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TechnographHow strong are the Bulls?
By Majesh Abraham
Posted: 4/10/07 Section: Columns
Did you know the Chicago Bulls are tied for the second seed in the Eastern Conference?
The numbers don't lie, folks, but if I bet if you asked a casual fan, he wouldn't have the Bulls as the second best team in the East.
Why? Simply put, because the Bulls have no stars on their team.
When you think of the best NBA teams, superstars come to your mind. Dallas has Nowitzki, Phoenix has Nash and San Antonio has Duncan.
Can you name the transcendent star on the Bulls? There isn't one. It's even hard for me, a guy who was weaned on teams with Jordan and Pippen to view this year's version as a great team.
As the two seed in the conference, you're expected to challenge for the NBA championship, but it will be a surprise if the Bulls make it to the Finals at all.
The Bulls are a collection of solid players that mesh well together. There's no flash, antics or the drama that comes along with a superstar on this team.
The reason: G.M John Paxson, who was the ultimate team player in his playing days. Paxson, weary of the antics of past Bulls players like Ron Artest and Jamal Crawford, molded the Bulls into an image of him from his playing days.
The Bulls win because they work harder every game than most of other NBA teams - they have to. Hard-nosed Scott Skiles doesn't play any favorites and isn't afraid to let players hear it. Skiles' approach works because the Bulls are a young team, and none of them have super-sized egos yet.
Their hard work translates to suffocating defense, as the Bulls are second in the NBA in opponent's field-goal-percentage, rebounds and sixth in opponent's points per game. The only facet in which they struggle is on offense.
The Bulls rely on their guards for most of their offense, meaning they have to work harder than teams who do have a post player they can give the ball to when they need an easy basket.
The Bulls are hoping, however, that Tyrus Thomas can continue to provide the spark that he has been lately, on both offense and defense. I haven't seen a player score so many of his points on dunks since Shaq in his prime. But the difference between Thomas and Shaq is about five inches and 200 pounds.
The numbers don't lie, folks, but if I bet if you asked a casual fan, he wouldn't have the Bulls as the second best team in the East.
Why? Simply put, because the Bulls have no stars on their team.
When you think of the best NBA teams, superstars come to your mind. Dallas has Nowitzki, Phoenix has Nash and San Antonio has Duncan.
Can you name the transcendent star on the Bulls? There isn't one. It's even hard for me, a guy who was weaned on teams with Jordan and Pippen to view this year's version as a great team.
As the two seed in the conference, you're expected to challenge for the NBA championship, but it will be a surprise if the Bulls make it to the Finals at all.
The Bulls are a collection of solid players that mesh well together. There's no flash, antics or the drama that comes along with a superstar on this team.
The reason: G.M John Paxson, who was the ultimate team player in his playing days. Paxson, weary of the antics of past Bulls players like Ron Artest and Jamal Crawford, molded the Bulls into an image of him from his playing days.
The Bulls win because they work harder every game than most of other NBA teams - they have to. Hard-nosed Scott Skiles doesn't play any favorites and isn't afraid to let players hear it. Skiles' approach works because the Bulls are a young team, and none of them have super-sized egos yet.
Their hard work translates to suffocating defense, as the Bulls are second in the NBA in opponent's field-goal-percentage, rebounds and sixth in opponent's points per game. The only facet in which they struggle is on offense.
The Bulls rely on their guards for most of their offense, meaning they have to work harder than teams who do have a post player they can give the ball to when they need an easy basket.
The Bulls are hoping, however, that Tyrus Thomas can continue to provide the spark that he has been lately, on both offense and defense. I haven't seen a player score so many of his points on dunks since Shaq in his prime. But the difference between Thomas and Shaq is about five inches and 200 pounds.
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