NBA Eastern Conference Finals Preview: Chicago Bulls vs. Miami Heat
The Chicago Bulls are all set to take on the Miami Heat in the second game of the Eastern Conference best-of-seven finals on Wednesday night at the United Center.
The Bulls are coming off an impressive 103-82 victory over Heat in game-1 of the series on Sunday evening. Derrick Rose had an amazing game that night, coming up with a team-high 28 points and six assists in the victory. LeBron
James and Dwyane Wade had a disappointing night though.
Coming off back-to-back games with 35 and 33 points against the mighty Boston Celtics in the semi-finals, LeBron James scored just 15 points for the Heat, hitting 5-of-15 from the field. Wade didn’t make an impact either. After
averaging 30.2 points per game in the semi-final series against the C’s, the 29-year-old shooting guard had just 18 points against the Bulls. The poor performance by the duo was the main reason why the Bulls sprinted their way to a lopsided victory.
Staring at a one game deficit, it would be the utmost priority of the Heat to bounce back from a disappointing defeat and draw the series before going to their own backyard. The Bulls, on the other hand, have a chance to grab a
commanding lead in the series.
Although game-1 did not go well for the Miami, but the third cog of the Big-3, Chris Bosh finally announced himself in the playoffs. Bosh nailed 30 points to keep the Heat in the hunt throughout the night. Heat’s leading scorer,
James is hopeful that his team will learn from their mistakes, "We have been able to bounce back this year no matter if it has been the regular season or the postseason," "Learn from mistakes in the previous game and then move on. We have done that. We are
looking forward to the challenge. We are excited about tomorrow's opportunity to be here and try to steal home court."
However, the fact remains that United centre has been like a fortress for the Bulls. They don’t like to lose at home; a league best home record is a testament to that. They have the psychological edge as well. Their first win was
rout and it comes on the back of 3-0 sweep against the Heat in the regular season. However, Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau pointed out that it would not be an easy task to tackle Miami.
Thibodeau said, "Miami's been a good ball-movement team all year." "They have players that when the ball comes back to them, they can go one-on-one. That is what makes them so dangerous and tough to guard. Sometimes, your best
ball movement comes off isolation because you have to commit two defenders to the player, and once the ball moves, now you're getting wide open shots or easier shots.”
So going into the night, the Bulls hold all the aces and the Heat have all the running to do.
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