Sloan tells a wonderful story they were down at halftime to the Bullets? at half and playing God awful...him ,Norman, Chet,Butter were expecting an ass chewing....he said Dick looked at them walked into his office closed the door and didn't say a fucking word.He gave the time to reflect and reflect they did ...in the 2nd half the came out and kicked ass and won they game by 10? Motta was great

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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.

Me too on A Train.

When I was a kid I used to love listen to the Bulls' games with Gilmore, Bobby Wilkerson, David Greenwood, Ricky Sobers, Reggie Theus, etc., on WVON.

I sure wish we had another great 7 foot center era.

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Elections have consequences.

Loved Clifford Ray the Mule

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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.

When does Abbattacola (sp? who gives a fuck?)...FINALLY FUCKING realize he is the POOR MAN'S George Ofman?

BTW...this is my 500th post?....What do I win!?!?...or do I get a plaque!??!...It's almost the same as doing afternoons on the score for like 15 years straight!

But remember....GM Ryan Pace is his own man and does whatever he wants....all those rumors that he's a puppet of management aren't true.

255 wins in 4.8 seasons has to be the best advance scout in NBA history.

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I can't fucking believe that BernSTINE would say something that dumb....I mean, that's fucking stupid even for him.

Are you sure he wasn't being an intentional knob?

I believe it's what baseball analysts call "the ol' unintentional intentional knob."

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The lack of player development argument is legit. You have three first round picks riding the bench in the playoffs. That's a problem. It's either a problem for Garpax with respect to their ability to draft or its a problem with Thibs with respect to his ability to develop talent.

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Paxson has done a pretty good job of assembling talent. The Bulls have been characterized by some as being loaded. They have to get credit for that. This is and should be an important series for Thibs. I don't know if his job should ride on it but it wouldn't be totally out of line if his job depended on it. He does some things that make you go hmmm. He kept the starters in during a playoff game that was over at halftime. Steve Smith was openly questioning it during the game.

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Basketball is stupid and I hate it. I've always hated it at least since 1988. It's the worst sport ever.

Basketball is pretty great. It's a good companion sport on TV like baseball is on the radio. You just have it on, drift in and out as you please, and it's enjoyable.

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Did one of your kids type this?

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-- source

Basketball stinks, it's a big poopy head.

Isn't the roster predominantly first round picks? You don't go far in the playoffs playing first year players who pick up a foul as soon as the leave the scorer's table.

Maybe its time for Paxson to do a Steve Kerr and patrol the sidelines. Then he can acquire his talent, play them how he wants, make the game time decisions, and ride the win/loss roller coaster.

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DRINK BƎTTƎR. @theRIPH

The Jordan led Bulls won with Scott Williams playing significant minutes during the finals. Tony Parker was a young 1st to 2nd yr guy playing big minutes during the playoffs. Mirotic was second in ROY voting and can't sniff a minute now. What does Kirk Hinrich really provide at this stage of the game. Patty Mills can come in and play big minutes during the finals? Mario Chalmers?

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I blame Thibs' stubbornness and lack of patience for McDermott sitting on the bench the whole year. Doug was in the rotation the first night against New York, playing 24 minutes. Played 12-20 minutes the next couple weeks until his injury. Never heard from him again because Thibodeau said he likes his rotations set a couple months into the season. If Doug turns out to be anything in the NBA, this is what I'll remember Thibs for the most. Why couldn't you have given the kid 10 minutes a game for the remaining 40? Dunleavy played 40 minutes in game one. Doug can't come in for 5? He can't guard Mike Miller?

Basketball is awesome.

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With all due respect LTG, the examples you cite illustrate that the success of playing first year players in the playoffs are far and few between (Mills didn't play for the Spurs as a rookie). On the one hand those that play in the playoffs get the time because their defense is adequate enough to not be a liability on the floor. Scott Williams was a big body who got boards and could move his feet quick enough to not be a liability. On the other hand, the Association is not a developmental league for management favorites. The Bulls have a roster full of 1st round picks so who is McDermott supposed to play over? Look at the career arc of Jimmy Butler and his time came because he could play defense, his offensive game exploded this year because Butler spent the offseason working on his game.

If the knock on Tibs is that he doesn't develop his first year players well enough, doesn't give them enough time, then that has to be acceptable to the rest of the players who put in the work and want to enjoy the spoils of their efforts, wins. If the problem with Tibs is that he grinds his players too hard, then again it will be the players who will let it be known that they need to take a few minutes or a game or two off.

It is only a recent media phenomenon where the notion of losing-"tanking games"-has come into the realm of consideration. Having watched far too many players come to Chicago and collect a check while giving minimal effort makes the notion of tanking unpalatable for me. Pick a team and the list grows quickly. This year's teams, Bulls and Hawks, have a legitimate shot at making the finals. If a player winds up sitting because the coach doesn't believe he gives them the best chance at winning, then I'm all on board.

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DRINK BƎTTƎR. @theRIPH

I think Mirotic has shown that he definitely needs to play during the playoffs. Snell should play before Hinrich. There isn't any reason for playing Hinrich. Its easier to trust vets I guess. Your better Rookies always play in the playoffs. Mirotic has been productive this yr. I wouldn't play McDermott you can't play him unless two guys go down. He has been on the bench all season and you can't just thrown him out there now.

The problem that i have with Thibs on this issue is that he gives the veterans rope that the Rookies would never have. Mirotic has been a better player than Taj Gibson this yr. Taj is a better defender than Mirotic and that's about it. The NBA is an offensive league these days. The grind it out style is dead. Defensive minded players are not at a premium anymore. The League MVP is easily one of the 5 worst defenders in the league. Mirotic probably a better rebounder than Taj.

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I agree Hinrich sucks but that is the case in pretty much every sport. The guys who have done it well before will always be giving more chances to mess up

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That is where Thibs should be a little more flexible. The really great coaches are able to assess when a guy simply doesn't have it anymore. It seems like he plays Hinrich simply because he gives "maximum effort". That foul that he committed against Dallas was one of the dumbest plays that I have ever seen. Thibs provided cover by stating that it was his fault. If that had been one of the Rookies do you think that he would have done the same thing?

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Offense wins games, defense wins championships. Can you give a recent example of a coach who played his rookies over his veterans and was able to win games? Playoff games? Teams play in the present and not the future (no guarantees) so the concept of playing the rookie (or a Freshman over a Senior in college) is a rarity unless the talent is abundantly evident.

Gibson plays over Mirotic because of defense, rebounding, and his game is an inside game. Hinrich plays over Snell because he is a better ball handler and can defend either guard (in spots). You put Mirotic on the floor and Cleveland will run their offense at him, he'll get a couple of quick fouls, and then he's back on the bench. Not to say that neither Snell or Mirotic will see time in the playoffs but the matchups against Cleveland don't work in their favor.

Of the remaining playoff teams which rookie has impressed you the most this year? Who was the rookie who did it for you last year?

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DRINK BƎTTƎR. @theRIPH

Most of your really good rookies are high draft picks that play on bad teams thus they will never be in the finals anyway. At least they won't be as rookies. The best example of what I'm talking about is actually Sam Cassell. Cassell was a rookie that played a pivotal role in both of Houston's championships. Cassell would never have played for a coach like Thibs at least he would not have as a rookie.

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Caught about an hour of Bernsteins act today and he is already laying the groundwork if LeBron loses. Coach sucks, team sucks, and the Kevin Love lost really hurts the team. This argument sounds really, really familiar for some reason.

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LTG (again WADR), that was 22 years ago. This coach needs to be fired because he isn't applying the exception to the rule? You're contradicting your counterpoint. The talent goes early and plays out of necessity, thus they don't often make the playoffs (your point). If the worst thing about Thibs is that he's won with less (no Rose) without needing to play his rookies then the next set of expectations are completely unrealistic. Again, the premise of rookies making an impact in a deep playoff run is the exception and not the rule.

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DRINK BƎTTƎR. @theRIPH