The Bulls Should NOT Be Impressed With Themselves.

[Rondo_is_better]

I'm looking at you Noah. I'm looking at you Gordon.


You eeked out a 3 point, double overtime win with every star in the universe aligned for you.

- Poor game from Pierce
- Poor game from Davis (those layups, my god)
- Poor coaching decisions from Doc (not fouling Salmons on the inbounds, 1st OT)
- Ridiculous shot that a streaky player happened to hit with 4.5 on the clock
- Some of the worst officiating that I've seen to date
- Perkins fouling out, leaving us without a single player over 6'7 (I don't count Mikki Moore as a player)
- Brad Miller somehow not getting a flagrant after he went at Big Baby's head, recieved a flagrant, and had it rescinded and changed to a technical
- Scalabrine getting called for a clear path foul while he was even with Heinrich, and even if you don't believe he was level with him, the clear path rule was designed to prevent non-basketball fouls like Trevor Ariza's vicious swipe from happening, not to screw over a team in the final minute of a game.
- A poor game on the defensive end by the C's. Rose had yards of open space on a lot of his drives. It was maddeningly inconsistent.
- The homecourt factor: calls, momentum, energy, comfort, confidence, familiarity, and lack of pressure for the Bulls

All of that resulted in a 3 point win for the Bulls--hardly a decisive victory--and really a game that could've gone either way. So really, Chicago, settle down and stop screaming and pounding your chests (Noah). You're about to go into a very hostile environment on Tuesday and get run out of town. That will put you at a 3-2 disadvantage, and you'll choke under the pressure on your home floor for game six. Stop celebrating.

[celticinorlando]

they are in the series after boston drilled them in game 3...and in fact they have the momentum now...i understand all that you are saying but it is on boston to play a good game...this series should be over but yet the bulls are alive and well

[mahonedog88]

I'm sure Bulls fans said the exact same thing at the end of game 2.  I actually think they should be impressed with themselves, this game was lost for them and they pulled this win out of nowhere.

[vinnie]

I would like to say that I read this message and I approve it's content -- 

[PosImpos]

The only reason this game even went to double OT was because of a bunch of incredibly questionable calls and overall poor officiating throughout the game.  So no, the Bulls shouldn't be proud of themselves.

[vinnie]

they are in the series after boston drilled them in game 3...and in fact they have the momentum now...i understand all that you are saying but it is on boston to play a good game...this series should be over but yet the bulls are alive and well

Sometimes I don't get it. This series should be over? The C's are missing one of the best defensive players in basketball and their other power forward. The C's were basically a team of midgets at the end of the game and still had a shot to tie it. They are without their best defensive player -- THE GLUE for all of the defense and they are without Leon Powe, yet people are saying this series should be over. I just don't get it.

[Roy Hobbs]

Well...  if the Bulls shouldn't be impressed with themselves, then the Celts should be downright ashamed, right?

There's something to be said for taking two of the first four from the defending champions, and making more key plays down the stretch.

[PosImpos]

Well...  if the Bulls shouldn't be impressed with themselves, then the Celts should be downright ashamed, right?

There's something to be said for taking two of the first four from the defending champions, and making more key plays down the stretch.

The Celtics didn't play great today, but they also have two really key injuries (Powe, Garnett) that are hurting them, and while the Bulls may have made more key plays down the stretch, they also got a lot of really key calls down the stretch as well.  So yeah, I agree that the Celtics shouldn't feel great about today's performance.  But the Bulls didn't deserve the win.

[vinnie]

Well...  if the Bulls shouldn't be impressed with themselves, then the Celts should be downright ashamed, right?

There's something to be said for taking two of the first four from the defending champions, and making more key plays down the stretch.

Roy -- I refuse to refer to this team without Garnett as the defending champions. In name, yes, but in who is out on the floor, no. Sorry, but I simply cannot be too hard on these guys when they are playing with basically ONE legitimate big man. ONE.

[celticinorlando]

PP makes the FT in game one and it is a win....they dont p--- this one away tonight and it is a sweep...boston has played poorly in 3 of the 4 games...boston keeps letting them hang around and pretty soon the bulls steal the series...they must send a message tuesday at home...another close win or loss will not cut

[Rondo_is_better]

they are in the series after boston drilled them in game 3...and in fact they have the momentum now...i understand all that you are saying but it is on boston to play a good game...this series should be over but yet the bulls are alive and well

I'm just saying, they shouldn't be impressed with themselves... I know the Celtics weren't impressed with themselves after they eeked out game 2. That's why they came out and stomped on Chicago's face in game 3.

[Roy Hobbs]

Well...  if the Bulls shouldn't be impressed with themselves, then the Celts should be downright ashamed, right?

There's something to be said for taking two of the first four from the defending champions, and making more key plays down the stretch.

The Celtics didn't play great today, but they also have two really key injuries (Powe, Garnett) that are hurting them, and while the Bulls may have made more key plays down the stretch, they also got a lot of really key calls down the stretch as well.  So yeah, I agree that the Celtics shouldn't feel great about today's performance.  But the Bulls didn't deserve the win.

Well, Chicago has the Deng injury to deal with, too.  You have to play the games with the players you have, and Chicago played better.  In terms of "deserving" to win, I'm a believer in the Bill Parcells' "You are what your record says you are" theory, and the Celts are 2-2 right now.

As for the calls...  The Perk call was discretionary, but legit.  The Scal call was *probably* wrong, but it was very close.  The only really bad call was the foul call on Pierce with something like 27 seconds left.  That wasn't a foul, but he was standing out of bounds, so Chicago would have just got to inbound again.  It was a bad call, but I don't think it changed the game all that significantly.

[endverse]

The Bulls as a team shouldn't be so impressed, but any self-commendation coming from either Gordon and Rose is totally justifiable. The latter was their savior in game 1, and the former in game 2, and today they shared that role. Rose went on trucking and Gordon simply finished.

Both of them have met their match in Rondon and Allen and they still came out on top in the end, and I think they deserve props for that.

[celticinorlando]

i think the bulls feel great right now...they came off a beatdown and won the next game....they are giddy about that IMO....they have the confidence back to come into the garden and steal another one...boston had the chance to end this and let them breathe...you cannot do that...

[PosImpos]

Well...  if the Bulls shouldn't be impressed with themselves, then the Celts should be downright ashamed, right?

There's something to be said for taking two of the first four from the defending champions, and making more key plays down the stretch.

The Celtics didn't play great today, but they also have two really key injuries (Powe, Garnett) that are hurting them, and while the Bulls may have made more key plays down the stretch, they also got a lot of really key calls down the stretch as well.  So yeah, I agree that the Celtics shouldn't feel great about today's performance.  But the Bulls didn't deserve the win.

Well, Chicago has the Deng injury to deal with, too.  You have to play the games with the players you have, and Chicago played better.  In terms of "deserving" to win, I'm a believer in the Bill Parcells' "You are what your record says you are" theory, and the Celts are 2-2 right now.

As for the calls...  The Perk call was discretionary, but legit.  The Scal call was *probably* wrong, but it was very close.  The only really bad call was the foul call on Pierce with something like 27 seconds left.  That wasn't a foul, but he was standing out of bounds, so Chicago would have just got to inbound again.  It was a bad call, but I don't think it changed the game all that significantly.

Perkins shouldn't have fouled out when he did, Brad Miller should have been thrown out, the clear path was a poor call...even if it was right (I'm doubtful) - it was a bad call considering the effect it had on the game, Paul should have drawn a lot more fouls than he did, the call on Pierce for the almost-steal that led to free throws was ridiculous, and on and on.