Anyone remember the epic Chicago Bulls vs. Cleveland Caveliers first round series back in the late 80s with Michael Jordan man-handling Brad Daugherty and Mark Price?
Back then, Jordan was a one-man wrecking show with a limited back-up cast. He didn't fare too well and it took him many years to get to his first championship.
Today, LeBron James is a one-man wrecking show but not in the same way. He has learned from Michael's mistakes (MJ thought he must take 25+ shots per game to win the game) and led his team in assists with 8.2 per game throughout the regular season. It's like he skipped that step and became the Michael Jordan of the championship Bulls.
The Bulls reaction is that Derrick Rose is now trying to be Michael Jordan. Put the team on your back, try to claw back single-handedly. Derrick Rose took over 25 shots yesterday to an impressive double-double and near triple-double...but the game was never that close.
Jordan's Bulls earned a championship once he learned to trust his teammates and his teammates DELIVERED. For Rose, he could pass the ball all he wants, but the inconsistency of a jump-shot happy team will always lead him to driving the ball for a higher percentage shot. Not to mention, there is no 3-point shooter on the Bulls (they only connected on 1 yesterday).
The glaring hole that needs to be addressed in the off-season is a solid 2-Guard (Joe Johnson, Dwayne Wade), or a solid post-threat (Chris Bosh, Carlos Boozer) that defenses will respect.
In the short term, Dr. Suhweeet (yours truly) recommends the following to Vinny Del Negro and The Bulls:
1. Do not play Brad Miller and Joakim Noah together. Neither can cover Antawn Jamison and he lit them up quick when Noah was covering him.
2. DO pass the ball to Taj Gibson. He consistently makes his jumper, much like All-Star David Lee of the Knicks. This stretches the defense and will allow Rose to easily drive to the hole if he wants.
3. Get Kirk Hinrich going early - With Kirk shy to shoot, defenses collapsed easily on the only scoring threat - Derrick Rose.
4. If Kirk doesn't get it going, play more of Flip Murray - Flip is a savvy veteran who can score in bunches. Something the Bulls desperately need.
With these recommendations, one can only hope to make it a closer series. But if Shaquille O'Neal, Lebron James, Mo Williams, and Antawn Jamison are clicking, this team will be very hard to stop. And not just for the Bulls.
-Dr. Suhweeet
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