Series Thread: 2nd Round: Chicago Bulls vs Cleveland Cavaliers

[purguy12]

LeBron's mindset in the Finals vs Dallas can definitely be questioned.
Ever since that series it can't be.
He's not afraid to take any shot, but he's also not afraid to defer to clutch shot makers like Ray Allen and a few other players the Heat had.
I'll assume he'll start tomorrow's series trusting Kyrie and Co,, but if they aren't hitting it will turn into James vs the Bulls.

Yes he likes to get everyone going first. Im ok with that but when u are a Top player in the league and its the playoffs he needs to learn to take over the game. The good news for the Bulls they have Butler and he usually does an ok job containing LBJ. In the past Rose has out played Irving but this is a different story. Rose is playing good D but his offense has been so so and Irving is have a great year. This match up worries me. Bulls big advantage with be Depth and Depth inside. Cavs have 2 Bigs where Bulls have 4 very good ones.

Cant wait for tomorrow. Should be Fun. As a Bulls fan we need to win game 1.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

Yes he likes to get everyone going first. Im ok with that but when u are a Top player in the league and its the playoffs he needs to learn to take over the game. The good news for the Bulls they have Butler and he usually does an ok job containing LBJ. In the past Rose has out played Irving but this is a different story. Rose is playing good D but his offense has been so so and Irving is have a great year. This match up worries me. Bulls big advantage with be Depth and Depth inside. Cavs have 2 Bigs where Bulls have 4 very good ones.

Cant wait for tomorrow. Should be Fun. As a Bulls fan we need to win game 1.

1 and 2, please.

 

[lebron23james]

1 and 2, please.

Why do u hate on lebron so much...he made your franchise relevant...plus hating is bad for your health, especially someone so much more successful in every way

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

Why do u hate on lebron so much...he made your franchise relevant...plus hating is bad for your health, especially someone so much more successful in every way

He needed the Heat to win as much as they need him for the last couple of rings.

Before that, the Heat has had plenty of good teams without him including one the went all the way.
As of yet, and at some point of this season he will once again have failed to win as a non Heat player so as far as your attempted try in point 1, .



And my health is fine. Matter of fact, im near 24 years older then him and I still have a full head of hair.
He's looking like he has lipodystrophy.

As far as success, he's very fortunate to have been born a world class athlete. If it wasn't for that, he might very well be one of those morons we saw running around looting Baltimore.
I'm doing alright the more traditional, old fashioned way.
I wouldn't trade him anything ( except to be 30 again).

 

[purguy12]

Why do u hate on lebron so much...he made your franchise relevant...plus hating is bad for your health, especially someone so much more successful in every way

He hates LBJ just like 99% of Cavs hated LBJ for running away on his home team. LBJ came back to Cavs when he is declining(not saying he isn't great but father time is catching up on him and he won't be top 3 in the next couple of years. LBJ gave his great years to miami. LBJ likes to run away and he will run away from the Cavs again if they don't win one in the next 2 years.

 

[purguy12]

He needed the Heat to win as much as they need him for the last couple of rings.

Before that, the Heat has had plenty of good teams without him including one the went all the way.
As of yet, and at some point of this season he will once again have failed to win as a non Heat player so as far as your attempted try in point 1, .



And my health is fine. Matter of fact, im near 24 years older then him and I still have a full head of hair.
He's looking like he has lipodystrophy.

As far as success, he's very fortunate to have been born a world class athlete. If it wasn't for that, he might very well be one of those morons we saw running around looting Baltimore.
I'm doing alright the more traditional, old fashioned way.
I wouldn't trade him anything ( except to be 30 again).

I agree with this statement. They both needed each other the one positive is heat have won a championship with out him. Wade has 1 more Ring.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

He hates LBJ just like 99% of Cavs hated LBJ for running away on his home team. LBJ came back to Cavs when he is declining(not saying he isn't great but father time is catching up on him and he won't be top 3 in the next couple of years. LBJ gave his great years to miami. LBJ likes to run away and he will run away from the Cavs again if they don't win one in the next 2 years.

Simply not true.
I never liked him when he was here, although I certainly rooted for him because he was a Heat player.

I said, before we lost last year, that what was so much fun 2 watch for 2 -3 years wasn't that much fun to watch anymore and something needed to change.
My preference would have been for James to extend another couple years and turn Bosh into a couple needed assets.

As far as win the next couple seasons, are you watching the Warriors?
If they stay healthy, they will cruise through the West, and then filet whoever comes out of the East in about the same fashion the Spurs did last year.

 

[gordontrue]

I just hope the Bulls fans are ready for all the non-Cavs fans who are currently building up the Bulls and listing every thing about the matchup that is in the Bulls favor.... to completely bash and blame and criticize the Bulls IF the cavs win the series. Its their only alternative to giving credit to the Cavs.

 

[lebron23james]

I agree with this statement. They both needed each other the one positive is heat have won a championship with out him. Wade has 1 more Ring.

Finals Mvps are what matter...if lebron gets 3 that puts him ahead of a lot of players

 

[lebron23james]

I just hope the Bulls fans are ready for all the non-Cavs fans who are currently building up the Bulls and listing every thing about the matchup that is in the Bulls favor.... to completely bash and blame and criticize the Bulls IF the cavs win the series. Its their only alternative to giving credit to the Cavs.

If the cavs win this year without rose it will be pretty funny to see what people's reaction will be

 

[lebron23james]

Love...not rose lol

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

I just hope the Bulls fans are ready for all the non-Cavs fans who are currently building up the Bulls and listing every thing about the matchup that is in the Bulls favor.... to completely bash and blame and criticize the Bulls IF the cavs win the series. Its their only alternative to giving credit to the Cavs.

I for one, have never predicted the Cavs to lose this series.
The Love injury hurts, but in a way it helps, because it means more James/Irving.

The Bulls need to make James work hard on both ends of the court, every minute he's on the court.
He should be doubled almost all the time.
In other words, they need to force the other Cavs to be the ones who beat them.

What I have said, is if the Bulls can't win this series, then they need to blow this roster up.
This is their opportunity.

 

[purguy12]

I don't know why everyone thinks this Cavs team is so great. They really aren't. Have a lot of weakness. Their D is so so, They have no depth and their bigs aren't great(they are ok). They have LBJ and Irving and yes that is a nice 1-2 punch they can be beat. Will the Bulls do it who knows but I think it will be a great match up. I say Bulls in 6 because if it goes 7 Cavs will win at home.

 

[gordontrue]

I for one, have never predicted the Cavs to lose this series.
The Love injury hurts, but in a way it helps, because it means more James/Irving.

The Bulls need to make James work hard on both ends of the court, every minute he's on the court.
He should be doubled almost all the time.
In other words, they need to force the other Cavs to be the ones who beat them.

What I have said, is if the Bulls can't win this series, then they need to blow this roster up.
This is their opportunity.

True. I've noticed you've been quick to point out that the Cavs have LeBron and the Bulls don't.

Your take on the series makes sense to me.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Simply not true.
I never liked him when he was here, although I certainly rooted for him because he was a Heat player.

I said, before we lost last year, that what was so much fun 2 watch for 2 -3 years wasn't that much fun to watch anymore and something needed to change.
My preference would have been for James to extend another couple years and turn Bosh into a couple needed assets.

As far as win the next couple seasons, are you watching the Warriors?
If they stay healthy, they will cruise through the West, and then filet whoever comes out of the East in about the same fashion the Spurs did last year.

Warriors are not as good as you think.

First- they have one big man. Bogut....thats it...and its not like Bogut is an all star- hes probably not even a top 10 center.

The Warriors have not faced any adversity yet. Thats a real concern- how will they react the first time they catch a punch to the jaw?

How many teams can you remember that have won an NBA title with a point guard that is what? listed at 6'3' but is probably closer to actually barely being 6' 2"....ALONG with no big man to the throw the ball into in the post. Not many teams have won a championship with their best player a point guard that is not named Magic Johnson, not too mention they have no one that can give them 20 in the post. I can remember the isiah bad boy pistons as the lone example in the modern NBA.

Teams that rely on shooting can go cold. Now- I realize the Warriors are a special case as they have a collection of shooters that the word "special" just does not even do them justice. -But shooters can go cold.

Its a young team too with a first time head coach and if i am correct - not many guys that have gone far in the playoffs- do they have anyone that has even made a conference final? This is not a HUGE HUGE concern- but when playing teams that have an established coach and guys that have been together forever it can be an issue when you are playing really really good teams.

The Warriors are going to get to the Conference Finals without any kind of test. The Griz are beat up big time. Conleys foot was a huge concern before this new injury that has got him out.

I think the Cavs will have a much harder time with the Bulls- and have a better chance of losing to the Bulls than they would against the Warriors. Kyrie can give you 80% of what Curry can give you - especially if Shumpert is covering him- just stay at home on their shooters and make them beat you inside. LBJ would rip them apart- they arent particularly tough.- its why i think Chicago is the bigget challenge- they are very tough- have Butler who will do a good job on James- and make James pay phyiscally when he goes to the hoop. No one on Golden State is the LEAST bit intimidating. They are kinda soft. Id love to see LeBron absolutely destroy Iguadala for like the 75th time in his career.

 

[WiggyRuss]

I don't know why everyone thinks this Cavs team is so great. They really aren't. Have a lot of weakness. Their D is so so, They have no depth and their bigs aren't great(they are ok). They have LBJ and Irving and yes that is a nice 1-2 punch they can be beat. Will the Bulls do it who knows but I think it will be a great match up. I say Bulls in 6 because if it goes 7 Cavs will win at home.

i think the Cavs should be a slight favorite vs. the Bulls even without Love. Trust me- I have said all year- that even if the Cavs were perfectly healthy-that the Bulls were the only team that could beat them in the East- unlike these PANICKERS around here i said this even during the Cavs low point of the season.

Chicago is a very very good team. I think Butler is right around a top 20 player in the league dont you? He COULD bea top 10-15 guy next year. Like you said- the Bulls have 4 good bigs while the Cavs only have 2- (its a bummer Love and Varejao). The Bulls will probably never find the Cavs of this 2nd LBJ era more vulnerable. The Bulls know this- and seem to me like they have the mindset that they desperately need to win this series.

And look- Noah was 4th in the MVP voting last year if i am correct. Gasol has lost a step- especially defensively- but he still was an all star and deservedly so. Those are the best 2 bigs in the series. Gibson is pretty similar to Thompson really...

Rose and Butler can get to the rim- its not like the Cavs can hide a guy on the perimeter to defend a guy who only shoots 3's like they could against some other teams- all though I think they could hide someone on Dunleavy at teams....

The Cavs are favored because of one simple reason really- LeBron. Hes fully rested- and he has guys that can really space the floor for him- and he has a sidekick that he can rely on for the first time in a while.

Rose has been great offensively lately- but I think that if he is going to be chasing Kyrie around defensively- his offense will suffer- and the thing is- I dunno if Kyrie will match up against Rose. I would SUSPECT LBJ and Shumpert will cover Rose and Butler- at least for decent parts of the game- unless LeBron ends up guarding the 4 position on the Bulls- whoever it is...

If they can hide Kyrie on Dunleavy- and make Kyrie run Rose ragged on the defensive end- i think that really helps the Cavs. If LeBron turns it up a gear- and plays like the best player in the world and gives Butler fits on both ends- thats gonna make the Bulls other players have to step up- ---- which of course they have guys that can...but wil lthey? Gasol v. Mozgov will be a great matchup to watch....

Its gonna be a great series i think- i cant wait to see how the coaches do things and see what kind of matchups we get...

 

[WiggyRuss]

The Cavs just need to split the first two in Cleveland. LBJ always gets a road game in a series.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Warriors are not as good as you think.

First- they have one big man. Bogut....thats it...and its not like Bogut is an all star- hes probably not even a top 10 center.

The Warriors have not faced any adversity yet. Thats a real concern- how will they react the first time they catch a punch to the jaw?

How many teams can you remember that have won an NBA title with a point guard that is what? listed at 6'3' but is probably closer to actually barely being 6' 2"....ALONG with no big man to the throw the ball into in the post. Not many teams have won a championship with their best player a point guard that is not named Magic Johnson, not too mention they have no one that can give them 20 in the post. I can remember the isiah bad boy pistons as the lone example in the modern NBA.

Teams that rely on shooting can go cold. Now- I realize the Warriors are a special case as they have a collection of shooters that the word "special" just does not even do them justice. -But shooters can go cold.

Its a young team too with a first time head coach and if i am correct - not many guys that have gone far in the playoffs- do they have anyone that has even made a conference final? This is not a HUGE HUGE concern- but when playing teams that have an established coach and guys that have been together forever it can be an issue when you are playing really really good teams.

The Warriors are going to get to the Conference Finals without any kind of test. The Griz are beat up big time. Conleys foot was a huge concern before this new injury that has got him out.

I think the Cavs will have a much harder time with the Bulls- and have a better chance of losing to the Bulls than they would against the Warriors. Kyrie can give you 80% of what Curry can give you - especially if Shumpert is covering him- just stay at home on their shooters and make them beat you inside. LBJ would rip them apart- they arent particularly tough.- its why i think Chicago is the bigget challenge- they are very tough- have Butler who will do a good job on James- and make James pay phyiscally when he goes to the hoop. No one on Golden State is the LEAST bit intimidating. They are kinda soft. Id love to see LeBron absolutely destroy Iguadala for like the 75th time in his career.

IMPORTANT IMPORTANT SIDE NOTE ---- I meant to say that- as how many teams have won with a PG at blah blah blah AS THEIR BEST PLAYER....plenty of teams have won with regular sized pgs.....

but how many teams have won with a 6'2" point guard as their best player---- ESPECIALLY how many have won with a 6'2" point guard as their best player when they dont have a big man that isnt even close to an all star- let alone dominant.

That style they run really plays right in the Cavs hands. If the Cavs can get past the Bulls and into the Finals and play Golden State they just play Bron at the 4 and have their way with the Warriors physically. Rotating Thompson and Mozgov at the 5...LeBron at the 4....the Warriors cant handle that over a 7 game series.

 

[purguy12]

I think it will be fun to watch. Both teams can win this one. I agree this is the best chance for the Bulls to beat LBJ.

 

[purguy12]

Finals Mvps are what matter...if lebron gets 3 that puts him ahead of a lot of players

LOL