Chicago Bulls have still got what it takes to make the deep playoff run – NBA Feature
The Chicago Bulls have been the centre of a great deal of discussion this season, especially as the playoffs approach. Last season, the Bulls went into the playoffs having won their last 9 games of the regular season. All their
players were healthy and Derrick Rose had just come off an MVP season. This season however, the Bulls have lost 4 of their last 10 games and with Rose struggling to regain complete fitness, they have put their top seed in the Eastern Conference in jeopardy
with the playoffs just around the corner.
April has been a month that the Bulls would like to forget, certainly not the type of month they would have liked just before the playoffs commence. They are 7-6 since March 26th and have not been able to gain a steady
rhythm as they head into the playoffs.
Another issue is the injury troubles for the Bulls. Richard Hamilton has come back from injury recently. Derrick Rose is still recovering from injury although he was back last game against Dallas. Luol Deng is still playing with
an injury in his left wrist. The starting five of the Bulls team have only played together 14 times this year.
The last time the Bulls played Miami Heat, the game became quite physical after which the Bulls team was criticized for not having the physical and mental strength to compete in the playoffs, when physicality reaches a new level.
Derrick Rose with all his injuries has also been criticized for not being in the physical shape to sustain his gruelling playing style. All of these criticisms are correct in their own place. But there are always two sides to a story.
How about the fact that despite a depleted roster for much of the season, coach Tom Thibodeau has used his options almost perfectly, to still ensure the best record in the league.
How about the fact that a 6 ft 3 in point guard is ruling the league at the moment? Those who say he is not physically and mentally there need to remember he was the Most Valuable Player last season and led his team to the Eastern
Conference Finals. Derrick Rose is the face of the NBA at this time and that is a fact.
San Antonio have the Big Three, the Celtics have the Big Three, the Miami Heat have the Big Three, the Oklahoma City Thunder have the Big Two in Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook plus the best sixth man of the league in James
Harden. The Los Angeles have the next best thing to the big three with Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum.
And the Chicago Bulls have - only Derrick Rose and, well nobody. A team with 1 star player who is in his fourth year in the NBA, and a group of above average role players have proven their dominance in the league for the second
year in a row.
It is not certain how far will the Bulls go in the playoffs and whether they have what it takes to reach the NBA Finals. But at the end of the day, it is still the best team of the league and Rose is still one of the best players
in the league, the most dominant point guard hands down.
And they have a very strong chance of making it all the way to the NBA Finals.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article do not represent Bettor.com’s editorial policy.
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