Ranking the Chicago Bulls' Potential First-Round Opponents

With the season winding down, we are starting to see how the playoff race will end up. 

The Chicago Bulls are very likely going to end up with the top seed overall, and will therefore end up playing the eighth overall team in the Eastern Conference. The possibilities for the No. 8 seed are effectively down to three: New York, Philadelphia and Milwaukee. Every other team is either too far back or too far ahead. 

Knowing these options, which of these teams are strongest? 

1. New York Knicks

At this point, the best team that the Bulls would have to play in the first round are the New York Knicks. 

This team has been a relative mess all season, with their three stars—Carmelo Anthony, Amar'e Stoudemire and Jeremy Lin—in and out of the lineup all season. This team has also been a team of runs, stringing together both Linning streaks and losing streaks. 

Don't get me wrong, this is not a team that could beat the Bulls in the first round, or even push the series past six games. However this is the team that is going to be one of the more dangerous teams heading into the playoffs. 

In their last six games, the Knicks are 7-3. The Knicks are also 15-5 in their last 20 games, ever since Mike Woodson took over for Mike D'Antoni as coach. Perhaps the most impressive improvement has been their progress defensively and inside. Former Bull Tyson Chandler has a lot to do with that, and has even garnered some attention for Defensive Player of the Year. 

The Knicks have to be a team that is taken into account because of their sheer star power. On any given night, either Carmelo Anthony or Amar'e Stoudemire could go off for 40, and the Bulls really don't have a true way to stop the dual stars, nor does any team. Of course the drawback of a system like that is that most nights, neither of them will go off and they do not have much else going for them, and that's how the series would likely wind up. 

What I would hope for as a Bulls fan would be for the Heat to get the Knicks, since the Heat don't match up as well against New York. The Knicks still wouldn't have a chance to win the series, but it would create some problems for the Heat. 

2. Philadelphia 76ers

Philadelphia is a team that started out the season very hot, and has slipped all the way to the No. 8 seed throughout the course of this abbreviated season. 

Philly's greatest strength is their balanced attack. The Sixers have seven players who average somewhere between nine and 15 points per game on their roster. Their leading scorer is Lou Williams, who actually comes off the bench. 

In addition, Philly has played as one of the best defensive units in the NBA this season, largely led by the defensive pressure of their lone All-Star, Andre Iguodala. By using their athletic perimeter defenders, they are also able to create problems for Rose. 

However their true drawback comes at the end of games, when their balanced attack actually becomes a hindrance. At times, they just don't know who to go to at the end of games when it matters most. Occasionally Jrue Holiday will try to take over, but Lou Williams will be trying at the same time. 

Until the Sixers get a go-to scorer, they will not be a true factor in the playoffs. 

3. Milwaukee Bucks

The team I'm least scared of if I'm Chicago is the Milwaukee Bucks. Even though they have played well as of late, they really have no possible way to beat Chicago. 

The Bucks' power is in their dynamic backcourt of Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis. Both of these guys are players who could go off for 50 on any given night. However even though these players are dynamic, neither of them is tall, and both are decidedly average defenders. 

Where they lack significantly, and where they would lose to the Bulls is inside. The Bulls are one of the top rebounding teams in the association, and have two guys who are seven foot in Noah and Asik, and two guys who are great rebounders for the power forward position in Taj Gibson and Carlos Boozer. 

The Bulls have a starting frontcourt in Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah that averages over 18 rebounds per game. Opposite that, the Bucks start a lineup of Drew Gooden and Ekpe Udoh that combines for under 11 rebounds a game. 

Even if the Bucks catch fire from the field, they still likely can't win since Chicago will have so many more shot attempts due to their rebounding. Milwaukee is the team that scares me the least.