I'm not saying he's been bad, just that he hasn't played at a high enough level to take the Bulls to the NBA Finals--or maybe even beyond the 2nd round of the playoffs. Has he looked like the League MVP to you so far in the playoffs?

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The Bulls didn't simply get "outshot"--their defense was abysmal in many instances.

What are you talking about with regard to "shredded tendons and ligaments" Are you referring to Rose's twisted ankle? Where has it been reported that his injury is as severe as you intimate?

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i just think rose can not do it alone, noah gets the ball past the free throw line and the offense stops..the def steps away and he has to pass it right back..bogans is not a threat to score and boozer has been under performing in the post season..rose can not do it with him and deng having to take almost every shot.

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Agreed.

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He lived at the free-throw line in the first 4 games of the Indiana series. That's the reason his numbers were so good in the first round. I agree with TM, Rose has been mostly a disappointment so far in the playoffs.

And I agree with Panther about the Brewer injury. That guy is a force at the defensive end, and he hasn't done squat since hurting the thumb.

I'm not in full panic mode yet, but now they're in a must-win situation going into game 2, and you don't want to be in a situation like that so early in the series. I wouldn't say that the defense was terrible yesterday, Atlanta just seemed to be knocking down all of their tough shots. There really isn't anyway to defend 20 foot fall-away jumpers. Atlanta should come back down to earth a bit in Game 2.

As for the Rose injury, it didn't look too bad, but what the hell was he doing there? It was a 4 possession game at that point with about 8 seconds left, and he's getting up in someone's grill? The game was over, and the star player just hurt himself. Plus, what Rose did is kinda bush-league IMO.

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You don't get up in someone's grill when the game is clearly over. There was less than 10 seconds left, and it was a 4 posession game.

A similar story happened last week with Patty Mills from the Trailblazers, and he got ripped by some people for it. Him and another teammate were pressuring the Mavs' PG with an 11 point deficit and 15 seconds left, and he got laid out by a screen. IMO, this situation was even worse because there was even less time on the clock.

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First, you claimed that both tendons and ligaments were "shredded," not just his ligaments. Second, sprains vary in their severity. Rose's sprain yesterday looked minor to me, so I think your diagnosis of "shredded" ligaments is an exaggeration. Anyone who's ever played a sport has rolled an ankle and been fine in the next day or two, if not in less time. Some sprains heal quickly, others' don't.

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Is this the same ankle he injured against Indiana?

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Interesting. I do not think I have ever heard playing hard to the final buzzer as "bush league."

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Yes.

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Bulls=One trick pony

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I'm going to bounce from the spot for awhile but I will be back at some point to argue with you about this hoops stuff again. Playoffs have been great this season. See ya up the road.

I'm out.

Perhaps not bush-league, but definitely ill-advised.

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Kid Cairo's Boers & Bernstein YouTube Channel

Kid Cairo: 2013 March Madness Tournament Winner!

"Cowabunga? Cowa fucking piece of dog shit! This game is diarrhea coming out of my dick!"

Maybe so, but I would much rather have a player who plays hard to the final buzzer than players who quit during the game because things are not going their way. The NBA is full of those type of players. Give me Rose any day.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

I just think it's uncalled for. This wasn't a 1 or 2 posession game. The team had zero chance of winning and now their star player reinjured his ankle. Can you think of any scenario where the Bulls would have been able to hit four 3-pointers in less than 10 seconds?

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Don't get me wrong. I love the fact that he goes all-out, but there are times when it's appropriate to dial it down a bit. They weren't gonna win the game at that point no matter what.

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Kid Cairo's Boers & Bernstein YouTube Channel

Kid Cairo: 2013 March Madness Tournament Winner!

"Cowabunga? Cowa fucking piece of dog shit! This game is diarrhea coming out of my dick!"

Yeah I get what you guys are saying.

I would also like to point out the similarities between this years Bulls playoff run to the Blackhawks run last year.

Blackhawks struggled with the Preds and people were panicking thinking they were done.

In the 2nd round they came out and lost the first game to Vancouver and everyone was panicking thinking the run was over.

Sounds pretty simliar so far to the Bulls run. Not play well in the first round, lose the first game of the 2nd round. Hopefully the rest of the playoffs work out just like the Blackhawks.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Here's a largely forgettable and uninteresting article from Bernstein....

Bernstein: Rose, Thibs Off MessageMay 3, 2011 8:36 AM



CHICAGO (WSCR) One has been an extension of the other all season, as they have worked and spoken in lock-step synchronization to lead the Bulls to the NBA’s best record and the second round of the playoffs.

They will be able to compare their respective trophies today, after Derrick Rose receives his NBA MVP award. Tom Thibodeau got his well-earned Coach of the Year honor Sunday.

After every game this season, and specifically the uncommon losses, you could always count on the two to say essentially the same things, publicly. Rose would often be pulled aside by the TV sideline reporter for two or three quick answers, which would then be repeated by Thibodeau when he met reporters moments later. Right after that, more of the same, with identical descriptive phrases bouncing around the locker-room echo chamber.

That’s why I raised an eyebrow at the divergent comments from Rose and his coach after last night’s series-opening loss at home to Atlanta. Sounds like they saw different games, and we’re not used to that.

“There wasn’t one aspect of the defense that was good,” Thibodeau said of the Hawks’ .513 field goal percentage and .538 clip from three-point range. “We weren’t challenging shots, we weren’t keeping them in front of us, and we played a low-energy offense. The intensity wasn’t right.”

About that “challenging shots” thing, Rose disagreed, in a way that I cannot remember him doing before.

“They were hitting tough shots, guys on them,” he said. “They’re just good basketball players. Contested twos, contested threes, fadeaways.”

Hmm, ok.

How about the star turn by Atlanta’s Joe Johnson, who scored a game-high 34 points on 12-18 shooting, including all five of his threes?

Thibodeau: “Joe Johnson basically got where he wanted to go.”

Rose: “Joe was hitting tough shots, hard shots. We contested his shots well. He was in a groove, and that’s why he’s an all-star.”

I’m more inclined to look at the game as Rose seems to. Save for the flaccid first six minutes and some typically-lackluster hustle from Carlos Boozer (has there ever been a player with a higher differential between his level of histrionic expression and his actual production?), this looked more like a They-Made-Some-Crazy-Shots game than a total breakdown of defensive principle or execution.

A perfectionist like Thibodeau, though, just sees the 103 points, the high percentages and the losing result. Even if he dropped a game to a team that did nothing but drain desperation-heaves from midcourt at the end of every possession, he’d still blame his defense. He lives in a world where the opponent should never score at all, if his players are doing things right.

Rose is just being realistic, largely because he’s confident that percentages even out when enough tough shots are taken. He’s already grown up enough to tell the truth, and that’s all he did. If he thought the defense was terrible against Johnson and Jamal Crawford (who had some “wow” buckets of his own), he’d say so.

These men are the two biggest reasons why the Bulls are so good.

It’s worth noting that, for a night, they just had a rare difference of opinion on why they weren’t good enough

I think the fact he had zero free throws and was settling for jumpers indicates his ankle is bothering him.

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I completely agree with what Bernstein is saying. Some of those shots Atlanta knocked down could not have been defended any better.

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I agree as well and that makes me feel pretty good about the rest of the series. No way they keep shooting that way.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Why would you make a "general statement" about shredded tendons and ligaments if it didn't refer to Rose?

You are once again backtracking to save face, but only make yourself seem incoherent in doing so.

It's not worth my time to debate someone who is continually reinventing his thesis.

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You know why the Bulls lost last night?

A combination of this thread and the new chatroom kept everyone out of Ike's Bulls thread, which were quite successful all year long.

DID STEVE KLINE TEACH YOU NOTHING?! WHEN YOU'VE GOT SOMETHING LIKE A HAT THAT WORKS, YOU NEVER CHANGE THE GODDAMN THING EVEN IF THE SWEAT-SALT STAINS OVERPOWER THE CARDINAL RED!

Next time Ike makes a thread you'd do well to patronize it!

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It is you who have veered off topic--and outside the boundaries of coherence.

Your warnings about "shifting the debate" to something "personal" are amusing given your personal accusation about my attempts to "misrepresent" your argument and your condescending evaluation about what constitutes the limits of acceptable discourse. You make no sense and only argue to satisfy your ego; you want to have the last word but have no regard for the quality of the words you utter.

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Ike needs to be on time. Ike shows up late. Bulls show up late.

I'm still waiting for a comment from KS.

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Kid Cairo's Boers & Bernstein YouTube Channel

Kid Cairo: 2013 March Madness Tournament Winner!

"Cowabunga? Cowa fucking piece of dog shit! This game is diarrhea coming out of my dick!"

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I'll feel better if they win the next couple of games. I believe the more games they play the better they will be prepared for next series.

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Panther, quick update on if youre talking about Derrick Rose or not?


Ive lost count of all the times youve gone back and forth on whether you were talking about Rose (which you clearly were)

I ignored nothing. You changed your point when you realized it was a poor one. You lose.

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New Topic:


When was the last time Loul Deng dunked a basketball?

discuss...

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This is my signature...