Chicago Bulls ready for the second-round play-off battle against Atlanta Hawks
On Monday night, the red hot Chicago Bulls will take on the fifth seeded Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference semi-finals of the National
Basketball Association (NBA) 2011 Playoffs.
The Bulls, who boast off an excellent home record with 36 wins and five losses during the regular season, begin the series with home court
advantage. The opening game will be played at the United Centre in Chicago. The road to the semi-finals has been a bit patchy for the Bulls though.
Although they won the first-round series 4-1 against the Indiana Pacers, but the victory was not as easy as the final score-line suggests.
The Pacers troubled Chicago’s offense throughout the series with the help of their taller guards and by double-teaming their ace guard Derrick Rose.
Rose was pushed hard in the first-round. The third year guard however overcame all odds, including an injury in the last game, and cut through
the Pacers defense time and time again. The downright favourite for the MVP this season, has now shifted his focus on the Hawks. With the likes of Joe Johnson and an athletic team to back him up, the Hawks will definitely pack a punch and Rose is wary of that
fact.
Rose thinks that even without star defender Kirk Hinrich, the Hawks have enough fire power to give Bulls a tough time.
"I think it's going to be tougher, with all the guys that they have in. They've got guys that can really jump and contest my shots -- really
big guys. (Zaza) Pachulia and (Al) Horford are tough players. If anything, I'm (expecting) the worst because it's going to be a tough series."
To add to Chicago’s worries, their power forward Carlos Boozer suffered an injury on his right foot during game-5 against the Pacers and
is not certain for the best of the five series. However, it remains to be seen what a healthy Boozer will bring to the table as he was struggling even before the injury. Boozer took part in the Sunday’s practice session for a limited time after staying sidelines
for two days.
Tom Thibodeau, who was declared the ‘Coach of the Year’ on Sunday, said about Boozer "Basically, he just did a little more shooting. He's
moving a lot better. He did his lifting and he was on the bike. He's feeling a lot better. We'll see what he can do (Monday). Each day he's gotten better and better, so we're encouraged by that. We'll see if he can get through the shoot around (Monday), then
we'll let him warm up (Monday) night and see if he's ready to go."
Although the Hawks are not as physical as the Pacers were, they do not have the likes of Paul George or Dahntay Jones to disturb Rose’s game
plan. What they do not have is Hinrich, who is suffering from right ankle injury. According to Hawks coach Larry Drew, Kirk will not participate in the entire series.
Come Monday night, the Hawks have to bring in some innovative rotations and alter their line-up constantly to tackle Rose and company. They
will confident coming into the series as they have just taken down Dwight Howard and his Orlando Magic in the round-1. If they can handle Howard, they can certainly handle Rose and they possess the talent and fire power to do so. However, this Bulls side plays
like a team and they play it hard, so when the series starts expect the Bulls to start as the favourites.
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