Miami Heat vs. Chicago Bulls: NBA Game 2 Preview

Tipoff: 8:30 PM (EDT), Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Where: Bank United Center, Chicago, Illinois

Series: Chicago leads 1-0

Inside the Numbers: Remember, a team that goes up 2-0 in a playoff series has historically won about 94 percent of the time. This game is astronomical.

Key Battles

1. On the glass—19 offensive rebounds, 31 points second chance points and 19 more shot attempts is not getting it done by the Heat defense. The Heat need to cut those numbers in half, at least.
2. Easy buckets—Game 1 marked the second time in the playoffs in which an opponent attempted more free throws than Miami (20-15).
3. Deng and Rose vs. LeBron and Wade—If Luol Deng and Derrick Rose outplay LeBron James and Dwyane Wade again, the result will not change. Miami must dominate at the top.

Notes

• According to Rachel Nichols, LeBron has been dealing with a cold for a few days, but he wasn’t the one who brought it up. He was asked today about his congestion and answered directly. I could definitely see that getting twisted into “LeBron making excuses.”
• Erick Dampier today on his current state of hibernation: “There’s nothing wrong. We just made a decision to go with the smaller lineup. I’ve been going through practices, going through plays, so if I was called upon to play, it wouldn’t be a problem.” That's good to know because they really need his muscle tonight.
• Expect more movement off the ball, especially from James and Wade. Getting the rock on the move—attacking from the weak side—they will be able to penetrate the Great Wall of Chicago.
• Why we hate Bulls fans...

Prediction

James and Wade are too good to not bounce back from an abysmal Game 1 performance in which they collective shot 12 for 32 from the field with only eight combined free-throw attempts. They each average eight attempts in the playoffs. The intensity has to rise on Miami’s end, and it will, or their hopes of a championship this year will diminish.

Miami 92 Chicago 86

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