Joel Anthony a big block in Chicago Bulls title charge
Joel Anthony weighs 245 pounds and stands 6-foot-9, which is hard to believe after his performance in game-3 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Miami Heat and the Chicago Bulls. Anthony looked more like a 7-footer than
his own 6-9 self on the court as he stood like a brick wall between the Bulls and the Miami rim.
Anthony had an astonishing five blocks in the game. All five came in the first half and amazingly four of them came in the first quarter. It was no coincidence that Chicago only managed 15 points during that period, Anthony simply
didn’t let them score.
Joel’s presence on defence also led to offence for the Heat. His first block, of which Luol Deng was the victim, fell to Dwyane Wade who in turn released LeBron James for a slam dunk. His next block was on Carlos Boozer and led
to Joakim Noah’s second personal foul. Before the quarter was over, Antony swatted away another Luol Deng shot and then rejected Omer Asik as Chicago’s offence stuttered to a halt.
Anthony only had one more block for the entire game after the first quarter, but it was a special one as he made sure league MVP Derrick Rose’s drive produced nothing but more disappointment for the Bulls.
All of Joel Anthony’s five blocks came before half time. The effect on the Bulls offence was plain to see as they made only 16-of-40 shots attempted. Anthony gave another dimension to the Heat defence on the night as they had only
blocked 20 shots in their first 12 playoff games.
The first quarter that saw Anthony at his shot blocking best with 4 rejections was disastrous for the Bulls. Anthony was directly responsible for 36.6 percent of the Bulls total first quarter missed shots. He was also a big factor
in keeping eventual Chicago high scorer, Carlos Boozer, off the score card in the first quarter.
Joel didn’t get much more blocking joy in the latter part of the game but had a detrimental effect on Chicago’s shooters. The Bulls seemed to avoid charging at the rim with Anthony around and altered their shots mid jump or settled
for jumpers a lot to avoid the shame of another rejection. If there was a statistic for counting how many would be shots Anthony prevented just by his presence, he could have had some kind of a record.
Anthony has never been a force on the offensive end and the Miami Heat have never expected him to be one. They have enough high profile scorers as it is, their stars require a solid defensive helper and he is exactly what the doctor
ordered. Anthony’s stats without the blocked shots were not very impressive at 4 rebounds and 3 points, but his contribution on the defensive end in game-3 was pretty much incalculable and invaluable for the Heat.
If the Miami centre keeps on playing this way for the rest of the series, the Bulls are in for an unpleasant ride.
Tags: