Rose: With Perkins Gone, We Know We Can Beat the Celtics

[CelticSooner]

Publicly, Derrick Rose told the Chicago Sun Times Wednesday that he was concerned that the Bulls were "not moving in the right direction."

Privately, within the Bulls locker room, their belief that they could beat the Celtics changed when Boston traded Kendrick Perkins to Oklahoma City.

The Bulls felt that with Perkins gone, everything changed for the Celtics. They no longer had the toughness, the tenacity, the presence in the post.

“He was tough,” Rose said. “He was really tough to go around. They’re different.

“We know we can beat them,” Rose flatly said.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=AgO4FCHm_lG0NQrqWwXdeF28vLYF?slug=aw-wojnarowski_rose_and_bulls_send_statement_to_celtics_040811

Starting to seem like the C's don't have that mental edge over these teams anymore. I really hope Shaq can be that guy in the paint.

[PosImpos]

I really think it's more a mental thing than anything in reality, both for opposing teams and for our own.  But if other teams are more confident and our team is less confident, that's still important.

[Roy H.]

Sigh.  Even if many fans on this blog don't believe in the psychological edge Perk gave us, a lot of players and teams apparently do.  Rose is just echoing what we've already heard from the Lakers and from other teams.

Perk's presence was a lot more than just what showed up in the box score.

[indeedproceed]

anyone else feel like they just got kicked in the nuts?

[LarBrd33]

If we can't get to the Finals without Kendrick Perkins, the league should retroactively strip our 4 starters of their "all-star" designations and change the record books to 4 more deserving players.    

[LarBrd33]

anyone else feel like they just got kicked in the nuts?

Rose, Phil jackson and the Lakers are all operating under the idea that this mentally weak squad will buy into the idea that they can't win without Perk and lose as some kind of self-fulfilling prophecy.  It's a head game.  This team should be fine without Perk.  What's lacking is offensive efficiency, focus and hunger.  We seemed to have it earlier this season without Perk... hopefully we can get our crap together for the playoffs.

[LB3533]

Not buying it, we beat them without Perkins twice already.

[Roy H.]

anyone else feel like they just got kicked in the nuts?

I've felt that way since late February.  That said, Chicago isn't invincible.  We just made things easier for them.

[GreenFaith1819]

DRose is too young in his NBA career to make assumptions like this.

He has won......how many championships?

Boston stuck around for most of the game before CHI eventually won. Toughness is over-rated. The fact that Boston did not play their best is the reason they lost.

This is akin to Amar'es rant about Pau Gasol and toughness.......Pau can keep being Pau, for all I care. He is still maybe the best PF in the game right now.....and guess what?

He is soft. He was soft to the tune of 15 rebs in that clinching game 7 last year.

DRose needs to be concerned with CHI and not Boston.

[Chris]

Sigh.  Even if many fans on this blog don't believe in the psychological edge Perk gave us, a lot of players and teams apparently do.  Rose is just echoing what we've already heard from the Lakers and from other teams.

Perk's presence was a lot more than just what showed up in the box score.

Yeah, this is certainly one of the issues with the trade.  That mental edge is something they are really going to have to get back.

Of course, I think it will be irrelevant if they come out and execute in the playoffs, but they went from a team others feared to a team that needs to prove themselves.  

I would argue though, that they had lost that mental edge last year as well.  They had basically become soft over the last 2-3 months of the season, and were getting pushed around by teams that normally would have cowered from them.  However, once the playoffs started, they began executing, giving hard fouls, and essentially instituting a "no layup" policy, and it all changed.  I still have hope they can do the same thing this year.

[indeedproceed]

anyone else feel like they just got kicked in the nuts?

I've felt that way since late February.  That said, Chicago isn't invincible.  We just made things easier for them.

Its the lingering vibrations that hurt the worst.

[rtifishul]

lolcats, Derrick Rose.

We'll see how much of a leader this dude is when they flame out (and yes they will flame out) in the playoffs.

[jv2764]

If Perk has that that much of an effect on D Rose that doesn't say much to me about him his mental toughness. 

[j804]

also from ESPN Chicago Noah as well

Given the circumstances, the Bulls had one of their best defensive performances of the year. That can't be ignored. But the thing that gives the Bulls such an added jolt now is that they know the Celtics don't have that hard-nosed defender to give them problems down low. Even if he gets healthy before the playoffs, Shaquille O'Neal isn't that guy. The only concern the Bulls should have regarding The Ancient Aristotle is if he knocks Rose out. Other than that, Shaq, Jermaine O'Neal or Nenad Krstic do not strike fear in their hearts the way Perkins did.

"They're different," Bulls center Joakim Noah said.

When pressed in which way, Noah, fearing the wrath of Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau, would only go this far.

"How are they different?" he repeated. "Perkins brought a lot to that team. He was their center ... I don't know. You should ask them. But losing a guy like that, it's tough for them."

[jv2764]

Wow who knew Perk was the Celts MVP the last 3 years.  All this talk is such foolishness.