GOD DAMMIT! FUCK YOU LEBRON

Motherfucking Bulls blowing a motherfucking 12 point lead with motherfucking 3 minutes left. What the fuck do you think you are doing. All they fucking did was build the fucking legend of fucking Lebron fucking James. Derrick Rose what the fuck man, your the MVP and you gave us that shit bum fucking performance. You and the Bulls are a fucking embarrassment to life. Oh yea, sweet signing of Carlos Boozer I haven't seen anyone more defensively inept since Vin fucking Baker played on the Celtics drunk. I swear that signing was the worst thing that came out of last year. I would rather have Antoine Walkers broke ass out there than seeing you on the fucking bench during crunch time. My god. Now we are all hoping and praying that Dirk can stay on fucking fire and lose his fucking choking ways, because I swear to God if I have to watch LeBron fucking James say a victory speech I'm going to shoot myself in the fucking head. Seriously, I would rather fucking die then see that self absorbed, ego maniac, douchebag be happy.

Die

(waited 2 minutes came back because I still needed to get stuff off my chest)

Oh yea, Fuck ESPN, it burns a hole in my soul everytime they show this guy on the fucking television. yea he's been playing great, yea he's been clutch. He won the Eastern Conference Finals, not the Finals yet. Lets stop praising him like the Heat have won anything, it's fucking ridiculous. Today LeBron ruined any type of sports show for me, ESPn as a whole, and reading any other site than this and my fucking fantasy league. Good dammit I fucking hate him.

Die

Die

Joakim Noah's Pockets Will Be A Little Lighter

During the Heat/ Bulls last night Joakim Noah got a little testy and called a fan a "fucking Faggot" well you can read his lips.

A couple thoughts on this. 1. I think they should fine him 100,000 the same amount as Kobe Bryant. 2. Noah has to know better than this. You're in the Eastern Conference Semis, all camera's are going to be on you, not only should you be mature enough to ignore the fan, you have to be mature enough not to respond.

I do however believe this is going to be overblown because when someone uses the word "faggot" it gets overblown for being insensitive. For right now, I know the word is inexcusable to use at all and especially in public places, however the writing is on the wall and the word is going to be desensitized.

For example the word retard was the same thing, and then when LeBron uses, "that's retarded" during a press conference, it's no big deal or when someone calls someone says they are cancer, it's no big deal. I feel the word "faggot" now is so mainstream and such a common schoolyard name people don't even know what the hate meaning is anymore. Even though ignorance may not be the best defense to use a hateful word, it kinda has to be.

Derrick Rose Win MVP

No shock here it was just a matter of time. Derrick Rose had a crazy year, ranking 7th in scoring and 10th in assists, making him the only player this season in the top 10 in both categories (25 ppg, 7.7 asts, 4.1 rebs). The Bulls have a good team around him, but not a great one. The reason this team ended up with the #1 seed in the East is because of this man. He is now the youngest NBA player to ever win the MVP award, and to be honest I don't think he is anywhere near his peak. His outside game is only going to get better, and as that develops he is going to be unstoppable.

Bulls had a hell of a year with Rose winning the MVP and Tom Thibodeau winning coach of the year honest, which were both well deserved.

NBA PLAYOFFS Round 2 Preview

The first round is in the books (as is Game 1 of the second round for both Boston/Miami and OKC/Memphis) and we're on to the Conference Semifinals.

In my playoff power rankings I touched on a few things that proved to be correct, and a few things I narrowly missed on. The Hornets did need Chris Paul to play other-wordly to beat the Lakers, and for two games he was just that. Unfortunately, they couldn't expect him to do that for the whole series and Los Angeles survived an ugly 1st round series. I also mentioned that everyone was loving Portland but I still had a feeling Dallas might have one more run in the tank...and it looks like they do. On the other hand I gave Indiana no chance to win a game against Chicago and they took two! Chicago doesn't look nearly as scary when Rose is shooting poorly. I also misread the ORL/ATL series in round one, despite the fact that my gut told me Orlando was really bad. I still don't believe in Atlanta much, but hopefully they can make the series with Chicago entertaining.

And with that...let's get into some series previews.


EASTERN CONFERENCE

1. Chicago Bulls vs. 5. Atlanta Hawks

Indiana did exactly what any team should try and do against the Bulls - which is to try and contain Rose to long jumpers and trap him off of pick and rolls. They had some success, although Rose ultimately was too much to handle with his athleticism. Let's get this out there right now - you can't keep him away from the rim for a whole game unless he decides to do so. He isn't a high percentage shooter, and certainly wasn't shooting well against Indiana, but he still gets his points on layups, dunks and free throws when he's not going well. Keeping him out of the paint and off the line will be paramount to Atlanta's success. The Hawks will also want to keep a long arm in the face of Kyle Korver who was a big shot factory in round one. I normally hate on Korver pretty hard but he was big in round one, when no other Bulls were really stepping up.
Carlos Boozer can sometimes struggle against lengthy defenders like Horford and Pachulia, so it will be key for Noah to have a big series on both ends.

Bulls win if...Rose is Rose and scores and distributes. (I know sounds simple, but I really think that is all they need.)

Hawks win if...Rose continues poor shooting, or gets banged up and Joe Johnson starts earning some of that contract he got.

PREDICTION - Bulls in 5.



2. Miami Heat vs. 3. Boston Celtics

Game one is already in the books, and we know what happened there. Pierce came unraveled and Wade had a tremendous game as Miami jumped to an early big lead and never looked back.
Three things concern me about the first game for the Celtics.
1) Rondo lacked the aggression he showed through most of the NYK series. (Although to be fair, he was in foul trouble)
2) Jermaine O'Neal was nowhere to be found. (He was huge against Knicks and needs to be in this series. He should be tearing up Joel Anthony on both ends)
3) Lack of effort. All game long it looked like they were reaching for loose balls and grasping as Heat players as they got burned on D, instead of moving their feet and getting after it. After a long break they shouldn't come out like that - and you know Doc was on 'em about it. I don't expect that to last, but it needs to change fast.

Van Gundy and company made a salient point yesterday in that Miami has the most athletic perimeter in the league and the extra pass (something Boston usually does quite well) will be key in this series. And on defense they really need to stay home on James Jones and Mike Miller and get their rotations tighter.
Look for Miami to exploit their athleticism all series long and the drive and dish for three should be their main weapon of choice.

Miami wins if...Rondo can't destroy MIA PGs and Wade and James display great cohesion.

Boston wins if...They use their veteran presence to get under skin on Miami role players - and King James for that matter. (NOT reacting like Pierce did yesterday.)

PREDICTION - Boston in 7.



WESTERN CONFERENCE

2. Los Angeles Lakers vs. 3. Dallas Mavericks

Hard to believe but this is the first time in the "Dirk/Kobe" era that these two have met in the playoffs. It should be a great series both on and off the court, as I can't wait to see some Mark Cuban shenanigans and hopefully some firing back and forth between he and Zen Master Phil.
As I think about this series, I'm not really sure what to make of it. Part of me wants to think Dallas has a real shot - especially with the Lakers recent play and Kobe maybe a bit banged up and certainly getting long in the tooth. However, I just think LA has been doing this too long, and ultimately Kobe, Gasol, Odom and Bynum will be too much for Dirk and company. However, if Jason Kidd can exploit the PG position somewhat like Chris Paul - obviously in a much less dynamic fashion - and Jason Terry can shake loose for his patented big shots they might be able to pull it off. I think stealing a game 1 in LA would be a huge boost to the effort.

Los Angeles wins if... Gasol comes out of his hole and starts resembling the player that we saw in last year's playoffs and they dominate the glass.

Dallas wins if... Dirk plays huge all series and Chandler can make Gasol into a jelly donut like New Orleans did.


PREDICTION - Los Angeles in 6.



4. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. 8. Memphis Grizzlies

Memphis took game one on the road in convincing fashion yesterday. It might be time to start believing in Memphis. They basically tore up a dilapidated San Antonio team, and have now taken the home court from Oklahoma City - who many saw as the best team in the West. Zach "Zebo" Randolph has been huge in these playoffs and the Grizzlies actually have a very 'OKC up-and-comer' type of feel about them. They are a fairly young team with nothing to lose and playing with a certain swagger. It also seems that Pau had his mojo stolen by his little brother, Marc Gasol who is playing as well as Pau is playing poorly.
On the other hand, if OKC can avoid panicking and another me-against-the-world type of game from Russell Westbrook they should still pull this series out.

Oklahoma City wins if... Durant gets off and Westbrook reverts back to his "Robin" ways and quits trying to play "Batman". (That's Durant's job)

Memphis wins if... Zebo keeps playing well and Durant gets shutdown by Tony Allen and the Grizzlie perimeter defenders.

PREDICTION - Oklahoma City in 7

Tom Thibodeau wins coach of year

Good for Thibs, he deserved it. You could bring up Doug Collins of Philly or George Karl of Denver, but Thibs made a good team into the best team in the NBA during the regular season.

The first-year head coach led the Bulls to a 62-20 regular season and the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. He's a great coach and like he did in Boston, he hat the team buy into defense. The Bulls can obviously score some points led by the pg Derrick Rose, but play great defense.

He was also able to lead this team while losing Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah for big portions of the year.

Good job Thibs you deserve it.

How Bad Is Rose's Injury?

Derrick Rose wore a walking boot on Sunday as a precaution to protect his sprained left ankle and he also had an MRI and it came back negative. Even though the ankle is sore, the Bulls expect him to play in Game 5 against the Pacers.

"He's fine," head coach Tom Thibodeau told ESPNChicago.com. "He's going to have his ankle checked. Hopefully, he'll be ready."

"We asked him, he says he fine," Thibodeau added. "[Athletic trainer] Fred [Tedeschi] says [Rose] has a little soreness, but he says he's fine (ESPN)."

Rose hasn't looked right since he hurt his ankle, and although it shouldn't be a problem to finish off the Pacers if it lingers further into the playoffs the Bulls could be out real quick. Seeing him a boot has to make you worried, but I also have no doubt he will play, and I see this series ending next game. It looks as if they could be playing the Hawks in the next round, and I find that a very interesting match up, because of Atlanta's incredible athleticism.

Yesterday was just great news all around for the Celtics. Rose is banged up, the Celtics get a week to rest their old guys and Shaq, and Kobe left the game on crutches.

97 Bulls, 81 Celtics

Well Ladies and Gentleman, the Bulls are pretty good.

Derrick Rose had a game and they looked in sync. I'm not going to praise the Bulls offense as much as I'm going to praise their defense. Their defense was relentless and unwaivering, all of the shots Boston took were well defended or they had to settle with an off balance jump shot. It wasn't good.

Also the Celtics didn't do themselves any favors as they missed open shots or layups the whole game. Ray Allen needs to start getting into a rhythm soon as he has been struggling. Maybe it's a good thing that he gets it out of the way now and is on for the playoffs.

There were a couple things that I didn't like on offense. The lacked aggressiveness. I constantly wanted Rondo to attack Rose and make him play defense and that just didn't happen. I wanted Pierce to do the same on Luol Deng, but he played a very lazy and sloppy game and I wanted them to get Jermaine O'Neal involved more. It was pretty evident that the Celtics were better with Jermaine in there, than when he wasn't either regardless of his statline.

This loss isn't the end of the world and I'm sure the Celtics will forget about it come next game, but the Bulls pretty much have the top seed and the season series is 2-2. Sucks, but not the end of the world.

Celtics vs Bulls Preview

Depth Chart

	Boston (PPG)	Chicago (PPG)
PG	R. Rondo 10.6	D. Rose 25.1
SG	R. Allen 16.7	K. Bogans 4.3
SF	P. Pierce 18.8	L. Deng 17.5
PF	K. Garnett 14.9	C. Boozer 17.8
C	J. O'Neal 5.2	J. Noah 12.1

Well ladies and gentleman here we are. Another telling game for the Celtics and a measuring stick to see if the Bulls are up to the challenge in the East. The Celtics have taken care of the Spurs and Sixers recently pretty good and now the Bulls are the next victim. The Celtics can and will win this game with physicality. We already know that before this game starts KG is in Noah's head. So I want him to talk up a storm and get under his skin. I also want every time Rose goes into the paint for him to end up on his butt. No easy baskets.

Rondo always plays best when going against great PGs and I don't expect anything different tonight. Rondo has been on fire recently and I think he continues to do that with another double double. The guy I really want to see get going is Ray Allen, he has had 13 points a game over the last 4 and a good 24 point game would be nice.

I also don't think anyone will be able to match Jeff Green or the bench too. The bench seemed to click last game and seeing them chip in with a 25-35 point effort would be great.

It will be a tough game but the Celtics will come away with it.

Celtics: 95-91
Tommy Award: Rajon

TOP 25 UNDER 25 - #4 Derrick Rose

DERRICK ROSE - Point Guard, Chicago Bulls

Chicago fans, and in particular our friend K, can rest easy. We've finally gotten to D-Rose on our countdown. I'd have to imagine that any Chicagoan would be pretty pleased with his spot on our list. D-Rose is revolutionizing the point guard position. Whether it is for the betterment of the game is for others to debate. What isn't up for debate is that Rose is as explosive a point guard as the league has ever seen.

Coming out of Memphis there were many critics when he was selected #1 overall by Chicago in the 2008 NBA draft. I'll admit I was one of them. He didn't strike me as a very good shooter, and many wondered if he would be able to expand that part of his game. There were also some rumblings of a lack of leadership qualities as Memphis choked in the tourney. However, that might have been a bit unfair as he was a freshman. I think it is safe to say that he has answered many of those questions with his play on the court, and he is a leader now on the Bulls.

Rose is for all intents and purposes a polar opposite of the other PG in our top 10, Rajon Rondo. A score-first point guard who is a versatile and electric scorer, has improved the other facets of his game in a big way. For all the attention that his scoring gets - and he deserves it - Rose has become a productive distributor of the basketball as well. As of publishing date, Rose was 10th in the league in APG with 8.1. And in Points/Assists/Rebounds he ranks 7th in the league averaging 37 total per game. That ranks ahead of Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Russell Westbrook and Kobe Bryant to name a few.

Since the time he entered the league the knock on Rose has been that he was a volume shooter and couldn't hit consistently from the outside. He's since proven both of those things to be myths as he has inserted himself into the MVP conversation in 2010-2011. On the season he is shooting about 44%, which is down from his career average, though that is mostly due to a recent cold streak, and for the most part he's been right around 45-47% which is very serviceable. He has improved his three point shooting to 33%, which isn't elite by any means but is certainly better than 27% which is where he was the previous season. His numbers are up across the board in 2010-11 and he ranks among the league leaders in player efficiency, an important stat when considering a player's impact on his team.

To say that Derrick Rose is a one-trick pony, or is not a great point guard because he looks to score first would be remiss. Rather, his skill set demands that he play the game that way and makes him one of the elite talents in the league. He has the leaping ability and explosion of players that are usually much larger and play the 2 or 3 spot, yet still possesses the quickness of a diminutive point guard. To have him play a Rondo style and simply distribute the ball all game long would be to miss out on a lot of what he has to offer. In turn, he has developed a great play-making ability to go with the rest of his offensive game. This was evidenced in their most recent win over Miami where late in the game he penetrated the defense and made a beautiful dish to Deng in the corner for a 3.

The bottom line is that Derrick Rose does things from the point guard position that most of his counterparts can not. He'll never be John Stockton or even Jason Kidd. What he will be, though, is an incredibly athletic handful for opposing defenders to deal with. And he just may be the next leader of a Bulls championship. Chicago fans are certainly hoping so, and at just 22 years of age he has a good shot at being #1 on this list before all is said and done.

Joakim Noah Out 8-10 weeks

HAHAHAHAHA... Good

F you K, your boy Noah who is more known for his talking off the court then his play on the court will be out with a thumb injury that will require surgery.

Even though Noah isn't a game breaking player he is a pretty big piece of the Bulls puzzle. They just got Carlos Boozer back and now they lose Noah. Sucks for them, but luckily the NBA season is extremely long.

Do I think this will seriously hurt the Bulls? No. At most it will cost them maybe a couple of games but not that big of a deal.

Celtics vs Bulls Preview

Cot Damn, right!

Tonight the Celtics face their toughest opponent in a while. And although Chicago and K are highly overrated, they have some above average players.

Depth Chart

	Chicago (PPG)	Boston (PPG)
PG	D. Rose 25.8	R. Rondo 11.4
SG	K. Bogans 4.5	R. Allen 16.0
SF	L. Deng 18.6	P. Pierce 19.7
PF	C. Boozer 11.2	K. Garnett 15.5
C	J. Noah 15.6	S. O'Neal 11.9

It will obviously be a battle of point guards and although Rondo is banged up and was really ecited for making a cake for his mom on her birthday Wednesday

He always is up to these challenges. Rondo plays with a constant chip on his shoulder and I feel like everytime he plays he's trying to make a statement, and that's what is going to happen tonight.

KG should also have a field day with Carlos Boozer, I know he's good, but with him just coming back I'm worried he's not in basketball shape enough to play a physical game. KG should/ will bully him around. Speaking of bullying, I hope that ugly ass sloth looking D Bag known as Noah tries to send a message tonight, instead of talking off the court. But most likely KG will just punk him again and he will have a lot to say off the court.

Also, Keith Bogans is due for a long night fighting through picks chasing Ray Allen.

Celtics: 106-94
Tommy Award: Rajon Rondo

Why Garnett Is A Winner And Noah Is A Dink

"Bulls center Joakim Noah once had a poster of Kevin Garnett, but now, according to ESPNChicago.com, he dislikes the Celtics power forward.

"Kevin Garnett will not -- will not -- get a Christmas gift from me," Noah said Wednesday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "I don't like him."

"He's a very mean guy," Noah added. "Where's the love? None at all. Ugly, too."

Noah said Garnett was a "dirty player" during the playoffs last season when he was suspended for throwing an elbow at Quentin Richardson. Last week Noah received a technical during the game against the Celtics and said, "He is who he is."

Noah added during the radio interview: "... he was very mean to me my rookie year. And he's only mean to the young guys and the [European players], for some reason. I don't know why, but that's who he doesn't like. He's not nice. I talk a lot of trash out there, but c'mon, be a little sensitive. Be sweet (ESPN)."

You know what I don't want my power forward and defensive captain to be? Sweet. I am so sick of all this Garnett bashing, the guy leaves it all on the court, and is having one hell of a season so far. I want him to be mean, get in guys faces. The NBA has changed, and there are a lot of teams that hate each other, unlike a couple years back when everyone seemed to be friends. Don't get me wrong, I love all of this because not games are a lot more interesting and you see a lot more guys playing with heart. So, Noah why don't you take out your tampon and figure out a way to be more then just white noise in the Eastern Conference.

Celtics vs Bulls Preview

Depth Chart

	Chicago (PPG)	Boston (PPG)
PG	D. Rose 26.8	R. Rondo 11.6
SG	K. Bogans 3.0	R. Allen 16.6
SF	L. Deng 19.8	P. Pierce 21.2
PF	T. Gibson 14.3	K. Garnett 15.6
C	J. Noah 13.8	J. O'Neal 8.7

I watched a little bit of the Knicks/ Bulls game last night and lets just say that I'm not impressed at all at what I saw/ seen with the Bills this season.

I know they are missing Carlos Boozer, but there is no way they should be giving up 120+ points to the Knicks. Derrick Rose is great, Luol Deng is good at times, Joakim Noah is alright, let's just say, the Bulls don't impress me. Plus the Bulls are also going to play a back to back which is always tough.

The Celtics are 4-1 and are welcoming the Tom Thibbedeau back to the garden. They are coming off a grind it out victory against the Bucks.

This game also marks the renewal of the rivalry between point guards Rajon Rondo and Derrick Rose. Their matchup was the focal point of a memorable first-round series two seasons ago and won by the Celtics in seven games.

Rondo steps up in these games.

Celtics win 98-87
Tommy Award: Jermaine O'Neal (it's been working)