Yeah, some of the media's thinking is way off on this. First of all, they're giving way too much weight to beating Boston, who was a shell of their former selves. When the Bulls played Boston late in the season, the Bulls didnt even play their best game and won by 17.
But beyond that, Miami hasn't seen a team who can rebound and defend like Chicago. They havent faced a team with a player like Derrick Rose in the playoffs either. Sorry but the defense that Chicago played during their last 5 quarters is the best defense any team has played in the playoffs. And while Atlanta doesn't have 2 players like James and Wade, they have 5 guys who can do big damage on offense on any given night. These people have to be accounted for. People can talk about how Atlanta is hot and cold all they want. The truth is, its not like they mailed it in as if they didnt care. These guys tied up the series at 2-2 and wanted to win the series. If they mailed it in, something happened after game 4 to make it happen. For all intents and purposes, Atlanta was set up nicely to win game 5. Guys like Pachulia were being productive while the Bulls were getting after some of their other guys. The Bulls had lost the momentum and then, as if by providence, they got it back and, over the next 5 quarters, slammed the door shut. So don't tell me about how Atlanta gives up easily.
This series was won in the last 5 quarters of the series. Its interesting that, when the season hung in the balance, the Bulls were able to answer the bell by playing the best defense any team has played during these playoffs and it happened at a time when Chicago had lost momentum. With the defense in the 4th qtr of game 5, the Bulls created something out of nothing and won the series because of it. Granted, the game was still winnable as long as the Bulls kept it close, because of Rose, but still, a winning template emerged by letting Brewer, Taj, and Asik play.
I really hope Brewer gets to play more against the Heat. Does anyone remember the imprint he had on the second game against Miami? He was huge. Brewer is actually capable of forcing Wade to guard him. Bogans, not so much.
But having said all that, we better hope Miami doesnt get hot from beyond the three point line. This, as always, is a huge variable. And the other huge variable is the whistle. Wade gets an alarming number of foul calls, many of which are bogus. James and Rose get foul calls too but it seems like the refs let more go against Rose and James than against Wade. But that doesnt mean James wont start getting even more calls as some initiative sent down from the league office in NYC.
