Chicago Bulls: 4 Keys to Victory vs. the Indiana Pacers

The Chicago Bulls continue a four-game homestand against their divisional rival Indiana Pacers.

With the young talent on both of these teams, it looks like that intense rivalry that was so central to the NBA storyline of the 1990s is making a bit of a comeback.

Chicago ousted Indiana from last year’s playoffs in five games; however, the Pacers battled in every game making it a series that was just as grueling as it was quick.

Now, Chicago has evolved and seems to have taken their game to another level with a league-leading 16 wins despite an array of injuries over the course of this season.

Indiana is second to Chicago in the Central Division at 11-5 and looks like a team who will definitely move up a seed or two in this year’s playoffs.

The Bulls have continued to find ways to overcome hardship and pull out wins, but this Indiana team is a caliber of opponent far better than what Chicago has played the past few games.

Indiana is looking to bounce back after a stinging blowout loss at home against the Orlando Magic, so Chicago will have to focus on a few key things in order to avoid the Pacers’ scorn.

1. Keep a Fresh Body on Danny Granger

Danny Granger is the Pacers’ equivalent of the Bulls’ Luol Deng.

That would be all well if not for the fact that Deng will be out for a while with a torn ligament in his wrist.

This leaves Chicago without their best one-on-one defender who could’ve done a lot to neutralize Granger’s contributions.

Coach Tom Thibodeau will definitely have to use his depth in this one.

In the game against New Jersey Nets, Thibodeau alternated Ronnie Brewer and Kyle Korver at the small forward spot while allowing Brian Scalabrine to play extra minutes to rest his stretched-thin frontcourt.

Thibs will have to throw in another body to help wear Granger down which may mean giving rookie Jimmy Butler a little floor time to help the Bulls in the defensive capacity.

Given the defensive liability that Korver can be sometimes, this option may not be so farfetched.

Granger will have his work cut out for him if Chicago can keep running fresh defenders at him, and that should make for a hard night’s work for Indiana’s versatile forward.

2. Attack the Basket

Roy Hibbert is looking a lot like the Georgetown centers that NBA fans of a certain age remember.

He can score down low, rebound on both ends of the floor and guard the paint. He is also prone to foul trouble.

With this in mind, the Bulls should use their ability to get to rim and get Hibbert some frequent whistles.

Luckily, Chicago doesn’t have to rely completely on Derrick Rose to get this done.

Guard C.J. Watson has some drive ability of his own.

Richard Hamilton is constantly coming off of screens that give him the option of popping a jumper or cutting to the basket.

Chicago’s big men, especially Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer, can pass out of the post well and hit anyone filling the passing lane.

Hibbert will try to defend everything that comes his way and he may be successful on some, but he only has to be unsuccessful six times before it’s happy trails.

3. Get Carlos Boozer Rolling

One of the great things about the Bulls this season has been the resiliency of their roster. This has been very true of Carlos Boozer.

While his overall numbers are lower than they were last season, Boozer played big-time basketball when Derrick Rose was out recovering from a turf toe injury.

Now that Deng has also been sidelined, Boozer will have to continue to dig deep and show that he can be that reliable second option that the team wants and needs him to be.

Getting Boozer going offensively does more than just take some of the pressure off of Rose to score. It will also serve the other players well by spreading the defense and allowing for better movement without the ball. Players like Hamilton and Brewer thrive off of cutting and finishing off of someone else’s assist.

The Pacers won’t be able to zero in on one particular player allowing the Bulls to use their many options to score.

If players like Korver and Watson are hot, they can annihilate Indiana from the outside much like the Orlando Magic did. Great spacing can do number on Indiana’s defense.

But all of that lives and dies on Carlos Boozer having a big game.

4. Run, Run, Run

The Chicago Bulls are first in the league when it comes to the fewest points allowed by a team defense. The Indiana Pacers are no slouches themselves boasting the leagues fifth-best defense.

Both teams can clamp down in the half-court set and make every shot a difficult, contested one.

The Bulls have an advantage here because they have the personnel to also play an uptempo game.

In their 16 victories, Chicago has scored 100-plus points eight times and 90-plus points four times.

The drive behind this fast pace is Derrick Rose, of course, but Chicago has a team full of players that can run the floor from the guards all the way up to the centers.

If Chicago can get out on some breaks or push the ball up and score before the Indiana defense can get completely set, they can score some easy baskets that could prove to be the difference between winning and losing.

When two defensive-oriented teams meet, every point counts. Chicago needs to see to it that the break opportunities are maximized.

All in All

Chicago couldn’t have lost Luol Deng at worse time.

Frontcourt heavies like the Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat and New York Knicks will definitely pose problems and force the Bulls to use all the ability they can muster to win.

Things have a high chance of falling apart when you are missing the glue; however, it’s hard to dismiss that fact that Bulls have won in a variety of ways with a variety of altered personnel this season.

This Pacers game is the first real test Chicago has faced in a long time.

In all honesty, the last formidable opponents they have played were the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks back in early January.

If you really want to gauge the true ability of this Bulls team, look to this game against the Pacers as being the barometer.