Waking Up In Vegas, Can Chicago Bulls Compete With Miami Thrice
What happened? Where was I? I must have joined Bradley Cooper and Zach Galifianakis at their bachelor party. When I went to sleep last night it was August 29th, 2010, and I’ve woken up to read articles of how the Miami Heat have won an NBA championship. Steamrolling throughout the regular season, the question was not would they win a championship, but rather, would they break the record for most wins recorded in a season. I must have really missed out on an historic season.
While thankfully I’m not missing any teeth, or any other events that occurred in The Hangover, the extent to which the Heat are being proclaimed as champions has me wondering one thing. Do the Chicago Bulls, a team that made major offseason acquisitions of their own, have any chance of competing with the Heat for Eastern conference supremacy?
While the Bulls did lose out on LeBronpalooza, they did manage to acquire low post scoring threat, and two time all-star Carlos Boozer. They later added 3-point specialist Kyle Korver, athletic perimeter defender Ronnie Brewer, as well as quality depth players C.J Watson and Kurt Thomas. These additions coupled with all-star point guard Derrick Rose, crazy man Joakim Noah, and solid players in Loul Deng and Taj Gibson, has the Bulls believing the sky is the limit.
But this would be expected in August. It is this time of the year when optimism is arise. The question is not whether the Bulls believe they can compete with the Heat, but whether they have the ability to do so.
Having a lot of new pieces is always fun to think about, but the the fact is, in order for the Bulls to compete with the elite teams in the East; Derrick Rose will have to become an elite player himself.
True to form, Rose spent his summer in the gym, improving his game. Rose, generally quiet and reserved, has not been shy to speak about his improved jump shot and range. He has been impressive playing for Team USA at the World Championship. Time will tell if Rose can carry that over in the 2010-11 regular season.
The Bulls have become the small town girl who moves to L.A. She is young, she is fresh, she is talented, but she is also naïve. The Bulls are Taylor Swift. The Heat on the other hand can be surmised by one Hollywood socialite, Lindsey Lohan. The Heat have been around the block once or twice before. Yes they have experience, LeBron’s trip to the finals and Dwayne Wade’s 2006 NBA championship, but they also have a lot of baggage. Who will be the alpha male? Who will get the last second shot? Who will stand in the middle of all promotional shots? These are all questions the Heat will have to answer.
Even with all this baggage, it cannot be denied that the Heat have a very talented team. James, Wade, and Chris Bosh may form the best NBA Jam team the world has ever witnessed. The Bulls, on the other hand, will have to rely on defense and team play in order to compete. If Rose and the Thorns can do that, it will be an interesting season. If not, I might as well have gone to Vegas.
