As the clock hit triple zeros in the Chicago Bulls’ 99-92 Game 1 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, it was impossible not to flashback to a watershed moment from training camp. Bulls guard Derrick Rose made league-wide headlines during his Media Day podium session this past September.
“We know we have an opportunity ahead of us. It may not be this year, it may not be the next year, but I know that we have one. I know I’m going to win a championship soon,” Rose said to a sea of reporters and television cameras.
Eyes widened across the Advocate Center gymnasium as the former Simeon superstar delivered his powerful prediction. In the coming days, doubters immediately threw salt on Rose’s remarks. Concerns about durability, bad knees and an aging supporting cast flew from all different directions. And then of course, there was Tom Thibodeau’s biggest head coaching Kryptonite: LeBron James.
Fast forward to today where the Bulls are inevitably locked in another postseason battle with LeBron’s Cleveland Cavaliers as Rose and his ‘mates chase their first championship together. Game 1 of the Eastern Conference [Heavyweight Fight] went to Chicago. It’s not the first time a Derrick Rose led team has taken a series opener against big, bad LeBron. That said, optimism is as high as it’s been since Chicago won the ping pong party in the 2008 NBA Draft.
I always argue that the best team in an NBA playoff series wins around 80 percent of the time. Hot pitching staffs can patch together four wins in baseball. Great goaltending and “puck luck” often change a hockey series. One fumble, interception or missed field goal can ruin a postseason push in football. The cream usually rises in professional basketball.
This year’s Bulls team was Jekyll and Hyde during the regular season. Impressive one week and downright disappointing the next. They played up-and-down to the competition from coast to coast. Road wins against the Warriors and Clippers. Road losses against the Pistons, Magic and Lakers.
And guess what?
None of that matters anymore. The second season is about offensive options, defensive depth, playoff experience and coaching. Chicago checks off all four boxes.
Long gone are the days of Derrick Rose having to try and take over by himself in the fourth quarter. Jimmy Butler is a blossoming superstar on both ends of the floor and one of the best defensive players in the game. His swagger and willingness to guard LeBron is crucial to Chicago’s confidence. Pau Gasol brings a championship pedigree and a deadly mid-range arsenal. Sharp shooting Mike Dunleavy buries open shots and swings the rock when another teammate has a better look. Taj Gibson and Joakim Noah eat glass and alter shots. Whipcracker slash Xs and Os guru Tom Thibodeau calibrates chances to win every single night.
Mix those ingredients together and you have a recipe for playoff success.
LeBron James is the most incredible player in the game, but his star has historically shined brightest when paired with Hall of Fame caliber talent. Dwyane Wade isn’t here to offer a helping hand late in games. Ray Allen isn’t walking through that door, neither is on-the-fencer Chris Bosh. Excuses for Cleveland could mount given the season-ending shoulder injury to Kevin Love and the two-game suspension to J.R. Smith. Nobody in Chicago wants to hear it though after years of shortened, injury-riddled campaigns on West Madison Street.
The Cavaliers will make this a series due to their 1-2 punch of LeBron and playground legend Kyrie Irving, but Cleveland is far from invincible. Their floor spacing will continue to suffer with Love out, defensive rhythm is entirely off and Cavs head coach David Blatt will have circles ran around him all series long. The East could very well be least, but it’s Chicago’s for the taking.
Four years after Rose challenged himself to become the league’s Most Valuable Player — a vision that became a reality that very season — he and his teammates are finding focus as they trek toward the top of the NBA mountain.
Keep counting the Bulls out. They’re dying to prove you wrong.
