2014-15 Bulls "Shit is Getting Real" Thread

[CT III]

Mirotic is kind of sweet.

Big fan. He's only going to get more comfortable.

McDermott seems to have lost a little confidence with his shooting but holy shit Gasol has been better than I imagined.

Butler is taking it to a new level.

Good team.

http://www.desipio.com/messageboard/index.php?topic=8691.msg277543#msg277543

Please reference the bolded part, wherein Cieslak, Andrew refers to Gasol outperforming his expectations by what one can assume is a considerable amount, leading to the "holy shit" exclamation. The literate might construe this as him admitting that Gasol has been better than the marginal improvement over Boozer that he initially predicted, before you felt the need to point out that he was wrong about that thing he just copped to being wrong about.

But hey you're reading things and making connections so good for you.

Too late, TDubbs has made his post for the month and is probably gone.

You call that too late, but I call it showing up at exactly the right time.

[SKO]

Mirotic is kind of sweet.

Big fan. He's only going to get more comfortable.

McDermott seems to have lost a little confidence with his shooting but holy shit Gasol has been better than I imagined.

Butler is taking it to a new level.

Good team.

http://www.desipio.com/messageboard/index.php?topic=8691.msg277543#msg277543

Please reference the bolded part, wherein Cieslak, Andrew refers to Gasol outperforming his expectations by what one can assume is a considerable amount, leading to the "holy shit" exclamation. The literate might construe this as him admitting that Gasol has been better than the marginal improvement over Boozer that he initially predicted, before you felt the need to point out that he was wrong about that thing he just copped to being wrong about.

But hey you're reading things and making connections so good for you.

Too late, TDubbs has made his post for the month and is probably gone.

Well that's good. Anyway is there no way the Bulls could offer Butler a max deal, assuming that's what he'll probably get?

[PenFoe]

Mirotic is kind of sweet.

Big fan. He's only going to get more comfortable.

McDermott seems to have lost a little confidence with his shooting but holy shit Gasol has been better than I imagined.

Butler is taking it to a new level.

Good team.

http://www.desipio.com/messageboard/index.php?topic=8691.msg277543#msg277543

Please reference the bolded part, wherein Cieslak, Andrew refers to Gasol outperforming his expectations by what one can assume is a considerable amount, leading to the "holy shit" exclamation. The literate might construe this as him admitting that Gasol has been better than the marginal improvement over Boozer that he initially predicted, before you felt the need to point out that he was wrong about that thing he just copped to being wrong about.

But hey you're reading things and making connections so good for you.

What's important is that you've continued your Ripken-esque streak of running to defend Slaky from any form of internet attack.

[SKO]

Mirotic is kind of sweet.

Big fan. He's only going to get more comfortable.

McDermott seems to have lost a little confidence with his shooting but holy shit Gasol has been better than I imagined.

Butler is taking it to a new level.

Good team.

http://www.desipio.com/messageboard/index.php?topic=8691.msg277543#msg277543

Please reference the bolded part, wherein Cieslak, Andrew refers to Gasol outperforming his expectations by what one can assume is a considerable amount, leading to the "holy shit" exclamation. The literate might construe this as him admitting that Gasol has been better than the marginal improvement over Boozer that he initially predicted, before you felt the need to point out that he was wrong about that thing he just copped to being wrong about.

But hey you're reading things and making connections so good for you.

What's important is that you've continued your Ripken-esque streak of running to defend Slaky from any form of internet attack.

If you think my defense of Orthodox Slakyism in all its forms outweighs my feud with Tdubbs you are wrong. Sometimes things just come together, though.

[SKO]

Mirotic is kind of sweet.

Big fan. He's only going to get more comfortable.

McDermott seems to have lost a little confidence with his shooting but holy shit Gasol has been better than I imagined.

Butler is taking it to a new level.

Good team.

http://www.desipio.com/messageboard/index.php?topic=8691.msg277543#msg277543

Please reference the bolded part, wherein Cieslak, Andrew refers to Gasol outperforming his expectations by what one can assume is a considerable amount, leading to the "holy shit" exclamation. The literate might construe this as him admitting that Gasol has been better than the marginal improvement over Boozer that he initially predicted, before you felt the need to point out that he was wrong about that thing he just copped to being wrong about.

But hey you're reading things and making connections so good for you.

What's important is that you've continued your Ripken-esque streak of running to defend Slaky from any form of internet attack.

If you think my defense of Orthodox Slakyism in all its forms outweighs my feud with Tdubbs you are wrong. Sometimes things just come together, though.

Also let the record show that I am ANTI-SLAK when it comes to that delightful Anna Kendrick.

[InternetApex]

Mirotic is kind of sweet.

Big fan. He's only going to get more comfortable.

McDermott seems to have lost a little confidence with his shooting but holy shit Gasol has been better than I imagined.

Butler is taking it to a new level.

Good team.

http://www.desipio.com/messageboard/index.php?topic=8691.msg277543#msg277543

Please reference the bolded part, wherein Cieslak, Andrew refers to Gasol outperforming his expectations by what one can assume is a considerable amount, leading to the "holy shit" exclamation. The literate might construe this as him admitting that Gasol has been better than the marginal improvement over Boozer that he initially predicted, before you felt the need to point out that he was wrong about that thing he just copped to being wrong about.

But hey you're reading things and making connections so good for you.

What's important is that you've continued your Ripken-esque streak of running to defend Slaky from any form of internet attack.

If you think my defense of Orthodox Slakyism in all its forms outweighs my feud with Tdubbs you are wrong. Sometimes things just come together, though.

Also let the record show that I am ANTI-SLAK when it comes to that delightful Anna Kendrick.

If anybody wants to scroll down on that link to the part where I inadequately back up my correct assertion that Pau is leaps and bounds better than Carlos Fucking Boozer and then stop before I predict that LeBron would stay in Miami I can continue my Ripkenesque streak of making all NBA convos all about me.

Or you could not do that.

[Richard Chuggar]

Mirotic is kind of sweet.

Big fan. He's only going to get more comfortable.

McDermott seems to have lost a little confidence with his shooting but holy shit Gasol has been better than I imagined.

Butler is taking it to a new level.

Good team.

http://www.desipio.com/messageboard/index.php?topic=8691.msg277543#msg277543

Please reference the bolded part, wherein Cieslak, Andrew refers to Gasol outperforming his expectations by what one can assume is a considerable amount, leading to the "holy shit" exclamation. The literate might construe this as him admitting that Gasol has been better than the marginal improvement over Boozer that he initially predicted, before you felt the need to point out that he was wrong about that thing he just copped to being wrong about.

But hey you're reading things and making connections so good for you.

Too late, TDubbs has made his post for the month and is probably gone.

Tru

[PenFoe]

Some good Grantland Bulls splooge up front, and then some talk about how they're like an NFL team because they play like every game is do or die or something.

But then how many Thibs is being forced to rest guys because they're hurt.

It's only December 1, but it's already time to run back one of the NBA's annual questions: How the hell are the Bulls are doing this?

They have already played a handful of games without Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, and Taj Gibson, and it hasn't really mattered. They have played a league-high 12 road games, and they've come through that stretch at 9-3. Jimmy Butler has exploded out of the gate looking like an All-Star, and when the Bulls have all five starters healthy, they're 5-0. Meanwhile, Pau Gasol is playing like it's 2010, Nikola Mirotic has looked like a real weapon off the bench, and Aaron Brooks is the latest in an endless collection of backup point guards who come to Chicago and fill the D.J. Augustin Career Revival Role. Kirk Hinrich is still there, too, because Kirk Hinrich is always there. Kirk Hinrich will be with the Bulls forever, like luggage.

[R-V]

The last time I enjoyed Bulls basketball this much was Rose's MVP season. Given that they've had the whole team healthy & available for about 1/3 of the season, it's probably too soon to say what this team is and if they're a viable contender. But damn, Niko and Jimmy are fun to watch, and there were flashes last night of the old Derrick. Really liked the closing lineup of Rose-Brooks-Jimmy-Mirotic-Noah. Actually I think I like any closing lineup that doesn't include Hinrich.

[InternetApex]

The last time I enjoyed Bulls basketball this much was Rose's MVP season. Given that they've had the whole team healthy & available for about 1/3 of the season, it's probably too soon to say what this team is and if they're a viable contender. But damn, Niko and Jimmy are fun to watch, and there were flashes last night of the old Derrick. Really liked the closing lineup of Rose-Brooks-Jimmy-Mirotic-Noah. Actually I think I like any closing lineup that doesn't include Hinrich.

At this point in the season, we really don't know much about any "contender" other than the obvious signs which point to success over the coming grind and endless string of games. The top teams out West look so good but only one can advance to the Finals. The big question, as always, is how healthy the Spurs will be when the games matter.

In the East, the Bulls have more depth than they've had since 2010-11 and there's no flying death machine out there to knock them out as surely as the Heat did that year. We have to look at Washington and Toronto as true contenders based on their talent level but they remain flawed and young. And still nobody knows what to make of Cleveland. If the playoffs started today, I'd have them leaving in the second round because their defense simply cannot be trusted. However, they've shown flashes of brilliance on both ends and recorded some key victories along the way. The predictable overreactions to their sluggish start (ZOMG MORE 2012 LAKERS THAN 2010 HEAT AMIRITE?!?!?) failed to account for the intelligence and team-first mentality of their superstar. Eventually, he will figure shit out and if his teammates won't or can't, he'll have to take matters into his own hands more than he has in years. That wouldn't end well against a team that plays defense as well as Chicago.

All that said, this season has been boring as fuck for me so far. It should get better after next month as things come into focus. Christmas is the unofficial start of an actual NBA season. Everything before that is one big jerkoff.

[Slaky]

The last time I enjoyed Bulls basketball this much was Rose's MVP season. Given that they've had the whole team healthy & available for about 1/3 of the season, it's probably too soon to say what this team is and if they're a viable contender. But damn, Niko and Jimmy are fun to watch, and there were flashes last night of the old Derrick. Really liked the closing lineup of Rose-Brooks-Jimmy-Mirotic-Noah. Actually I think I like any closing lineup that doesn't include Hinrich.

At this point in the season, we really don't know much about any "contender" other than the obvious signs which point to success over the coming grind and endless string of games. The top teams out West look so good but only one can advance to the Finals. The big question, as always, is how healthy the Spurs will be when the games matter.

In the East, the Bulls have more depth than they've had since 2010-11 and there's no flying death machine out there to knock them out as surely as the Heat did that year. We have to look at Washington and Toronto as true contenders based on their talent level but they remain flawed and young. And still nobody knows what to make of Cleveland. If the playoffs started today, I'd have them leaving in the second round because their defense simply cannot be trusted. However, they've shown flashes of brilliance on both ends and recorded some key victories along the way. The predictable overreactions to their sluggish start (ZOMG MORE 2012 LAKERS THAN 2010 HEAT AMIRITE?!?!?) failed to account for the intelligence and team-first mentality of their superstar. Eventually, he will figure shit out and if his teammates won't or can't, he'll have to take matters into his own hands more than he has in years. That wouldn't end well against a team that plays defense as well as Chicago.

All that said, this season has been boring as fuck for me so far. It should get better after next month as things come into focus. Christmas is the unofficial start of an actual NBA season. Everything before that is one big jerkoff.

Jerking off is fun, so you're contradicting yourself.

Anyway, the East is pretty open. I think Toronto is pretty good despite the two losses to Chicago. Anxious to see more of the Wizards because they really looked like they were getting their shit together in the series vs. Chicago last year. But that Bulls team couldn't score. This team has no such issues.

RV is right - the real takeaway here is that the Bulls are insanely entertaining this year. Just hope everyone stays relatively healthy.

[R-V]

The last time I enjoyed Bulls basketball this much was Rose's MVP season. Given that they've had the whole team healthy & available for about 1/3 of the season, it's probably too soon to say what this team is and if they're a viable contender. But damn, Niko and Jimmy are fun to watch, and there were flashes last night of the old Derrick. Really liked the closing lineup of Rose-Brooks-Jimmy-Mirotic-Noah. Actually I think I like any closing lineup that doesn't include Hinrich.

At this point in the season, we really don't know much about any "contender" other than the obvious signs which point to success over the coming grind and endless string of games. The top teams out West look so good but only one can advance to the Finals. The big question, as always, is how healthy the Spurs will be when the games matter.

In the East, the Bulls have more depth than they've had since 2010-11 and there's no flying death machine out there to knock them out as surely as the Heat did that year. We have to look at Washington and Toronto as true contenders based on their talent level but they remain flawed and young. And still nobody knows what to make of Cleveland. If the playoffs started today, I'd have them leaving in the second round because their defense simply cannot be trusted. However, they've shown flashes of brilliance on both ends and recorded some key victories along the way. The predictable overreactions to their sluggish start (ZOMG MORE 2012 LAKERS THAN 2010 HEAT AMIRITE?!?!?) failed to account for the intelligence and team-first mentality of their superstar. Eventually, he will figure shit out and if his teammates won't or can't, he'll have to take matters into his own hands more than he has in years. That wouldn't end well against a team that plays defense as well as Chicago.

All that said, this season has been boring as fuck for me so far. It should get better after next month as things come into focus. Christmas is the unofficial start of an actual NBA season. Everything before that is one big jerkoff.

Jerking off is fun, so you're contradicting yourself.

Anyway, the East is pretty open. I think Toronto is pretty good despite the two losses to Chicago. Anxious to see more of the Wizards because they really looked like they were getting their shit together in the series vs. Chicago last year. But that Bulls team couldn't score. This team has no such issues.

RV is right - the real takeaway here is that the Bulls are insanely entertaining this year. Just hope everyone stays relatively healthy.

If I had to say right now, I wouldn't give the Bulls much of a chance against whatever dongstomper comes out of the West meat grinder. I'm just not confident they can all be healthy together long enough to get into a good rhythm heading into the playoffs. But it is refreshing to have some fun offensive basketball to watch, instead of an 84-78 snoozefest.

Just for fun - and let me emphasize FOR FUN because Dirk is a legend, they've been used differently, Niko entered the league 3 years older than Dirk etc etc - but age 23 seasons:

Niko
62% true shooting percentage
16% rebound rate
10% assist rate
3%   block rate
0.2   win shares per 48

Dirk
60% true shooting percentage
15% rebound rate
11% assist rate
2%   block rate
0.2   win shares per 48

[InternetApex]

The last time I enjoyed Bulls basketball this much was Rose's MVP season. Given that they've had the whole team healthy & available for about 1/3 of the season, it's probably too soon to say what this team is and if they're a viable contender. But damn, Niko and Jimmy are fun to watch, and there were flashes last night of the old Derrick. Really liked the closing lineup of Rose-Brooks-Jimmy-Mirotic-Noah. Actually I think I like any closing lineup that doesn't include Hinrich.

At this point in the season, we really don't know much about any "contender" other than the obvious signs which point to success over the coming grind and endless string of games. The top teams out West look so good but only one can advance to the Finals. The big question, as always, is how healthy the Spurs will be when the games matter.

In the East, the Bulls have more depth than they've had since 2010-11 and there's no flying death machine out there to knock them out as surely as the Heat did that year. We have to look at Washington and Toronto as true contenders based on their talent level but they remain flawed and young. And still nobody knows what to make of Cleveland. If the playoffs started today, I'd have them leaving in the second round because their defense simply cannot be trusted. However, they've shown flashes of brilliance on both ends and recorded some key victories along the way. The predictable overreactions to their sluggish start (ZOMG MORE 2012 LAKERS THAN 2010 HEAT AMIRITE?!?!?) failed to account for the intelligence and team-first mentality of their superstar. Eventually, he will figure shit out and if his teammates won't or can't, he'll have to take matters into his own hands more than he has in years. That wouldn't end well against a team that plays defense as well as Chicago.

All that said, this season has been boring as fuck for me so far. It should get better after next month as things come into focus. Christmas is the unofficial start of an actual NBA season. Everything before that is one big jerkoff.

Jerking off is fun, so you're contradicting yourself.

Anyway, the East is pretty open. I think Toronto is pretty good despite the two losses to Chicago. Anxious to see more of the Wizards because they really looked like they were getting their shit together in the series vs. Chicago last year. But that Bulls team couldn't score. This team has no such issues.

RV is right - the real takeaway here is that the Bulls are insanely entertaining this year. Just hope everyone stays relatively healthy.

If I had to say right now, I wouldn't give the Bulls much of a chance against whatever dongstomper comes out of the West meat grinder. I'm just not confident they can all be healthy together long enough to get into a good rhythm heading into the playoffs. But it is refreshing to have some fun offensive basketball to watch, instead of an 84-78 snoozefest.

Just for fun - and let me emphasize FOR FUN because Dirk is a legend, they've been used differently, Niko entered the league 3 years older than Dirk etc etc - but age 23 seasons:

Niko
62% true shooting percentage
16% rebound rate
10% assist rate
3%   block rate
0.2   win shares per 48

Dirk
60% true shooting percentage
15% rebound rate
11% assist rate
2%   block rate
0.2   win shares per 48

Blocks assists and rebounds are not very relevant when discussing Dirk's impact on a basketball game. What can Niko do whenever he wants no matter who or how many gigantic African men try to stop him? Dirk can do some very unseemly things in that situation.

[Eli]

What can Niko do whenever he wants no matter who or how many gigantic African men try to stop him?

Grow a beard?

[Slaky]

The last time I enjoyed Bulls basketball this much was Rose's MVP season. Given that they've had the whole team healthy & available for about 1/3 of the season, it's probably too soon to say what this team is and if they're a viable contender. But damn, Niko and Jimmy are fun to watch, and there were flashes last night of the old Derrick. Really liked the closing lineup of Rose-Brooks-Jimmy-Mirotic-Noah. Actually I think I like any closing lineup that doesn't include Hinrich.

At this point in the season, we really don't know much about any "contender" other than the obvious signs which point to success over the coming grind and endless string of games. The top teams out West look so good but only one can advance to the Finals. The big question, as always, is how healthy the Spurs will be when the games matter.

In the East, the Bulls have more depth than they've had since 2010-11 and there's no flying death machine out there to knock them out as surely as the Heat did that year. We have to look at Washington and Toronto as true contenders based on their talent level but they remain flawed and young. And still nobody knows what to make of Cleveland. If the playoffs started today, I'd have them leaving in the second round because their defense simply cannot be trusted. However, they've shown flashes of brilliance on both ends and recorded some key victories along the way. The predictable overreactions to their sluggish start (ZOMG MORE 2012 LAKERS THAN 2010 HEAT AMIRITE?!?!?) failed to account for the intelligence and team-first mentality of their superstar. Eventually, he will figure shit out and if his teammates won't or can't, he'll have to take matters into his own hands more than he has in years. That wouldn't end well against a team that plays defense as well as Chicago.

All that said, this season has been boring as fuck for me so far. It should get better after next month as things come into focus. Christmas is the unofficial start of an actual NBA season. Everything before that is one big jerkoff.

Jerking off is fun, so you're contradicting yourself.

Anyway, the East is pretty open. I think Toronto is pretty good despite the two losses to Chicago. Anxious to see more of the Wizards because they really looked like they were getting their shit together in the series vs. Chicago last year. But that Bulls team couldn't score. This team has no such issues.

RV is right - the real takeaway here is that the Bulls are insanely entertaining this year. Just hope everyone stays relatively healthy.

If I had to say right now, I wouldn't give the Bulls much of a chance against whatever dongstomper comes out of the West meat grinder. I'm just not confident they can all be healthy together long enough to get into a good rhythm heading into the playoffs. But it is refreshing to have some fun offensive basketball to watch, instead of an 84-78 snoozefest.

Just for fun - and let me emphasize FOR FUN because Dirk is a legend, they've been used differently, Niko entered the league 3 years older than Dirk etc etc - but age 23 seasons:

Niko
62% true shooting percentage
16% rebound rate
10% assist rate
3%   block rate
0.2   win shares per 48

Dirk
60% true shooting percentage
15% rebound rate
11% assist rate
2%   block rate
0.2   win shares per 48

Blocks assists and rebounds are not very relevant when discussing Dirk's impact on a basketball game. What can Niko do whenever he wants no matter who or how many gigantic African men try to stop him? Dirk can do some very unseemly things in that situation.

Well he's played in 30ish NBA games now. Let's KurtEvans this discussion.