Chicago Bulls: Why Do Derrick Rose and Co. Get Left Out of Title Favorite Talks?
There's not much question that the Bulls are among the best teams in the NBA. Whether you're talking about the objective or the subjective rankings they are near the top.
In Hollinger's rankings, they are third. In the subjective rankings, they are an average of third between the CBS, ESPN, NBA and Fox power rankings. They are third in the NBA in efficiency differential.
They have the player who arguably the lead candidate for MVP right now. They own one of the two best defenses in the NBA. They are the league's best rebounding team. They are tied for the best record against top-five teams (6-3). They are third in the Eastern Conference, three games out of the top seed and only one game out of the second.
In terms of the quality of their play on the season, there's no question they are among the best. Yet, when the conversation turns to contenders for the title, they get shut out of the talk. At Bodog Sports, they are listed behind San Antonio, Los Angeles, Boston, Miami, Dallas, Orlando and even Oklahoma City in the favorites to win it all.
Of all the major spots listed on Yahoo, they aren't any higher than fifth on any and average sixth. So how can a team be a consensus top-three-to-five team but still, by consensus, be excluded from the top-five teams with championship aspirations?
There are two reasons I can think of which influence the prevailing view. First, there's the "spotlight," and second, there's the matter of history.
In the Eastern Conference, the Celtics have played 21 national games on national TV so far. Orlando has played 19. Miami has played 17. Chicago has played 13. Part of the reason that Chicago has not gotten as much consideration is that they aren't as much a part of the national conversation.
With two big wins against San Antonio on back-to-back Thursday nights, though, Chicago vaulted more into the conversation than they had been all season. With games against Orlando and Miami on ESPN and ABC this weekend, the Bulls would certainly get more national talk with a Florida sweep, although that's quite a challenge.
The other part of the reason is that they are still a fairly young team, and three of their four biggest stars have yet to get past the first round. While they certainly have the talent to get deep into the playoffs, they may need at least one deep playoff run before they get further.
Orlando and Boston have represented the Eastern Conference in the last three finals. While Boston is essentially the same that won three years ago and pressed the Lakers for all the marbles last year, Orlando is different. The most essential piece, Dwight Howard, though, is still with the team, even if the role players have changed.
Miami is a newly compiled team. Yet two of their key components Dwyane Wade and LeBron James have played in the finals. Wade has a ring on his finger. Some probably just feel that Chicago needs to gain a little more playoff experience before they get into the finals.
While the spotlight might have avoided the Bulls a little more than the other teams—and as a result shorted the Bulls a bit in the national consideration—there's probably some validity to the experience questions.
Should the Bulls be a part of the conversation? I suppose it depends on what you mean by that. The Bulls are going to play someone in the second round, and they have a good chance of upsetting whomever they play. They are the team most likely to disrupt the "Heat vs. Celtics" finals that most have anticipated through the year.
It's doubtful though that a team this young could package together the four consecutive series wins that are needed to win a title. Sure they could use a little more help at the shooting guard spot, but the other contenders have holes too. The main thing working against the Bulls is deep playoff experience.
Therefore the Bulls place in the championship conversation is more of spoiler than contender. Still the Bulls have exceeded expectations in the regular season, and it's not impossible they would do so in the postseason.
