Seeing Red

The Chicago Bulls finished off their second West Coast trip this year with a win over the Nash-less Phoenix Suns.  While my enthusiasm is tempered since Steve Nash and Boris Diaw were both out due to injury, I'm going to give more credit to Bulls than everyone else seems to.  All I've really read is how the Suns were so short handed and then I see picture like this of Leandro Barbosa crying in pain as if the Suns lost him too.  CRAP.  He played the whole game and scored a ton of points.  It probably wasn't his shoulder...he was just upset the Bulls were kicking his ass.

It's not like Chicago was healthy or even rested.  Playing without Nocioni, the Bulls played the last game of a brutal west coast swing and the third game in 4 nights.  The Bulls could have mailed it in, but didn't.  They played hard and deserved to win. 

There were times, however, when I thought the Bulls would lose their grip on this one.  The Suns kept finding stretches to put it together which corresponded to the stretches the Bulls sleep walk through.  This is nothing new.  They do this all the time.  It's a problem and Skiles has been trying to address and perhaps he has.  I sensed something, especially in the third quarter, when the Suns came back to take the lead.  The Bulls had committed a ton of turnovers and made a ton of bonehead errors.  I thought the Bulls would let another one drop.  They looked like they were sleepwalking.  SNAP!  All of a sudden, they seemed to wake up.  They protected the ball, recaptured the tempo, took good shots, and played great defense.  If the Bulls can put it together like this, every night, and learn to do without Nocioni, then we might have something here especially when he's back. 

While this last swing through the West was still a losing effort, maybe some good will have come of it if the Bull finally learned how to put it together and win.

I don't know why Nocioni insists on doing his silly plyometric aerobics with a bad foot, but I'm glad Skiles is finally sitting Andres ass down.  Plantar Fasciitis is pretty hard to treat and only thing you can really do is sit and rest it.  I should know, because I also have it in my right foot and it kept me off the basketball and volleyball courts for the last 6 weeks.  Can you play on it?  Sure, BUT it really hampers your game and you can run the risk of further damage.  And considering the Bulls situation, its a good time to rest it. 

Look at the big picture...barring a complete meltdown, the Bulls are going to be in the playoffs and a very healthy Nocioni will be a big part of that success.  So rest the foot and give it time.

Obviously, in the short term, the Andres-less Bulls are going to hurt.  At first glance, the Kings and Warriors are up on back to back nights.  No problem, right?  WRONG.  The Kings have our number winning 14 of the last 15 match-ups.  Bibby loves playing the Bulls.  Oh, by the way...he's running the offense which stars ex-Pacer, ex-rapper, ex-problem, Ron Artest.  This guy has disappeared from infamy and is playing some great ball in the west coast.  Without Nocioni to play some of the tough annoying Ron Artest type of D, the Bulls will have their hands full.

And then, there are the Warriors.  This is a team we should beat, but on a back to back night after playing a tough game against the Kings, things can get complicated.

That said, there is a reason why there are no All-Stars on this Chicago Bull squad.  There doesn't have to be.  These guys play well as a team and can fight thru the short term loss of an important piece.  I believe this will also strenghten the team in the long run...maybe one of those blessings in disguise I hear about.  Hopefully, by the All-Star Break, the Bulls will be an even stronger unit and when Nocioni returns, be even better than before.

Okay, so they've played half a season already, however I couldn't really focus my attention as long as the Bears were alive.  Now that it's over I can re-dedicate myself to the NBA.  I realize, the Bears are still going to be in the news for a few more days, but I'll let Mike and Perry handle that. 

If you are interested in the Bulls (and NBA in general) tune back here Thursday.  Until then...Bear Down.