Chicago Bulls need the regular season magic to revive their threat – NBA Special Report - Part 1
By the time, the regular season finished on April 13th this year, the
Chicago Bulls did not just emerge out to be the No. 1 team in the top heavy Eastern Conference but also finished with the best win-percentage (0.756) in the entire league having won 62 out of their 82 games. The Bulls finished the regular season on a
very high note, winning nine straight games and got their first-round matchups against the eighth seeded Indiana Pacers.
The way Chicago played in the regular season it seemed that they will win the seven-game series without any trouble. However, the things didn’t go according to their wishes. No doubt the Bulls have won the first two games of the
series, but these victories were not easy to attain, as Indiana gave them a very tough time in both the matchups. Chicago won the first game by five points (104-99) and second one by six (96-90). Such petite victory margins roped in by a team of the Bulls
calibre have certainly raised some eyebrows.
Although in the current series the Bulls still look stronger of the two sides and might go on to clinch a clean sweep but the brand of basketball the Bulls showcasing has been disappointing to say the least and a far cry from their
up tempo – hit hard style of play during the regular season.
At present there are many chinks in the Bulls armoury, ranging from over dependence on Derrick Rose to a poor shooting from the floor. The root cause of their less convincing performances in the post season so far, however boils
down to their bench struggles.
One of the major factors behind Chicago’s success during the regular season was their bench performance, which had a pivotal role in covering up the often injured starting line. In fact, their efforts were so pronounced during
that stretch that they ultimately finished at the summit of the league.
In the last two games though, the Bulls bench has gone from being the best in the National Basketball Association (NBA) to a level unprecedented. The first thing is that the bench is not spending much time in the middle and when
they do they don’t play well.
Keeping the fact intact that Tom Thibodeau, the Chicago Bulls coach, has been the king of innovative and effective rotations in the league; what Tom needs to do at this moment is to keep the things simple. To do so, he has to give
their starters bit more time in the middle and should not alter much of the basic game plan. His worries don’t just end with the bench though.
Two of his ace players, Keith Bogans and Loul Deng are totally out of form. Bogans had matured into a dependable downtown shooter during the season while Deng had developed a reputation of the ‘go to man’ in the final moments of
the games, but now both of them seem to have lost their panache.
Bogans failed to score until the Game 2 and hit just one shot, while Deng made just four points in the first half of the second game. The Bulls need its shooting guard and small forward back in form quickly. Bogans needs to concentrate
on hitting more shots so the rival defence don’t ignore him and restrict the player he is guarding. Deng should do what he was consistently doing back in the regular season.
Disclaimer: The ideas expressed in the article are the writer’s own personal views and has nothing to do with bettor.com’s editorial policy.
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