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Why Bulls Can Win It All, and Jazz Couldn’t
Posted by: Danny Hansen on April 14th, 2011
The author's views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of the Utah Jazz.
Déjà vu: The experience of feeling sure that one has already witnessed or experienced a current situation.
This is how I feel watching the Chicago Bulls. They have an All-Star point guard guiding the ship, Carlos Boozer manning the post, high flying Ronnie Brewer and sharp-shooting Kyle Korver playing the wings, and an intense head coach. Does it seem like you have experienced this before. This was the same formula the Jazz experimented with to win a championship in the 2000’s but they ultimately failed. This year the Chicago Bulls have secured the best record in the entire NBA and are armed for a championship run. The Jazz never got the home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs with that mix. So why have the Bulls succeeded with that core and the Jazz never did?
A Defensive Center
Would you rather have a center who will block the lane, or one that can kill you with the deep shot? One of the biggest differences between the Bulls and the Jazz is the type of center each of the team had. Mehmet Okur has been an All-Star, is clutch down the stretch, but struggles defensively. Joakhim Noah is a defense-first center with limited offensive skills. Chicago is the second best defensive team in the league allowing opponents only 91.3 points a game. The Jazz with Okur were dynamic on offense during that stretch from 2006 to 2010, but their defense left something to be desired. The 2009-2010 season was a good defensive year for them, but they still allowed 98 points a game. Noah helps with that more than Okur ever would.
A Scoring 3
The Jazz and Bulls were flip-flopped. The Jazz had a scoring center (Okur) and a defensive small forward (Kirilenko). The Bulls have a defensive center (Noah) and a scoring small forward (Deng). The Jazz’s inability to get consistent scoring from their wings proved fatal. In the playoffs, Kobe Bryant would back off of Kirilenko and Brewer like they had the plague. Though the Bulls still need more help at the shooting guard, Luol Deng is doing his job at the other wing. This season he is averaging 17.4 points a game. Kirilenko’s best scoring season in the Jazz’s playoff run was 11.9 points a game.
Beasts of the East
The Jazz were attempting to make a playoff run in a very good Western Conference. Last year, every playoff team in the West had at least 50 wins. For years, teams in the Eastern Conference have been making the playoffs with records below .500, including this year. Perhaps the Bulls’ fantastic regular season was due to the fact that they played more games against worse teams. This enabled them to secure home-court throughout the playoffs. One thing the Jazz never had in the 2000’s.
Rose vs. D-Will
Derrick Rose is having a special season. He is most likely going to be the league MVP. He has made quite the jump from last year to this year. Is it possible that Rose is now the best point guard in the league? He is the leader in the MVP race. Deron never was more than 2nd team All-NBA. Now, don’t get me wrong, Deron is a terrific player. He just never did what Rose did this year. And perhaps Rose’s ultra-athleticism will lead the Bulls, and Boozer, and Korver, and Brewer, to an NBA title.
Replies: 17
Views: 1164
17 Responses
This is not good… I dont want them to win.. I dont care who wins as long as its not Chicago, Miami, or LAL.. The first two teams I want to lose are Chicago, and LAL, but Miami is right behind them.. Would much prefer OKC, or Denver, or boston, or lets root a bottom feeder, which ones have a chance??
Sorry, sounds weird, but I hate LA, and I hate any team that Boozer is a part of. I like Rose, but I dont care for the others. Had Boozer tried while he was here, well, I might feel differently, but he sucks and doesnt deserve it.. Its not even because of Boozer, Brewer or Korver that they are winning. Its Rose and Deng. Boozer has performed better this year than he ever did when we had him, but all he needed to do was “try” to outrun his past..
Miami, because they were supposed to be the dream team, let them die too.. LOL. I am an underdog cheerer this season. Let them all go down and burn in the first round.. At least let them all lose prior to the final series.. Let them all burn burn burn..
If you like the Bulls so much it shouldn’t be hard to get on their website. You trollers come a dime a dozen.
Danny isn’t a troll, he used to post on here all the time. Just because he points out why the Bulls have a better shot to win with guys the Jazz used to have doesn’t make him a troll at all. To me it makes him an objective observer.
The Bulls DO have a great shot this year (much better than the Jazz obviously) I just don’t know that they’ll get past the teams with more deep run playoff experience. They’ve got a team to compete though, that’s for sure.
You’re looking at a horrible statistic for determining offensive value. Though Luol Deng does have a greater PPG this year than any year Kirilenko has played, he also is a much less efficient offensive player than Kirilenko. Andrei is a better shooter and a better driver than Luol Deng, and at this point in their careers the main differentiating factor is that Deng’s on-ball DEFENSE is so much better. The injuries and the lack of surrounding talent are the main problems that have prevented Kirilenko from being a higher-volume scorer in the last few years, because he isn’t provided as many opportunities based on the offense created around him and he plays fewer MPG.
You want to figure out why Chicago this year is so much better than Utah has been any of the past few? Just look at the guys who start the game on the rectangular pine structure on the sideline. The Jazz have truly horrific bench players, absolutely among the worst benches in the entire league, whereas Chicago has exceptional depth and very few weaknesses. Okur should never have been an all-star and Noah is underrated if anything, so that’s a HUGE difference too, but the bench is the clearest one.
Why wouldn’t you cheer for the Bulls? They resemble team basketball to it’s finest. I love watching them play, especially on the defensive end. They’re coach has got them all on the same page and utilizes each of their strengths to benefit the team. Plus, they don’t have any “cry baby’s” on their team. I am no big time Boozer fan but he’s an energetic/outgoing player.
I can’t stand Miami, despise the Lakers, tired of Boston, loath the Nuggz, and could care less about Orlando.
I’m pulling for Chicago, Portland, and OKC…
Ok, Portland or OKC. As far as the Bulls, we would have beaten them if it hadnt been for Rose beating up on Williams. Oh, shouldnt have gone there again.. lol. They are deeper, but the guy who has taken games over was Rose.. No Rose, no playoffs.. Rose, Noah, Deng. Of course some would say Korver has been a help, but he is like CJ, there some nights, gone other. Boozer has some numbers, but he is a depth factor rather than a win factor..
The originator of this blog is offering an interesting analysis of how three former Jazz players are fitting in with players from another team and how that may lead to an NBA championship.
From an emotional perspective, I would like to see the Bulls beat either the Heat or Celtics to get to the Finals.
Should they do and face the Lakers, I do hope the Bulls beat the Lakers.
Otherwise, the Thunder and even the Blazers winning is okay.
What a great post Danny, in fact I would think that this was a Vulcan mind-meld with someone you sat across the table from recently, but I don’t recall any pointy ears. I haven’t payed close enough attetion to Deng, but I know Derrick Rose is amazing and Noah makes up for any weakness in Boozer’s game. I know Boozer is not a favorite here, but he is bringing to Chicago what they need from his position. Listening to an NBA review of the Bulls/Nets game last night, the announcer referred to C.J. Watson as C.J. Miles three times, it made me laugh.
I would love to see a Chicago Bulls/San Anonio Spurs
Finals, I would have a hard time picking a favorite in
that match-up.
@LKAnderson Just because someone expresses an opinion diffent than yours does not make them a troll
@Patrick Your hatred of Boozer is not uncommon, but if you remember the 2007 playoss you will recall Boozer was a huge part of the Jazz going to the Western Conference Finals without help from D.Rose or Deng. Oh and no Rose no playoffs could be said like, no Kobe, no playoffs, no Dirk no playoffs, no Durrant no playoffs and so on…
Hard to pick against da Bulls. They’ve beaten all the other top teams in the East recently. Fun to watch too.
Bulls are in the East, Division 2 of the league, nothing more to say……..
Deron is good and I am and will be a fan of his wherever he goes (although he’s dumb if he’s guilted into staying in New Jersey). BUT, Derrick Rose is better now. And even Westbrook is better now.
And I think it comes down to attitude. In the Chicago game at home, we would have won that game if Deron had had the fire and determination of Rose instead of the pouty grumpiness we saw. I’m still asking myself if he threw that game on purpose.
Thanks for reading everybody. Just so you know I am a die-hard Jazz fan and always will be. My favorite players are those that are currently on a Jazz roster at that time. However, I began to wonder why the Bulls were so successful and the Jazz had never gotten higher than a 4 seed with some of the same players and similar rosters. This is what I got. My argument for Deng over AK is that Deng needs to be guarded on the outside and AK was left alone. Thanks for reading everybody.
Couple things:
Your point about having a defensive C is solid. I agree that Okur’s interior defense was a huge handicap, and was compounded by the fact that nobody else could do it at all.
I don’t agree with your AK/Deng breakdown. Andrei is a very good offensive player, and Deng is a good defender. It’s not like Tony Allen vs. Carmello. These guys are pretty well rounded and fairly similar. Once Williams left AK started to shoot a lot better. This season has been pretty good for him shooting 3s.
It’s my opinion that the main difference between these two teams is that the Bulls are buying into team defense and the role players work well within the gameplan. AK just didn’t fit right with Boozer and Williams, and Williams didn’t like the flex. With the Bulls you see their best player playing the hardest, buying in and setting an example, and everyone else following suit.
Unfortunately this was not the case for the Booz/DWill Jazz. Chemistry matters.
It makes it hard to root for the Bulls with them having Boozer! I really hate everything about the guy.
I love Brewer and Korver.
MVP Rose deserves it, but because of my hate for Boozer i hope they lose out. Burn in hell Boozer. I Pray your team loses!
Oh ya, and losing to the greatest player ever, makes it hard to root for the bullz!
These are some excellent points Danny. They really are an intriguing team. To me, the difference between Noah and Memo is the biggest factor. I always thought that Booze would’ve thrived here alongside a defensive-minded, tough rebounding center (not that I wanted to jettison Memo). Noah is perfect, for he doesn’t need plays called and covers up some of Boozer’s defensive deficiencies. Great post!
Are there any Jazz fans from the 90’s left?
Of coarse we can’t root for the Bulls… HE PUSHED OFF!!!