so whistler and jaybills

after miami got lebron last year my initial reaction was they were the favorites to win it all..they started slow but got better as the season went on...the bulls had the best record in the league and i hoped/thought the bulls could beat miami...i believe they could have if thomas plays in that series.. pretty much all of you had dallas getting swept in the first round ..i did not...this year i think ok city is the favorite to win the west and the heat in the east..rip is not the answer.

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As CSFMB's #1 NBA analyst JORR said, the uncomfortable truth is that the key to beating the Heat is one of the key members of the Heat getting hurt.

Its very possible. Especially Wade. Wade has a lot of hard miles.

Thats one thing the Bulls have over the Heat...youth.


Although if Wade was out, I think it would be a tossup series.

Bosh killed them at times last year.

Of course the Bulls could beat the Heat this year. If the Packers can choke as badly as they did in the playoffs why couldn't the Heat choke against the Bulls?

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

if wade is out bulls win..but wade could get injured ..he is injury prone and getting old. but i think rose could get hurt just as easily..constantly having to drive to the hoop because nobody else can knock a shot down..one hard foul and the bulls are done...football is different homey..one game anything can happen..7 game series is a lil different

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I wouldn't call the series a toss-up. The Bulls can definitely beat the Heat, but Miami would be the clear favorite. This isn't the same Heat team as last year. They've definitely improved.

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Douchebag, the Heat are a team on a mission this year, and last night's latest 14 point win at Portland that extended their win streak to 9 in a row is more proof that they are clearly the team to beat. They won minus Chris Bosh, who is away following a death in his family, and will not be available for Miami again tonight when they go for a 10th straight "W" at Utah.

As for the Bulls, while they've won 15 of their 29 away from home, the most in the NBA, I'm starting to wonder if they can steal a win (or 2) in Miami if the Heat have home court in a likely Eastern Conference Finals' rematch regardless of Rip Hamilton's health.

As for tonight, don't expect to see "Rip" beyond 20 minutes, but he'll see limited action yet again this eve as the Bulls go for win #30 vs. Kyrie Irving and the Cavaliers in Cleveland.

Guess what? The Heat are...

Not really. The Heat, Bulls & Thunder are clearly the three best teams at this stage. If there are any other teams that might prevent them from winning the NBA Championship, they are out West starting with a team that is still NBA Champions at last check, and that's Dallas.

IMU VS. SHARK

This one should be good.

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My problem with a Bulls/Heat rematch in the Eastern Conference Finals is my opinion that I'm skiddish that the Bulls can steal a win (or 2) in Miami when it REALLY matters. I'm also starting to wonder if the Heat have a psychological edge, much like when the Bulls ran into a brick wall before winning 6 NBA titles in the '90s called the Pistons.

Let's see if the Heat assign LeBron James to guard Derrick Rose like they did a year ago. This series clearly went in Miami's favor when the Bulls scored just 2 points in the final 7 minutes of Game 2 of last year's ECF, and on the United Center floor no less.

Winner /\

Rip the savior?

viewtopic.php?f=34&t=65464#p1297573

Apologies to Roy Williams, he was nowhere near as useless as Rip.

True. My argument in the matter though, is that what the Bulls responded with (Rip) is not sufficient.

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

I think that's the real value we've yet to see from Rip, let alone his health on the whole.

Based on what? What he's done in the regular season to date? What he's done in the last few seasons?

Seems like Rip can't play well without Chauncey Billups around telling Rip he's the man. I think that's part of the reason you don't and won't hear Bulls players calling Rip out on anything while he's on the team. Rip truly thinks he's the best basketball player who ever played the game. And he makes excuses when he doesn't play well. And when not playing well became the rule for Rip, he sits outs games, goldbricks injuries, etc.

And Rip Hamilton was never the go-to guy (or even one of the go-to guys) down the stretch in the 4th for those Pistons teams. It was Billups and Sheed.

Hey, I just admitted I was wrong about Rip being the NBA equivalent of Roy Williams when the signing was announced.

So the idea is that Rip Hamilton is the reason the Bulls are going to beat the Heat?

Good luck. That sounds like a very bad plan to me.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Honestly the Roy Williams comparison is perfect so far

Thats not the plan

No one really thinks that

We are banking on a Wade or LBJ injury.


or for Mike Miller and Joel Anthony to double team Gloria James the night before Game 1

i tend to agree with you regarding the bench player advantage, but do you think that's really going to come into play much in a 7 game series? I doubt Lebron is going to play less than 42-45 minutes a game. rotations are usually tightened in the playoffs, i doubt you'll see much of Dexter Pittman

I <3 Brick

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

No one here is mentioning Derrick Rose. He's better this year. With Hamilton on the team, Rose is even better. With Hamilton running around screens and causing chaos for Miami to defend, Derrick can use that and get an extra step to the hole. Expect open jumpers from Hamilton and Deng because of the overplay and the collapsing defense on Derrick in the paint. Add in Noah and Taj to clean up the boards, play physical and block shots. That five. Keep Korver and Boozer off the court in the last 5 mins.

Not really. Not only were their careers completely different, but so are their attitudes. Rip has been hurt so far this year, which is why he hasn't produced much. But him and Roy Williams are far from a perfect comparison.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

No of course not. Nobody has ever said that. Was James Posey the reason the Celtics beat the Lakers in 2008? No, but he was a huge addition and they might not win a title without him.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

I don't think anybody cares too much about the health of the Heat. If we have everyone 100% for the ECF then we have a good shot to make the Finals. That's all the concern should be about.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

five seconds into the game tonite and he hurts his shoulder. I may be eating some crow from my praise of Hamilton.

At this point Ronnie Brewer is the better option. This is just becoming ridiculous.

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This sucks. Despite what Bernstein says, this team is real close. Rip could have been the difference. His ability to score, dish and defend was two parts better than last year. That addition over 30 minutes of a game would have been huge. Unfortunately he has turned into masked China doll. We are a screw.