Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls and Boston Celtics: Comparing the Three Titans of the East (Part 1)
With the post season just around the corner, the battle of NBA’s Eastern front has emerged out to be a three way duel. During the course of the regular season, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat and Boston Celtics have emerged as the power
centres of the East and until some huge upset takes place, it will one of these teams, who will go on to reign the Eastern conference in the playoffs. Below the three teams are compared in terms of their strengths and weaknesses to determine the best of the
conference.
Chicago Bulls
The No. 1 spot in the Eastern Conference belongs to the Illinois based franchise Chicago Bulls. The Bulls have won the National Basketball Association (NBA) Championship six times along with two three-peats. They have never lost
a final and they are the only team in NBA history that has won 70 or more games during a single-season.
In 2010-11 regular season the Bulls had played 82 games and won 62 out of them. They also had a good late stretch and lost just 20 games in the entire season. Their healthy percentage 0.756 gave them the firm control of the No.
1 spot in East. The Bulls holds a very impressive home as well as road record. They finished the regular season on a high note by winning nine games in a row.
The biggest strength of the Bulls is their reliable point guard Derrick Rose. During this season he scored with an average of 25.0 points per game and his free throw percentage was 0.858. He is not just sharp at shooting, supports
the defence too. He grabbed rebounds with an average of 4.1 per game which was better than his career rebound average and provided assists at an average of 7.7 per game.
Besides Rose the Bulls have Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah that strengthen them from inside. Boozer has the capability to give nine to 10 boards per game while Noah can get eight to nine boards. They cancel each other out, as Noah
take care of the defensive end and Boozer handles the offense side, complimenting each other by taking the pressure off.
However, the Bulls need to work on their defence. Luol Deng, Kurt Thomas, and Omer Asik are good defenders, but they still need to work hard. Shooting guard Ronnie Brewer doesn’t take much risk and is good at protecting the passing
lane. Despite having few issues the Bulls did more than good in the season, as they matched the previous best record of 1997-98. The Bulls need to fix their problems quickly, as they are going to meet Indiana Pacers in the first round of the playoffs on Saturday
night.
The Bulls are thrilled to be in the playoffs and are willing to do well. Noah expressed his exhilaration: "It's the playoffs, dude. It doesn't get more exciting than this. It's the biggest stage in the world. We're playing in front
of unbelievable fans that are going to be going nuts, all red. It's going to be bananas in there."
Miami Heat
The Florida based franchise Miami Heat are No. 2 in the Eastern Conference. The Heat has made 13 times to the playoffs out of 21 seasons. They grabbed the division title on seven occasions and prevailed over the Dallas Mavericks
in 2006 NBA Finals.
The Heat is holding the second best percentage 0.707 after the Bulls. They have won 58 games and lost 24 out of their 82 games. Their home (30-11) and road (28-13) record are equally good. Miami finished the regular season in a
good style, as they grasped four straight wins. The Heat had an array of veterans with an experience of over 10 seasons, but they are still seeking their first championship rings. Now the Heat had a good chance to shy at the title once again and prove their
doubters wrong.
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