John Lucas III's Historic Night

John Lucas III made his first NBA start Wednesday night in place of Derrick Rose. The game was everything you would expect from a contest between the Wizards and the Rose-less Bulls playing their third game of a back-to-back-to-back. That is to say, a perfect game for Lucas to make his NBA debut. There were plenty of bad shots, sloppy turnovers, and JaVale McGee goaltends to go around. Lucas' teammates were noticeably frustrated at his attempts to play isolation ball and reach the 40 shot mark. But who cares? The Bulls won and Gail Fischer interviewed Lucas after the game. Wiping the sweat from his forehead he panted, "I was just trying to contribute out there. My teammates have confidence in me." I don't know about all that but his performance was certainly a cause for celebration in a less than illustrious NBA career.

With increased playing time comes the ability to rack up personal achievements, and John Lucas did just that. Interestingly enough, his record numbers corresponded with some lesser known numbers relating to the evening.

POINTS - 25

25 - Number of minutes it took for Lucas to gain clearance into the United Center. Lucas was stopped by a security guard three hours before tip-off and asked for identification. "What for?" he responded. "I'm on the team." The security guard did not believe he was a member of the team. Lucas' calls to Tom Thibodeau, camped in the film room since the end of last night's game, were unsuccessful. An unidentified employee of the UC was finally able to interrupt Thibs' masturbation session to a clip of a perfectly executed pick-and-roll defense by pounding on the door loudly. Thibs vouched for his starting point guard and Lucas was allowed to enter.

FIELD GOALS MADE - 11

11 - Number of times a Chicago sports columnist led today's piece with, "It's a good time to be a three. Only one month removed from Robert Griffin III's Heisman Trophy acceptance speech, fellow Texan John Lucas III ... (and later) It's safe to say, there's a new sheriff in town.

FIELD GOALS ATTEMPTED - 28

28 - The number of dirty looks Ronnie Brewer gave Lucas during the Wizards game after Lucas opted to fling up a difficult shot rather than pass to Brewer for the open mid-range jumper. Also, the number of minutes (+1) Joakim Noah was on the bench.

REBOUNDS, ASSISTS - 8

8 - Number of "cousins" who called or texted Lucas after the game asking about tickets for "that Thunder game." Lucas was a star player for the Oklahoma State Final Four team in 2004 and gained a number of fans and admirers along the way. He does not, however,  recall having any cousins by the names of Ohcumgache and Buster.    

MINUTES PLAYED - 46

46 - Mike James' original jersey number. The Bulls signed former NBA journeyman and current D-Leaguer Mike James hours before tip-off to back up Lucas. The equipment staff acted quickly and were able to secure a number 46 jersey for James with his name etched on the back. Sensing he may pick up some garbage time minutes, James decided it would be best for any future basketball endeavors if he was not associated with this game in any way. He snuck into the locker room and replaced his jersey with a nameless number 14 and entered the game with 42 seconds to play.

Day 6: Bulls-Pacers (Game 3)

The Pacers played Game 3 like a team who knew they were overmatched. They tried every trick in the book. Flopping, hard fouls and screens, and sticking their legs out on contested threes and passes, among other things. I'm not about to criticize Indiana for anything they did. In a Playoff series, adjustments are the key. The Pacers outplayed the Bulls in different facets of Game One and Two (some may say the entire games themselves) and still came up empty. They had to do something. Sure, flopping and cheap shots are dirty and dishonest, but what were they supposed to do? Roll over? If anything, the Pacers' style of play in Game 3 was a testament to how good the Bulls are at pulling out victories, even when they don't play well.

Indiana's physical play was the story of this game. Stacey King and Scottie Pippen were ready to suit up and give a hard foul to who ever was closest. Jeff Foster and Josh McRoberts came off the bench took turns clobbering the Bulls, trying to outdo the other each time. Foster in particular drew the ire of Chicago fans when he deliberately came down on Rose's face, prompting a reaction from Rose. Not much later, he swung a blatant elbow to Deng's head, which put him to floor. That's what Foster does. He's in the league for two reasons: to get rebounds and try to get under his opponent's skin.

Some people, King and Pippen included, were quick to criticize the Bulls for failing to retaliate. I think the opposite. Let Indiana try to play their bully brand of basketball. The second Chicago tries to make this in to a shoving match is the second Indiana can take advantage of them. The Bulls are a more talented BASKETBALL team. Playing basketball is what they do best. If Indiana can get Chicago thinking about fouls and how to retaliate, they've got them off their game plan, which is exactly what they want.

I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but the bench was awful for a third straight game. The Pacers' bench has outscored the Bulls' bench 27-25 in Game One, 43-22 in Game Two (that number is a bit inflated because of Collison's injury), and 32-20 in Game Three. I maintain that the bench goes as Brewer goes, and Thibs has been weary of playing Brewer. Although he did come up with two clutch free throws and a couple big rebounds to end the game as something positive to build on.

Kyle Korver has really saved the Bulls. 13 points, 4-4 threes in Game One, 5 points and one huge three in Game Two, and 12 points and three threes in Game Three. The Pacers have been trapping Rose as he crosses half court, usually forcing him to give the ball up to Noah at the top of the key. Indiana's defense was really active today and deflected a bunch of interior passes that the Bulls normally execute. Anyway, with the trap on late in the 4th quarter, Korver will get some open looks. As strange as it is to say, he's been just as valuable as Rose in closing games this series.

The Pacers have given it a valiant effort but are probably going to be swept. Things have looked picture perfect for them at times, but ultimately they're going to fall well short. Kind of like this Jeff Foster jumper.    

Day 3: Bulls-Pacers (Game 2)

Free-throw disparity was one of the hot button issues from the first game. The Bulls out shot the Pacers 32-17 from the line. Derrick Rose himself shot four more free throws in Game One than Indiana's entire team. Whenever one player, and a superstar player at that, out shoots an entire team from line, questions are sure to arise. Is said player receiving superstar treatment? Is (in Indiana's case) the underdog getting the raw end of the deal? To simply look at free throw disparity and assume the Bulls were getting the majority of the calls is lazy thinking. Rose went to the line 21 times because he drove to the basket practically every possession in the second half and forced the referees to blow the whistle. The Pacers, on the other hand, were content to settle for perimeter jumpers. Chicago frequently doubled the post in Game One and left open outside shooters.

Game Two was played differently, and what do you know, the free throw attempts were more evenly dispersed. Chicago still out shot Indiana 34-27, but the higher number of Pacer free throws were the result of less open perimeter shots and consequently more fouls in the paint.

I'm worried about Ronnie Brewer. Brewer sprained his thumb against New York and missed the final game of the regular season against New Jersey. He's playing through the pain and has looked uncomfortable doing so. It has flown under the radar, but Ronnie Brewer has been a non-factor in the first two games. If the NBA compiled an All-NBA Bench Team (which they really should), Brewer would have been the two-guard. He was the defensive spark that ignited this year's most effective bench.

Brewer so far has looked awkward with his shot and entry passes. He's also appeared more passive on the defensive end, which limits the second unit immensely. The second unit as a whole have been ineffective so far this series and Thibs has chopped their minutes as a result. The biggest reason for this, in my opinion, is Brewer's passive play. Hopefully this is a passing phase and not a potential problem heading into the tougher rounds.

The Boozer-Hansbrough match-up has been fascinating to watch. Hansbrough hung 22 on Boozer in Game One, consistently knocking down his mid-range shots when Boozer helped off him. The Bulls pounded the ball in to Boozer in the first half of Game Two this time he had his way with Hansbrough. The two also earned double technicals with three minutes remaining in the game.

Hansbrough and Boozer are prototypical "Make 'Em Mad" players. Boozer because of bobbling head, demonstrativeness, and incessant yelling. Hansbrough because of his Ritalin-like focus, whiteness, and pesky play. Basically, both are annoying as shit. Especially if you have to play against one of them in the playoffs. They've been prodding at each other in both games, like a kid poking a rabid dog with a stick. Eventually the leash will break. The leash will probably be Game Three.

The Pacers held the Bulls to 54.5 percent shooting in the paint. Incredibly, they shot the same number of shots and an identical field goal percentage in the paint in Game One. But the Pacers were tougher around the rim in Game Two. They fouled rather than give up easy buckets. Even the majority of Chicago's made shots were highly contested. Indiana has made Chicago earn it at the line. And they have. The Bulls as a team have shot 80 percent from the line this series (53-66). Derrick Rose has done the bulk of the damage (31-34, 91 percent).

Bulls Do The Right Thing By Standing Pat

If Carmelo Anthony felt right patting himself on the back for dealing with a four-month trade saga that he himself created, then I feel I should at least give myself a well-deserved pat on the back for firmly standing by this current Bulls roster. Seemingly everyone wanted a trade before the deadline, even if that meant dealing one of our valuable back-up bigs, Taj Gibson or Omer Asik.
In an attempt to avoid giving up a big, the Bulls reportedly offered Ronnie Brewer, two first round picks and a second rounder for OJ Mayo, but the Grizzlies declined.
So there's that. I was and am OK with this roster without a trade or buyout pick-up. But I'm definitely not mad the Bulls front office went out and tried to make the team better. They didn't make a trade for the sake of making a trade, which is always good. They also didn't get rid of Asik, which, if my opinion mattered, would have been priority number one.
Asik is making 1.7 million this year and is set to make 1.8 million next year. For the amount of money he is making it's not out of line to say he's one of the biggest steals in the league this year. The Rockets realized this and were hoping the Bulls would make the deal out of desperation. Look no further than yesterday's Heat game to understand the impact that Asik is capable of off the bench. Sure, we can look at the box score and see he pulled down 11 rebounds and blocked a shot in only 21 minutes of play. That's impressive enough as it is.
But the box doesn't tell the story with Asik. Similar to Noah, he protects the rim and is able to alter a number of shots. This is particularly valuable against a team like the Heat. LeBron and Wade can get to the rim at will. They did against us and shot 18 combined free throws (a relatively low number for them).
When Noah was out the Bulls struggled to keep the oppositon out of the paint. Boozer and Thomas aren't shot blocking threats, and were most recently exposed in Toronto. Noah in the starting line-up and Asik off the bench will assure there's always a shot blocker down low. The Heat structure their line-up around being able to sit Wade and LeBron at different times, so one can always be on the court. If we're going to beat them in a seven game series, we're going to need someone at all times who can at least make life tough for them down low.
Courtney Lee's ability to hit the occasional three wouldn't be anywhere near as valuable as Asik's defense for the Bulls. Give me good defense over good offense anyday. I'm really happy they didn't pull the trigger on that deal.
Ronnie Brewer also came in and provided a spark. He has very active hands and is usually able to come up with one or two steals a game from pick-pocketing players lazily holding the ball in front of them. Brewer came up with four steals in the Heat game, three of which were crucial towards the Bulls' second half run.
Brewer receives credit for hovering around the baseline very well, but doesn't nearly get recognized for his improved jumper. He's been hitting 15 footers frequently this year, and is now a legitimate threat from that range. A year ago that last sentence seemed inconceivable. But more importantly, Brewer is an energy guy. He gets most of his points when he runs the floor or off easy put backs. Every team needs someone who can play around 20 minutes a game and go all out. Brewer is another guy who is more valuable that his stats indicate.
The trade deadline has come and gone and the original Bulls roster remains intact. The Bulls will likely explore buyout options, but the important thing is they didn't have to give up an asset to get one. This year in the NBA has been characterized by change. So many players have moved around, especially lately, that standing pat almost seems like an invitation to get passed by. The Bulls did the right thing. They have a roster that can compete for a championship right now. There's no use in tuning up a vehicle that doesn't need one.
Now if someone could please remove my hand from my back.