Heat vs. Bulls: Which Eastern Conference Power Needs a Win Worse?

The Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls will meet tonight for the second time this season in a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Finals. Which teams needs the win worse will be a hotly debated question, but ultimately the answer is the Bulls.

Both teams are leading their divisions and are in little danger of losing those leads. They are also No. 1 and No. 2 in the NBA record-wise, which shouldn’t be a surprise considering the talent levels of each squad.

However, it is the Bulls that need this win more. So far this season, they are 0-1 against the Heat, with that first meeting being in Miami.

This one will be in Chicago, but that hasn’t meant anything recently. The Bulls played the Heat three times at home in the Eastern Conference Finals last season and won just one of the three.

Glancing at the records of the two squads, one might be inclined to assume that the Heat need the win more. Right now, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade’s team is 2.5 games behind the team led by Derrick Rose.

However, the Heat have proven that they can defeat the Bulls when they want to. Their star power is unparalleled in the NBA, and that includes the Bulls.

Derrick Rose is a superstar player, but he is the only Bull that is. The Heat have two guys just as qualified as him and one that is very close. The Heat doesn’t need this win because they know they can beat the Bulls.

The Bulls must prove that they can beat the Heat on their home floor. They do not know that they can’t beat the Heat yet.

They have beaten the Heat since the Big Three arrived in South Beach. However, the Heat have beaten them many more times, especially since Miami began to figure out how to really play together as a team.

Whether the Bulls can beat the Heat tonight depends greatly on Rose. He must score and distribute, doing his thing while at the same time making the whole team better.

In the last game, he had a chance to put the Bulls up with around 20 seconds left in the game but choked on his free throws. The Bulls need him to be better than that this time around and moving forward.

However, it isn’t all on Rose. Guys like Kyle Korver, Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah have to step up too.

Boozer and Noah combined for 21 points and 20 rebounds last time, while Korver hit three threes for nine points. Those efforts are very good for those guys, but they need to do even more to help Rose with the scoring load if they want to beat the Heat.

Another guy who must step up is Taj Gibson. He’s a big physical post man off the bench who really could help the Bulls lock down on defense against Miami’s Big Three.

Ultimately, Rose is the key to the Bulls beating the Heat, but it must be a team effort. They need this win really badly.

If they continue to lose to the Heat on a habitual basis, they’ll develop a mental block and never be able to get over that hump.

The Bulls need this win much more than the Heat do.