Game 5 Recap.

Not to much to say, the Bulls shot a crazy good percentage and got Billups in foul trouble.

Game over. Ass kicked.

I never thought the 3-0 series count was a reason to break-up this team, but I saw the same thing everyone who did suggest that saw. The Bulls looked bad and played worse. They did not look like they deserved to be out there with Detroit.

But now the fight has been met. The Bulls got up and punched back.

Grab your balls, Detroit. Game 6 tomorrow. Go Bulls!!

Live-Blog: Bulls Vs. Pistons, Game 5, Third Quarter.

This is the big quarter. So far... Historically, the good teams come out of halftime with adjustments that carry them to victory. Can't wait to see what they have come up with. More trapping? More zone? We haven't seen much of Noc, will he get in more or less? Thomas has played great, along with Thabo. Here we go!

10:06 left in the third. The Bulls have had alot of success fronting the post guy. That's it.

9:28 left in the third. With the paint closed, Detroit passionlessly hit their jumpers. Constant pressure.

7:36 left in the third. Billups just picked up his fourth foul. Hinrich took the charge. I take back what I said about flopping.

6:24 left in the third. More boards for Detroit. But Hinrich hits a three for a 75-64 lead!

5:41 left in the third. 'Sheed gets a tech and begs to get tossed. I love it when they go to commercial, they show the last good play the Pistons made. Jerks. They are losing by 11.

4:17 left in the third. Detroit is feeding Wallace the ball, but the fade away isn't falling. With Hinrich on the line and the Bulls up by 16, 'Sheed and Billups are on the bench. we could really extend this lead.

Holy crap!! As I wrote that last bit, with 3:21 to go, Thomas stuffs a Deng miss over a Pistons defender. YES!! That kid is a freak, I can't wait till he 'gets it.'

By the way, we are up by 18, in Detroit. Getting very interesting...

2:30 left in the third. Gordon strokes a three to put us up 21. I've become nervous about anything I type that might be bad luck. We are smoking them...

1:45 left in the third. Gordon is on fire. Another three!! 90-67 Bulls lead. My goodness...

1:00 left in the third. Tyrus Thomas is jumping over everyone. Another dunk-O-rama. Props to Skiles for just sitting Noc, who's clearly hurt, and playing Thomas. And props to Thomas for being a stud.

End of the third, the Bulls lead 92-71. I'm not gonna blog the fourth, I'll just write a recap.

Start thinking about what a Bulls win would mean.

Live-Blog: Bulls Vs. Pistons, Game 5, Second Quarter.

11:05 left in the second. 34-27, Bulls. Not sure if the refs are calling this game loose, or the Bulls are playing smart, but they are avoiding fouls so far.

10:13 left in the second. Scratch that last entry. Hinrich just got his second foul and exits towards the bench. Kinda weak foul...

9:51 left in the second. An important moment perhaps. The Pistons save a ball going out of bounds and the crowd volume grows, but Webber throws it out of bounds. Detroit can't get the 'Mo' going.

8:55 left in the second. Thomas with a dunk! Now a block, down the floor to Duhon for three! Oh no. Yes!! Time out Detroit! 39-28, the Bulls lead!!

8:04 left in the second. Rasheed with the put back. 9 offensive boards for Detroit. Too many.

7:13 left in the second. After a three by Thabo and a F.G. by Gordon the lead is 13. Keep it up...

6:30 left in the second. Thomas with a spinning hook for 2. A fast break dunk by Thabo! The Baby Bulls will be heard!!

5:52 left in the second. Time out Chicago, leading 47-32. More Sonic drive-thru commercials. Hey, I've met alot of those guy. The more I see it the happier I am. The difference between this game and the first two is night and day. You can see the gain in experience all of the Bulls play right now.

Who thinks 'house of payne' is gonna redefine sitcoms as we know it? Yeah, me neither.

4:25 left in the second. The Bulls break a tough Pistons trap. Barely. Deng hits a runner and goes to the line. The breaks keep going our way...

3:22 left in the second. Time out Chicago, leading 52-41. We are getting killed on the offensive glass. 'Sheed hit a long two after another Maxiell board. No one needs to see that.

The Bulls continue to shoot lights out. 77%.

2:47 left in the second. 55-41 Bulls ahead. Chicago has hit nine straight shots. Man, we look so good when our shots fall, the mellow confidence in the Bulls persists.

1:31 left in the second. Hinrich picks up a blocking foul. Kirk is doing to much flopping as it is. Billups is serious. He just drained a bail out 3 with Kirk hanging all over him.

:51.7 left in the second. Deng hits his sweet elbow jumper. Detroit has done a great job denying him that shot all series, but that time it was money.

:00.6 left in the second. Gordon hits a 2 for a 59-51 Bulls lead.

Halftime and Bulls fans couldn't have asked for a better half. The Bulls might lose this game, but the steps forward for this young team are happening before our eyes. They have adjusted and they could make this interesting.

Live-Blog: Bulls Vs. Pistons, Game 5, First Quarter.

7:23 left in the first, the Bulls are up 14-6. Detroit looks like they may be taking it easy right now. Come on guys! They brought a knife! This is a gunfight!

6:26 left in the first. The Bulls are calmly hitting all their shots. They seem very business like tonight. Maybe the overwhelming circumstances will be freeing for them. Come one guys, Be The Ball.

6:00 left in the first. Ben Wallace just missed an open lay-up. Watching him on offense makes me think I could have been an NBA player, if I wasn't 5' 10", cause he shots exactly like I do. Man. We cannot miss any opportunities tonight.

5:30 left in the first. Ben Gordon just tripped pushing the ball to the hole. Ben, you will live the entire off-season with a basketball in your hands.

4:35 left in first. 20-12 Bulls. Excitement growing...

4:00 left in the first. I just love the Ben Wallace bail-out drive to the hoop for the foul. Fantastic.

1:22 left in the first. Detroit is starting to hit shots with hands in their faces. The giant awakens...

End of the first. Bulls lead 31-25. Shooting 77.8% in a quarter is a scorching pace I doubt they can maintain. Detroit shot 43.5%, which will improve.

Still, they played with quiet, deliberate execution, winning the first quarter.

Bulls V. Pistons, Game Two.

So here we go. Game two, Bulls V. Pistons. If the Bulls lose this game the series isn't over, but we all know the probability of the Bulls winning four of six.

Or do we?

Of course, it's fantastically hard to do. Turn a series around against a championship level team, when you are down two-zero? Good luck!

But it isn't impossible. It isn't "harder" than winning a championship. Championship teams do it all the time. A serious contender, and I think the Bulls moving in that direction, puts up a fight.

One of the things I most enjoy about the NBA playoffs is the extreme shifts in momentum within games. Within a series. At some point, every championship team has to "turn that corner." Perhaps the most famous moment like this is Jordan hitting that shot against Cleveland. The Bulls didn't win the ring that year, but they had begun an ascent that in hindsight seems almost inevitable. But if he doesn't make that shot, do they win six trophies?

If Rasheed Wallace hits a couple shots and L.A. doesn't come back to beat Portland, do they win three straight? Detroit was down three-one to Orlando in the first round the year before they won. They came back to win that series. They win the next year and McGrady still hasn't gotten out of the first round. Dallas let the Finals slip away last year and look at them.

Oh, they just tipped off. Tangent done.

How good are the Mavericks?

There's been a lot of talk lately about the Dallas Maverick's and their tear through the regular season.

Eric Neel has an article at Page 2 about the Mavericks crazy, good regular season.

He compares their record to those of the great NBA teams, laying the claim, "they're going to belong at the table with the 1996 Bulls, the 1986 Celtics, the 1983 Sixers and the 1972 Lakers as architects of a truly dominant 82-game run."

He then laments the Mavs uninspiring qualities, answering his own question of why they seem to get to little love for their gaudy win total.

Cuban overshadows the, largely, uncharismatic players. When put up against the great Bulls, Celts, Sixers, or Lakers teams that had similar runs, they do fall short at the "IT" factor. Seen next to Nash's fun Sun's, or Detroit rage fueled us-against-the-world mindset, your eye does not follow the Mavs.

Henry Abbott at TrueHoop loves Nowitzki's game, but sees him as "not made for TV."

All of this is true. They have no dynamic personalities, they aren't overly flashy in their play. But I think the biggest problem is that they lost in the Finals last year. The teams they are being compared to all had serious, championship pedigree, and Dallas doesn't have that. Yet. If they were the defending champions, winning the way they have been this season, ESPN would be all over them. In a stocked Western Conference, despite their great play, I'm not sure if they will even make it to the Finals.

Plus, it's March Madness.

Ranking The Great Centers

ESPN's Daily Dime has listed the greatest centers one through ten.

1. Abdul-Jabbar
2. Chamberlain
3. Russel
4. O'Neal
5. Olajuwon
6. Malone
7. Walton
8. Robinson
9. Mikan
10. Ewing.

I don't have a big problem with this list, despite the notable absence of Dave Corzine.

The Sports Guy disputes the merits of a list like this. I tend to agree with his argument that it is a vague question, with no answer. Does it mean career? How do you adjust for the era a center played in? Is it, which center are you taking to win one game? At the same time, that stance isn't much fun.

Pacifist Viking supports the choice of Kareem at #1, but calls attention to some serious rebounding stats Chamberlain had.

For my money, I'm taking "The Dream."

I'm not a stat freak, but some (not really "real" stats anyway) I will highlight are: Aside from Jordan, Olajuwon is the only player to win Defensive Player of the Year and MVP, in the same season. He also won Finals MVP, the only player to ever win all three in one season. He is the only center on this list, (I think, please correct me if I'm wrong) to beat three other centers (O'Neal, Robinson, and Ewing) on this list, in meaningful championship match-ups.

After Jordan's first retirement, Olajuwon filled the gap and became THE must watch player. For the seasons of 93-94 & 94-95, he was as unstoppable as any player I ever watched. His abusive treatment of Robinson, in the 94-95 Finals, is one the great moments in sports when one player separates themselves from their contemporaries.

Olajuwon was a master artist creating a masterpiece. Second place wasn't that close.

Usually people take for granted, that if Jordan had not retired, the Bulls would have won eight titles. This Bulls fan was never so certain.



(Additionally, True Hoop has a pretty good debate going in his comment's, and with The Sport's Guy on this subject. Thanks for the linkage, Pacifist Viking!))

If I Could Be Like Mike. Oh, wait, I don't wanna be like Mike this way.

This comes by way of Deadspin.

We've all had that crazy, ex-whatever to deal with. You know the one, they overemphasize everything in the relationship. ("Today is our four month, and three weeks, anniversary.") They assume the minutia of the relationship is fascinating to everyone. (Yesterday was our four month, and three week, anniversary.) They dwell on the most mundane shit within the relationship. ("I remember the first time we ate tuna salad for lunch together.")

They are crazy.

They blog about you after you have broken up. What? No Ex has ever blogged about you? Oh you wait, it's coming.

Meet Michael Jordan's Mistress.

Did you just say...

During tonight's Bulls game, impossibly old color-guy, Johnny "Red" Kerr described Shawn Marion's shot (and also Antoine Walker's) like this, "They just kind of squirt it out of their hand."





Later, Tom Dore echoed "Red" in his play-by-play, "Marion, squirts it out."



It appears none of the Bulls got any in their eye.

Randy Foye is different...

...and may have an unfair advantage.

Thanks to my friend (and Minnesota fan), Jason for this little bit. Turns out, Randy Foye, isn't like you and me. His heart is on the opposite side, along with the rest of his internal organs. Wierd. I'm not sure if this condition (Situs inversus) had anything to do with his game-winning, runner off the glass last night, with 1.8 on the clock, to beat me Bulls, but I'm not ruling it out either. So, when he puts his hand over his heart during the national anthem, he puts it on the other side? How can I be asked to not fear something so unAmerican. He's tried to keep it a secret for most of his life, not caring for the extra attention. To bad, Randy. It's out there and I'm freaked. I call for his immediate suspension. Get this guy on the table, cut him open and see if there are any valuable nutrients he can offer us.

Ron Karkovice Fan Club has an excellent post breaking down the Bulls current success, their improvements since the circus road trip and the difficulties they have against quality defensive ball clubs. I agree with pretty much everything he says, as well as the comments by Hideki Matt Suey.

I think the Bulls top priority should be improving their low-post game. Obvious, I know. Most sports talking heads like to use the term, "go-to guy" when discussing Bulls needs. They usually mean Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, etc. But I don't think they need a franchise player, what they need is a low-post scorer.

The low-post scorer is to basketball, what the running game is in football. What a high O.B.P. lead off man is in baseball. It's about executing your game plan with low risk, high percentage plays. It sets up everything else.

The Bulls might get this from Sweetney (after he delivers his baby) or perhaps Deng can grow into a reliable post player given some time and commitment from the coaches. It doesn't have to be Garnett, it could be Zach Randolph.

Well, maybe not Zach Randolph...

ANYWAY, think about it Scott.