gets taken apart.

Minnesota-A lot of fun pieces, Beasely, Love, Wes Johnson, but they are not a real good fit with each other. Fun to watch, but they won't win too many games.

Golden State-Until they make a choice between Curry and Ellis this team isn't sniffing the playoffs.

Sacramento-From top to bottom, this team isn't close to having enough talent to make the playoffs. Talent wise they are easily in the bottom five of the League.

Clippers-If they could stay healthy they would have a shot, but since it's the Clippers they won't stay healthy. Plus there's that whole VDN thing!

Predictions

Normally I make predictions after I've read the SI NBA Preview issue, but since I no longer receive it in the mail and I'm cheap, I'm just going to throw my predictions out there. Today I'm going to do the East, mainly because the Bulls are in the East and I know more about it. Tomorrow I'll give the world the West.

1. Miami Heat (66-16)-This pretty easy. Anyone who picks any team to have a better record in the East than the Heat is smoking something or a serious 'homer.' The Heat are loaded and are going to win and win and win. But winning 70 or 72 games is just ridiculous. LeBron isn't Jordan, Wade isn't Pippen, and no one has ever been Dennis Rodman. Plus Wade is already nursing injuries and every team in the League is going to get up for playing them. Best record in the NBA, Yes. Best record in the history of the NBA, NO!

2. Orlando Magic (59-23)-Dwight Howard is pissed and is going to have his best season to date. He could even throw up a MVP type season. Jameer Nelson looks healthy and should have a pre injury type year. JJ Redick is entering what should be a very good prime. Those are the good things. The bad things? They are getting almost nothing from Rashard Lewis. The League has figured him out, don't let him shoot threes and be physical with him if he ever tries to post up. Vince Carter really really sucks. I don't care what he's done in the preseason there is no way he will be the teams best two guard by the time the playoffs start. It's tough to win a championship when two of your starters are below average at their position.

3. Chicago Bulls (49-33)-That's right, I am picking the Bulls to earn the three seed despite Carlos Boozer starting the year injured. Also, the gap between the Heat and Magic and the rest of the East is really big. Ten games might be conservative. But I digress. The Bulls have a good coach, a star PG, a top 6 center, and a SF who appears to be getting back to his slashing cutting studly ways. This team is a healthy Carlos Boozer away from winning 55 games, which means it will never happen. But with Rose, Noah, Deng and parts, this team is going to push 50 wins for the next several years. Also, look for Rose to make a leap this year and be talked about with Deron Williams and Chris Paul.

4. Boston Celtics (48-34)-They are old, and they are going to miss Kendrick Perkins more than they realize. Jermaine and Shaquille O'Neal are not defensive players and are not rebounders. That is what this team needs and those two players are terrible. If Perkins is healthy come playoff time than anything is possible, but I will be very surprised if this team wins 50 games. The only real bright spot is Rajon Rondo is a terrific player. I hate him, but he causes havoc on the defensive end and even though he can't shoot he seems to get into the paint whenever he wants.

5. Milwaukee Bucks (46-36)-The only thing that could derail this team is if the players quit on Coach Skiles and unfortunately that has happened in Chicago AND Phoenix. But baring that catastrophe, which I do not expect to happen (at least not until next season), the Bucks are going to be tough. They are deep, have a good floor general in Brandon Jennings and arguably the second best center in the League. Yes he is injury prone, but when healthy he is tough on defense and one of the few bigs you can run your offense through. The downside to this team, they overpaid for John Salmons, Drew Gooden and Corey Maggette so this is it for the next three or four years.

6. Atlanta Hawks (45-37)-The Hawks are going the wrong direction and have already peaked. They've proven they can't beat the good teams in the playoffs and their best player just signed the biggest deal of the offseason. What motivation does he have. The coach is arguing with the defensive stud about his terrible shot selection. The Sixth Man of the year is either going to sabotage the season or get traded. There is just nothing to like here, except for Al Horford, who continues to play out of position.

I think the top six teams are pretty much set. Barring some disasters these six teams will make the playoffs, the seeding may change but they'll be there. The last two could be just about anyone.

7. New Jersey (41-41)-This is purely because I think they land Carmelo Anthony by December 1st. A team with Anthony, Brook Lopez, and Troy Murphy should probably make the playoffs. But if they don't land Anthony then they have very little shot.

8. New York (40-42)-I think D'Antonio's style will win them just enough games to get into the playoffs. Amare' will score and even though Ray Felton is no Steve Nash he is a big upgrade over what the Knicks have had the best few years. I don't like this team, but the bottom of the East is just plain terrible.

Teams that missed, in no particular order: Indiana Pacers-Right now, only Collison and Granger are NBA caliber starters. Roy Hibbert could get there in a year or two, but right now this team is terrible. The Smoker aka Larry Bird, needs to break this thing down completely and rebuild...again. Get rid of Granger while he has value and build around Collison and Hibbert and whatever draft picks you get.

Charlotte Bobcats-Their season went straight into the toilet the minute they traded Tyson Chandler. I know he only played half the game for them, but they need his defensive presence and without it Larry Brown is going to wear out his welcome real quick. Plus any team that HAS to rely on Tyrus Thomas is in big trouble. I'll always root for Thomas, but I doubt he ever gets anywhere near his potential, especially after he just signed a big extension.

Toronto Raptors-They have zero talent and could fight for the worst team in the League. Colangelo should lose his job at the end of this season, that's how bad a job he has done since drafting Andrea Bargnani.

Detroit Pistons-They should be able score this year, but no one, and I mean NO ONE will play any defense. Tayshaun Prince has had enough, you can see it every time he steps on the court, plus he is their only tradeable asset. Ben Wallace is old and terrible and the rest of their team are wing scorers like Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Ben Gordon, and Charlie V. This team is going to be a train wreck to watch. And speaking of GMs who should have been fired, it's amazing Joe Dumars still has a job.

Philadelphia 76ers-I like the players, but the pieces don't fit. If Evan Turner can learn to play off the ball then the Sixers should have a starting five worthy of making the playoffs. Jrue Holliday, Turner, the new AI, Thadeous Young, and Elton Brand. That is the team new coach Doug Collins should throw out there and that is a team that should win at least 41 games.

Washington Wizards-As long as Gilbert Arenas is around this team isn't going anywhere. As an aside, John Wall is good. See below for further details.

Cleveland Cavs-There is nothing to talk about here. If the best player in the League leaves your team and you didn't have a backup plan, you are going to struggle for a few years. That's where the Cavs are right now. Hopefully they will gut this team and rebuild through free agency and the draft as quickly as possible.

View From the Stanchion

Sorry it's been so long since my last post (not that anyone is reading), but I just made the big move from Sunny Saint Augustine, Florida to cold and windy Chicago. But now that I am officially moved in it should give me time to update more regularly. So on to the blogging.

Throughout this NBA Season I will be going to many Bulls basketball games, I am a season ticket holder after all. When I view a game live I will be breaking it down with the title "View From the Upper Rafters" since my seats are in the upper balcony. However, I also work in television so I will occasionally watch a game from a court side kneeling position right next to the basket (or Stanchion). This past Friday was one such occasion as I had the privilege of working on a Derrick Rose shoot for Adidas. So here's what I saw in the Bulls/Pacers Game. By the way, sitting this close to the action is every bit as amazing as it sounds!!!

-First and foremost, and this may shock some people, it certainly did me. But LARRY BIRD IS A SMOKER!!! Seriously, one of the greatest basketball players EVER smokes cigarettes. How could someone who had the physical gifts of Larry Bird treat his body like such crap now? It boggles the mind. The only excuse I can come up with is the pressure of destroying the Pacers has finally gotten to him and he needs some kind of release. This really bothers me, it bothers me more than it should, but SMOKING? REALLY?
-Roy Hibbert has a chance to be good, not great, but good. He has good footwork, he moves pretty quickly for a man his size and he has a very nice jump hook that he can shoot with either hand. The big problem? He is a below average rebounder for someone his size. There is no reason he shouldn't average close to 10 boards a game and against the Bulls Omer Asik, a rookie, ate him up all night on the glass and he ended up with only 3 rebounds in over 30 minutes. That's just terrible.
-Speaking of Asik, he is already a decent back up center. He has no offensive moves and is a terrible free throw shooter, but he moves well on defense, is a monster on the boards, and won't force up a shot offensively unless he gets stuck late in the shot clock. He is already better than Kurt Thomas and I expect him to be Noah's backup to start the season. I'm not saying he'll ever be anything more than a career backup, but what I am saying is by the end of the year he'll be one of the better backups in the league.
-And speaking of Kurt Thomas, he will be one of the slowest players in the league this year. Yes he is intimidating, and yes he sets good picks, but the man moves like a turtle.
-The Pacers are going to be just terrible this year. Definitely one of the four worst teams in the East and probably top 7 worst in the league. It's really sad to see this team in person. Without Granger (who sat out) there is just zero talent on this team. Collison is a nice player, but he's better served being your fourth option, not your number one or two. In other words, it's going to be a long year for Pacer fans.
-Luol Deng had the best game I've seen him play. He was everywhere defensively ending up with 8 boards in 30 minutes and he only missed 4 shots going 7-11 from the field and 12-12 from the charity stripe. He ended the night with 29 points and had a plus/minus of +29. I'm no Mathematician but those numbers add up to a championship...Just kidding, but that is one hell of a night.
-Lastly, Derrick Rose up close is unbelievable. He's quick as lightning, as strong as most small forwards, and seems to always be in control. My only knocks on him, he turns the ball over too much and sometimes he has a hitch in his shot. The turnovers bother me more than anything because a lot of times they are silly turnovers. Like forcing his dribble into a double team when a guy is open on the perimeter. The hitch in his shot is a minor thing and only seems to come out when he is shooting threes. His 15-18 footer looks perfect, but when he backs up to 23'9'' he does a weird little thing with his wrist sometimes. When he was warming up it showed up on almost every three he took, but during the game the three he made looked perfect, the three he missed looked terrible. Neither of these knocks are a big deal and really I'm just looking for something to criticize him about otherwise all I would be doing is blowing smoke up his butt.

Stars in the Making

If you're a diehard NBA guy like myself you've seen what some of the young guys can do. The two that are getting the most praise right now are John Wall and Blake Griffin. Having seen Wall play against Rose last week and watching Griffin play against San Antonio last night it's pretty clear to me that both players will be very good. I never predict superstardom for players, because so much of that depends on a team's popularity and how well they market their players. I expect, injuries not withstanding, for both players to make several all-star teams before it is all said and done. Wall is already a terrific NBA defender. He beats players to spots, his hands are as quick as anyone's in the league, and he has excellent off the ball instincts. Offensively he can get to just about anywhere on the floor and is an excellent passer, his shooting needs to improve but I expect that to happen. The question with Wall over the next decade is going to be 'who's better, him or Rose?' Hopefully it's Rose, but one thing is certain, John Wall is a going to be a force for years to come.

As for Blake Griffin, a player his size is usually not that athletic. He is quick like a guard, has a solid midrange game, and went around Tim Duncan last night like he was Eddy Curry (ok not that badly, but you get my point). Griffin is a high flier who can already finish with the best Power Forwards in the game. The downside for Griffin however is quite big. He plays for the LA Clippers, so he's bound to get injured again, Baron Davis is his Point Guard, so getting the ball will be an issue, and his head coach is Vinny Del Negro. VDN is not known as a 'Teacher' of the game. I hope he improves on his last job coaching my beloved Bulls, but I doubt it. If VDN can hold Griffin accountable he could be a defensive monster as well as a 20ppg guy.

Some others to watch for:

Xavier Henry-I haven't seen him play, but there is already rumblings about Mayo not being the long term fit in Memphis with Gay signed and Gasol and Randolph both seeking extensions. Plus all signs out of camp are he is a legit two guard in the NBA.

DeMarcus Cousins-Another player I haven't seen play yet, but he sure is getting a lot of Pub on Yahoo, ESPN, and NBA.com.

DeJaun Blair-He might not be a rookie, but he is going to have a break out season. He WILL end up being the starter sooner rather than later and he will be able to take a lot of pressure off of Duncan having to do everything down low. Blair is going to be a double/double machine this season and could win the Most Improved Player Award. I know he doesn't have any cartilage in his knees, but it's still amazing every team in the league passed on this guy at least once.

Michael Beasley-He's in his third year and I, like most, have ripped him since day one. But he seems to have found a home in Minnesota. He gets to do whatever he wants offensively (he's their first option), he's got a set position (Small Forward), and he isn't expected to save the franchise. It's really the perfect situation for him. I'm not a huge fan of his, but he is still only 21, and don't forget if not for Derrick Rose he would have been the first pick in the draft. Beasely can definitely score and I think this is the year he averages 20 points a night because he finally gets the minutes and at least in preseason almost everything flows through him offensively. Whether or not he rebounds or plays defense I have no idea, that's up to Coach Kurt Rambis. I don't expect Beasley to ever be an all-star, but I do expect him to score and in Minny that's what they need him to do.

Preseason NBA League Pass

I just have one question, why doesn't the NBA League Pass televise all of the preseason games? I understand if some games aren't televised locally, there is no feed to show. But most games, even preseason games, are televised by the local cable affiliate. For example, I had to watch the Bulls play the Wizards the other night on a crappy internet stream from some random dudes blog. Why can this guy broadcast the game and the NBA can't? I would just like an answer, if there is a legit reason for it then I'll stop complaining, if not FIX IT!

As for everything else about the League Pass, I love it. I love the price (usually around 170), I love that you get the Broadband League Pass for free, and I love the Stat Channel as well. Getting back to the Broadband. It's amazing, and the fact that's it's free is the best deal around. MLB charges over 100 bucks for it. Being able to watch whatever game I want, whenever I want, anywhere I want is pretty much the perfect thing for a diehard NBA guy like myself. I have nothing but nice things to say about the League Pass once the season starts.

The Bulls Finally Win!

The Bulls trounced the Washington Wizards tonight getting their first win of the preseason. I was never worried about them losing, but it is nice to get a W. So here are some thoughts.
-Rose still looks like he's rushing on offense, I get the sense he is taking on too much burden offensively. Yes everything HAS to flow through him, but he does have some other weapons. Noah on the high post, Deng slashing and posting up, and Korver camping out behind the arc. I would like to see Rose look for others just a little more, which should lead to easier opportunities for himself.
-It was great to see the Bulls get back to dominating the boards. I know the Wizards are a bit undersized, but tonight's effort was much closer to what I expect during the regular season with Noah going for double digit boards and the Wizards being out rebounded by 16. Early in the season if the Bulls have any chance of winning with Boozer out they have to out rebound their opponent, it's the one big advantage they have over most teams.
-Gilbert Arenas seems completely uninterested in playing for the Wizards. This is a guy who was expected to do anything at the University of Arizona. He was a second round draft pick. And he turned himself into one of the top stars in the League by playing with a HUGE chip on his shoulder. That chip is gone and what remains is a guy who stands out by the three point line and waits for someone to pass him the ball so he can jack a long jumper. It's really sad to see. Gilbert was a very entertaining player and personality before injuries and crazy took over. I'm rooting for him to get his passion back and form an explosive exciting back court with John Wall.
-As for Wall, he is much better than I thought he'd be. He might as quick as Rose, which is really saying something. He is a solid defender and is a better passer than I was expecting. Right now he is not as good as Rose (Rose is an all-star after all), but moving forward who knows. Two years from now these two could be battling for best point guard in the league! That being said, Rose will always be my favorite player.

Other NBA Notes
-The Miami Heat may average close to 110 points per game. Which is really amazing because they will definitely hold their opponents to under 100 points. That's a significant difference. They're still not winning 70 games though.
-It's nice what the Indiana Pacers are doing bringing in Darren Collison but they are still a lottery team and they still don't play any defense. If they win 30 games it will be a successful season.
-Vince Carter scored 25 points tonight, and he won't do it again for a couple of months. The Magic are screwed if they are going to rely on Carter to score 20 a night, completely screwed. My prediction stands, JJ Redick will be the starter by the all-star game.

First Impressions (Bulls and NBA Wide)

Having missed the first Bulls preseason game I will give my first impressions now that I've seen them play the Mavs.

Derrick Rose appears to be rushing his jump shot. The fundamentals look the same, but everything seems a little sped up. And for someone who spent most of the offseason working on his jumper, there is no way he should be rushing or pressing on his shot. My hope is once he trusts it he will take his game from All-Star level to superstar level.

With no Boozer, this is just a slightly upgraded offensive team than last season. The ball moves a lot better than it did last year which is a plus, but it's still drive and kick with average shooters on the perimeter (Korver is a great shooter, but he can't shoot all the shots for the Bulls). Hopefully, if Boozer does come back healthy in December they will be able to play a little more inside/out and that will take some pressure off of Rose to always create for everyone. I will say it's nice to see that the Bulls don't run the pick and roll every single time down the floor like they did last year, that is a BIG POSITIVE to the new coaching regime!

The Bulls Defense is everything I hoped it would be, even the backups. Guys are constantly moving, jumping out to double team, getting hands in the passing lanes. It wouldn't surprise me at all if the Bulls had a top five D at the end of the year, and if they do they will earn a top three seed.

Kyle Weaver (Bulls backup shooting guard) does not have a guaranteed contract with the Bulls. However, he SHOULD make the team and he SHOULD take Keith Bogans (who owns a several million dollar contract) spot on the bench. He is a much better player and has a lot more potential moving forward than Bogans.

Dwayne Wade is going to be out for two weeks or so with a strained hamstring. I'm obviously hoping this is a long term problem and affects him throughout the season. Unfortunately, even without him the Heat are the best team in the East. I'm not saying they would win in the playoffs if Bosh or Wade went down, but during the regular season, as long as they have LeBron they will end up with 60+ wins. Watching the Heat first preseason game was just like watching the Cavs last year. LeBron was everywhere and it doesn't matter who he plays with, his team is going to dominate, at least until the playoffs.

A lot of talk is that the Mavs or Oklahoma City will challenge the Lakers for the West, while I like both of those teams, I think the only legit shot of taking down the Lakers will be the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs have a good mix of youth and veteran leadership and they have a lot of size. Splitter is big, Blair, and of course Timmy Duncan. And let's not count out Tony Parker, Manu and Richard Jefferson just yet. I think they have a lot left in the tank and proved it when they took apart the Mavs in last year's playoffs. I was all over the Mavs last year and thought they had a real chance to reach the Finals, but this year I refuse to believe they can be elite in the playoffs until they prove it. As for OKC, I think they can run off 55 wins or so, but they don't really have the size to compete with the Lakers come playoff time. Of course if Durant and Westbrook get even better then anything is possible.

I'm pretty tired of all this Yao Ming and Houston Rocket talk. HE'S ONLY GOING TO PLAY 24 MINUTES A NIGHT FOR THE ENTIRE SEASON! that means, they are going to be a bottom rung playoff team at best. Plus the Rockets refuse to extend any players this off season and I think that is going to piss some guys off. Mainly Aaron Brooks, and I think it's going to be an issue for a long time. Bottom line, they just don't have enough talent to compete with the top of the West.

Shame on me

Over the past five years I have butchered Carlos Boozer. Called him a traitor, a wimpy jump shooter, and a wuss who doesn't play through a bad hangnail, much less an actual minor injury. But when the Bulls signed him this offseason I bought into the hype. I said he was the perfect fit for the Bulls, a pick and roll specialist that would jump Rose's assist total to near double digits. Just last week I argued with a friend of mine about how Boozer will have a better season than Chris Bosh. I even argued Boozer's deal was better for the Bulls because it was cheaper and one less year, saying that both players will have issues in four years with injuries but then Boozer will be coming off the books while Bosh will have one more season. I was so convinced that Boozer was the answer the Bulls were looking for after missing out on the big three that I forgot one HUGE thing! CARLOS SCREWED OVER A BLIND GUY!

Karma is an unforgiving bitch and she has her sights set on Boozer. If Carlos was on any other team I would have called his contract 'INSANE,' I would have ripped the team that signed him and when he got injured laughed at them. Sadly, I was suckered in by the Bulls hype machine and now I am paying the price.

I'm not saying the season is over, not by any means. I still think if the Bulls have a healthy team come playoff time they will be very tough and should make a deep run possibly to the Eastern Conference Finals. When the season starts Taj Gibson will be the starter at PF and he has proven to be very capable of holding down the fort. The sad part is the hardest part of the Bulls schedule is the first month of the season, which Carlos WILL definitely miss. The good news, if this happened after the season started he'd miss 30 games or so instead of just 15. It's not much of a silver lining, but it's what I'm clinging to.

Lastly, this does change my prediction for the upcoming season. I had the Bulls winning 52 games and finishing with the third seed, now I'm saying 48 and earning the fourth seed. The reason the drop off isn't greater? I expected the Bulls to lose quite a few of these early games anyway so that's something. I'm so unhappy right now.

Ramblings

With training camps opening up I thought I'd take a look around the League, as always I'll start with the Bulls.

Everything coming out of Bulls camp right now is beyond positive. The team is already meshing together, the coach is an actual coach (unlike what they have currently have in Clipperland), and Loul Deng looks great. Not 12 million a year great, but still great. For more check out Sam Smith at Bulls.com and Doug Thonus at Bulls Confidential.

NBATV is doing a behind the scenes look at several team practices. The one that I saw was the Miami Heat intra-squad scrimmage. Watching the Heat play made me sick, every time LeBron touched the ball I was hoping he would trip. Of course he's the best player in the world, so he never did. The Heat moved very well without the ball, there was lots of backdoor cutting, lots of ball movement and several times the D trapped the ball after they crossed half court. Sadly I was very impressed, but it was the starters on one team and the backups on the other team for most of the scrimmage, so this is what you would expect. The one thing I did see that made me happy (as a Bulls fan that is) was Chris Bosh was relegated to watching Wade and James on offense. My hope for the Heat this year is Bosh starts complaining about his role, he is clearly number 3 in the pecking order and I am hoping he gets pissed off and spends a lot of time complaining.

I'm glad 'Melo didn't get traded yet. I love talking about trades, I love reading about trades, and I love it when players have to stay in a town they don't want to play in. Basically everything that is going on in Denver is a lot of fun for me. As for where 'Melo ends up this season I believe one of three things will happen. The Nuggets will acquiesce and trade him to the Knicks for junk before October 31st and he'll sign an extension. The Nuggets will acquiesce and trade him to the Bulls for junk before October 31st and he'll sign an extension. Or the Nuggets will roll the dice and tell 'Melo they are refusing to trade him and if he wants an extension he'll have to sign with THEM. Believe it or not, I think the Nuggets take a stand and do the last one and I think 'Melo caves. He has said all along he wants the long term security over everything else. If he doesn't take the Nuggets 3 year 65 million dollar offer and they refuse to trade him before the season starts he stands to lose more money than I can even comprehend. If the lockout happens and the owners 'win' the contract negotiations, 'Melo's next deal could be some thirty million less than the deal the Nuggets are offering.

Speaking of contract extensions, I don't expect very many of the players up for extensions from the 2007 rookie class to get them. There is just no reason for the owners to offer big deals to players they will have under contract for at least 2 more seasons unless the team feels it will be a slight discount over what they could get on the open market in a few years. Houston has already said they aren't doing any extensions this year. This means Al Horford, Jokim Noah, Jeff Green, Aaron Brooks etc...probably won't get extensions. What I'm saying is Noah should take that 5 year 57 million offer from the Bulls and giggle all the way to the bank. I haven't heard of any other offers to players and I don't expect many.

Bulls v. Heat

Let's just jump right in to the comparisons.

Rose v. Dwayne Wade-I put Wade here because I believe Mike Miller is going to start for the Heat which means Rose and Wade will be matched up, sort of. Brewer will most likely guard Wade, but whatever, let's just use this for comparison sake. Everyone in the world thinks Wade is one of the three or four best players in the NBA. I agree, last year. This year I think he takes a minor step back, I think Wade turns into more of a jump shooter while LeBron does the penetrating and dishing. Wade is at his best going to the hoop but with LeBron and Bosh clogging the paint I think Wade will shoot more mid range jumpers. What that means is Rose has a chance this season to surpass Wade. Rose is the clear leader and best player on his team. He is going to dominate the ball the same way Wade dominated the ball last season. Wade is going to defer to other players this year, while Rose is going to have everything go through him. I'm not saying Rose will definitely be better than Wade this season, what I am saying is I believe he will be! So I'll call this a wash.

Brewer v. Mike Miller-This is a classic offense vs. defense situation. Mike Miller is a pure shooter with a versatile offensive game. He can hang out by the three point line and drain jumpers or he can create for himself and others. Best of all he doesn't need the ball to be dangerous, just having him on the court pulls at least one defender out of the paint. Brewer is none of these things on offense. He can run the court, dunk, and knock down 12 footers. But on defense he is a monster, which is not one of Miller's best attributes. One player is a stud defender, one player is a stud on offense. So we'll call this a wash as well.

Deng v. LeBron James-This a huge difference. LeBron is the best player in the league and Deng is nowhere near on the same level. This gap is so huge that no matter how much better or worse the rest of the Bulls team is, they will never be favored in a series with the Heat. LeBron can do it all (except finish in the playoffs, so thank god for Wade) and Deng is a solid piece who is best suited as a team's fourth best player (which he is on the Bulls). Needless to say, HUGE advantage to LeBron.

Boozer v. Chris Bosh-Bosh is the bigger name, there is no doubt about that. But I will argue Boozer is actually the better player. Bosh averaged more points (24 ppg) last year than Boozer (19.5), but did it on more shots per game and on a lottery bound team. Boozer was his team's second option and rarely dominated the ball on the offensive end, while everything ran through Bosh in Toronto. This season I expect Bosh's scoring to drop down below Boozer's while I expect Boozer's to hold steady right around 19.5 a night. Defensively, neither player is that great. They both struggle to rotate quickly and both are poor on the perimeter. I give an edge to Boozer because he is physically stronger and is much more willing to get down and dirty with players in the paint. Boozer is also a better rebounder averaging over 11 a game last year and is better at grabbing rebounds in traffic. Lastly, both players are injury prone, Boozer more so, but a lot of what is going to happen next year for the Heat and the Bulls is going to be determined by health. Both of these teams have a chance at winning big throughout the season but the big guys need to stay healthy. So the main reason I give the edge to Boozer? He has played on winning teams his entire career, from Duke, to the Cavs (with LeBron) to the Jazz. He may have screwed over a blind guy (and yes, he did screw him over) but once the game starts he gives everything he can to get the W. Whether it's scoring, rebounding, or sacrificing his body Boozer's heart doesn't get questioned (his injuries are another issue). Bosh on the other hand wilts under pressure, has never played in the second round of the playoffs, and even sat out the last six games of the season last year to sabotage his team's playoff chances (supposedly). I don't think the gap is huge, but this season I think Boozer is the better player and will have the better year.

Noah v. Udonis Haslem-This is a huge edge to Noah. Haslem is a solid player, but he is undersized and is actually a power forward not a center. Noah is a better defender, a better rebounder, a better finisher, he's basically better than Haslem in every aspect of the game. Noah is a top 5 or 6 center, Haslem doesn't even crack the top 20.

Watson, Korver, Gibson, Asik v. Mario Chalmers, James Jones, Juwan Howard, Zydrunas Ilgauskas-Another edge to the Bulls. Ilgauskas is a great backup center, arguably the best in the league, but that is the only edge the Heat have. The Bulls are younger, more athletic, and healthier. Everyone on the Heat bench has issues, from Chalmers' ineffectiveness and pot usage, Jones' injury issues, Ilgauskas' age issues, and Howard having died about five years ago. This is a pretty big edge to the Bulls. I expect the Heat to play Bosh, Wade and LeBron big minutes this year.

Thibs v. Erik Spoelstra-I think Spoelstra is a solid coach. He held Michael Beasley accountable for his crappy defense all last season, and that is a big deal. He has Wade and LeBron singing his praises. That being said, if this team gets off to a mediocre start he could be fired after 20 games with Pat Riley taking over. If Riles takes over it's anyone's guess. Riley is tough and demands respect, but I doubt LeBron, Wade, and Bosh are looking to get yelled at very much. Thibs on the other hand has a brand new three year deal and is lauded as THE defensive guru of NBA coaches. So I'll call this a wash as well. Spoelstra is still new and Thibs is a rookie.

Almost everything points to the Bulls being the better team, unfortunately that one thing that is in favoring the Heat is really REALLY BIG THING! LeBron James makes this the best team in the East and arguably the best team in the league. Expect the Heat to win 60+ games, earn the top seed in the East, and most likely earn a trip to the Finals. I will say this, if the Bulls and Heat face each other in the playoffs I expect every game to be very close and I expect the series to go at least 6 games. But even as a Bulls homer, I can't pick against the Heat. LeBron, Wade and Bosh is just too impressive, really it's just LeBron is too impressive, because I believe the rest of the Heat team is actually inferior to the Bulls.

Bulls v. Magic

As I continue my Bulls' comparisons to the best teams in the league we come to the Orlando Magic. Now keep in mind my comparisons are based on an 82 game regular season. What I am doing is making my early predictions for where the Bulls will finish during the REGULAR season only. This is not about who will win in the playoffs, it is about who will have a better record at the end of April.

The Magic were the second best team in the East during the regular season and the second best team during the playoffs. You could say they are the king of being the runner up. That being said, this is a true team. They are better then the sum of their parts because everyone knows their role and plays within themselves. Barring injury I have little doubt they will have a better record then the Bulls and could push for 60 wins. My guess is the Magic end up around 56-58 wins which will be quite a few more than my Bulls. However, the Bulls do have some advantages and could make this a decent race for the two seed.

Rose v. Jameer Nelson-Nelson is a solid player and fills the role that is asked of him. Scorer and penetrator. I would just like to see him get everyone involved more. Nelson looks for his shot more often then he should. His focus should be in getting Howard the ball in a position where he can succeed and setting up his shooters (VC, Lewis, Redick etc...). It's not that Nelson does anything wrong, I just think with this team he should be averaging about 13 points a night and near 10 assists instead of the lowly 5.5 he does average. Some of this is Van Gundy's fault for letting Vince Carter play and some of it is Nelson's for looking for his shot to often. I think Rose is a giant step ahead of Nelson and this season Rose will again be an all-star while Nelson will continue to be the fourth best player on a championship level team, which is a pretty good gig.

Brewer v. JJ Redick-Vince Carter is going to be the starter at the beginning of the season, but he is fucking terrible and everyone knows it. So my guess is he'll be replaced by Redick after about 20 games. Redick is a better all around player than Brewer. He is an average defender, a great shooter, a good passer, and the Bulls tried to sign him before they signed Brewer. That should tell us something. I love Brewer in this matchup though, because he is longer and more athletic. Redick won't be able to run with Brewer and it will be very tough for Redick to get any open looks with Brewer shadowing him all over the court. Still, I give an edge to the Magic in this one. If Carter is the starter all season then throw this all out the window and give the edge to the Bulls and assume Stan Van Gundy has lost his mind.

Deng v. Mickael Pietrus-This is a wash. Deng is a slightly better all around player because he is more aggressive than Pietrus, but Pietrus is always healthy, unlike Deng. Deng is better at the mid range and post up games, while Pietrus is a much better three point shooter. Both are excellent defenders and Deng is a better rebounder. Bottom line, this is a wash. Both are solid players that every team in the league could use.

Boozer v. Rashard Lewis-Lewis may have the bigger contract and the beautiful three point shot, but Boozer does a lot more of the little things. Boozer rebounds, posts up, and isn't afraid to bang down low. These are three things that Lewis rarely does anymore, not since signing that huge contract. I love Lewis' game, but he rarely showcases all of his skills. He has turned into a stand still three point shooter who watches other guys create for him. And for a power forward his rebounding skills are pretty lame as he only averages about 5 a night. That's just not going to get it done. I give a decent edge to Boozer here, assuming he stays healthy (which means playing 70-75 games).

Noah v. Dwight Howard-Many call Noah the mini Howard, so I think Howard wins this hands down. Howard is the best center in the league and the most dominant big man in basketball. His offensive game is still unrefined, but that is a very small complaint. When he gets the ball deep in the paint he is unstoppable and is arguably the best defensive center since Hakeem Olajuwon. The only thing that gets in Howard's way is his propensity to commit really stupid fouls early in the game and for some reason he doesn't always get the star treatment that guys like Kobe and LeBron get. Anyway, this is a big win for Howard and a big advantage for the Magic.

Watson, Korver, Gibson, Asik v. Duhon, Carter, Q. Richardson, Gortat-This is a very good and deep bench, throw in Ryan Anderson and this team can go 10 deep. As much as I like the Bulls bench, the Magic are better. Duhon, Carter, and Gortat are fringe starters in the league and Q is a wily veteran who was a starter last year. For the Bulls, the only potential starter is Gibson and he is definitely better suited to the bench. This is one of the Magic's biggest strengths, they almost get better when they go to the bench because very few teams can match up with the Magic's depth.

Thibs v. Stan Van Gundy-Big Edge to Van Gundy. He's coached in the Finals, he's got the team believing in his system, and personally I think he is one of the top five coaches in the game. Thibs is new, and may be great, but he is not anywhere near this level yet.

Talent wise I think these two teams are very close and I could even argue the Bulls have a better starting five, but there are going to be some growing pains for the Bulls this season as they adjust to new teammates, a new coach, and a new system. The Magic are a classic example of a TEAM! I expect the Magic to challenge for the top seed in the East and finish no lower than second. The Bulls may make it interesting for a while but at the end of the day I see the Magic landing the two seed and playing the Bulls in the second round of the playoffs, which should be EPIC!

Carmelo Anthony a Bull?

The newest rumor is the Bulls are pursuing Carmelo Anthony from the Nuggets and have made a formal offer. The talk is also that the Bulls are considering sweeting the deal to include Joakim Noah. This might all be true, but the Bulls are NOT going to get Anthony. Any deal would have to involve Luol Deng and the Nuggets don't want him because of his contract. The Nuggets would also want Noah, and I promise you the Bulls ARE NOT trading him. You don't trade one of the top five or six centers in the league, period end of story. It just doesn't happen.

I'm torn on bringing Anthony to town. I'd love to see him in the Bulls uniform, but under no circumstances do I want the Bulls to lose Noah. Deng and Noah for Anthony is a step down. Without Noah the Bulls have no chance of getting past the Heat, Lakers, or Magic over the next 2-5 years. Now if they could get Anthony for Deng, Gibson, James Johnson, Omer Asik, and some first round picks I would do it in a second. I will give up bench depth for a star scorer every day of the week. But I think the team the Bulls have currently built is better suited to win moving forward then a team with Anthony in place of Deng AND Noah. Deng is solid, but Noah is about to be an all-star and a contender for defensive player of the year. You just don't give that up, especially when you have an offensive minded, but defensively challenged power forward in Carlos Boozer. Noah is the perfect compliment to Boozer and to Rose, who also lacks when it comes to defense.

So to recap, this is fun to talk about, but it's not happening. And me personally I'm ok with it.

Bulls v. Celtics

Last season the Celtics were only the fourth seed in the East, but went on to upset both the Cavs and Magic to make it to the Finals were they lost in seven games to the Lakers. This is a veteran team (meaning they are really old) who this offseason lost Rasheed Wallace and Tony Allen and added a couple of lousy pieces in the non-related O'Neal brothers, Jermaine and Shaquille. I expect this team to take a minor step back, if not a major step back during the regular season. With so many players over the age of 30 (five rotation players) and four of them being starters (at least until Kendrick Perkins comes back in Feb.) the Celtics aren't going to tear up the regular season. Their goal, like last year, is to be healthy and ready to play once the playoffs start. So over the course of an 82 game season I think the Bulls will definitely have a better record, but once the playoffs start all bets are off with the Celtics.

Rose v. Rajon Rondo-A lot of sportswriters and websites (yahoo, ESPN) have Rondo as the better point guard. I think that's a joke. This year Rondo is going to have to do a lot more than stand at the top of the key and make an easy chest pass to the wing for an open three. This year Rondo is going to have to score in the half court and is going to be forced to shoot more jumpers as defenses continue to adjust to his game. Rondo isn't just a below average jump shooter, he's one of the worst jump shooting PG's in the league. Rondo also gets all this press for being a great defender, which isn't 100% true. He IS a great help defender, but he is a terrible on the ball defender. And with Rose, Rondo won't be able to help much which will neutralize some of his defensive prowess. The problem for the Bulls is if Rose can't stay in front of Rondo defensively, HE will go wherever he wants and get wide open shots for Pierce and Allen, and dunks for the O'Neal's and KG. This matchup is all about who you ask. Ask a Bulls fan and it's Rose, ask a Celtics fan and it's Rondo. So I'll call it a wash. Rondo is clearly better defensively, even though he does have some flows, and Rose is clearly better offensively. I will say this, when these two teams play, this matchup will be a lot of fun to watch.

Brewer v. Ray Allen-Until Ray Allen retires or gets seriously injured he will be the best pure shooter in the league. I love what Brewer brings to the table, but even at age 35 Ray is still the better player and can single-handedly carry a team on certain nights. The only advantage the Bulls have is age, Ray is old, Brewer is young. So if Brewer can get out and run and pester the crap out of Allen then who knows, but I still won't bet against him.

Deng v. Paul Pierce-There isn't much to talk about here. If Pierce is getting bailed out by the refs for putting his head down and barreling into the lane out of control and getting two free throws for doing nothing more than throwing his arms up in the air, then the Celtics will dominate this matchup. If refs aren't bailing out Pierce, then Deng is every bit his equal. He's younger, faster, stronger, longer, a better defender, a better rebounder, and just as good a mid range shooter. Pierce is a better three point shooter and can create his own shot, but unfortunately with the Celtics it always comes down to the refs. So I have to go with a slight edge to Pierce.

Boozer v. Kevin Garnett-I think KG is done. He looked terrible all season last year, he can't jump, his post moves are in slow motion and his defensive rotation is slow. I give a big edge to Boozer and I will be SHOCKED if KG has anything left in the tank this season. I hate to bet against him because he is such a passionate competitor but after all the injuries he has sustained after the last few years I just don't see him getting back to 2008 form.

Noah v. Jermaine O'Neal-That's right, Jermaine O'Neal is going to start for the Boston Celtics until AT LEAST February when Kendrick Perkins comes back from injury. And who knows how good Perkins will be after major knee surgery this off season. My guess, not very good. So this is a Ginormous edge to the Bulls. The Celtics don't have anyone on their roster that can keep up with Noah, he is too fast and strong for Jermaine and way to agile for Shaq and just plain to big for KG. This matchup is the reason the Bulls should beat the Celtics this year IF they meet in the playoffs.

Korver, Watson, Asik, Gibson v. Nate Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, Glen Davis, Marquis Daniels-I actually hate the Celtics bench. Shaq is completely done, D.U.N. DONE!!! Nate Robinson is a little firecracker that I like every other game when he goes off, but that other game he usually disrupts the flow of the offense, takes stupid shots, and turns the ball over (he still thinks he's playing for Isiah Thomas in New York). Marquis Daniels can't be counted on to stay healthy and is at best an average player, and he's no longer young, he turns thirty during the season. lastly it's Glen Davis. Sadly I like Davis. He plays hard and gets the most out of his talent. You know every night you will get everything Davis has, in fact, Davis is the only Celtic bench guy that might be able to crack the Bulls rotation(although he'd probably have to play center to do it). Needless to say I think the Bulls bench is better across the board.

Thibs v. Rivers-I am very interested to see how Rivers does this year without his top assistant. Rivers gave Thibs credit every step of the way and I'm not sure they will be able to sustain the type of intense defense they've had the best few years without him. I still give the edge to Rivers, after all, he's won a championship and made it to last year's Finals and Thibs is yet to coach a game. I'm just saying I can't wait to see this match up.

I believe the Bulls will have a better record than the Celtics (possibly four or five more wins), i think the Celtics will most likely be in that 4-5-6 range come playoff time, most likely falling into the four seed. I don't see them getting to 50 wins, 47 seems like the most they can hope for with Shaq playing significant minutes, Jermaine O'Neal starting, and Perkins maybe being a shell of his former self. That being said, if they are healthy during the playoffs anything can happen, but during the regular season I just can't see the Bulls finishing below them in the standings.