Up 1-0, the Bulls have accomplished winning one of the first two games. However, with Smith suspended for one more game, might as well be greedy and steal another.
In breaking news, LeBron returns to wear the headband! Does this unleash a more aggressive James, or will we see the same inconsistent jumper, and isolation plays from Game 1?
Will Cleveland have a defensive strategy for defending the Gasol pick and pop from the top of the key? What about the Dunleavy corner 3s? How often will James rest from guarding Butler? Will they sag off Noah even more to dare him to shoot?
Snell got limited playing time in favor of Hinrich. Mirotic had few chances as well. Both were due to the big early lead and the play of the starters. Wouldn't mind seeing more Gibson-Gasol, where Noah is pulled at the 6 minute mark.
Do they switch Shumpert on Rose earlier? The Bulls opened with a better pace but stagnated once the subs started.
Bulls had a low turnover game, and James had a high turnover game. Bulls had fewer free throws for most of the game.
Keys to the game? Fast pace, but not sloppy. Look to run. Limit turnovers and second chances and hopefully they'll have the Cavs in an 0-2 hole.
-- wake.eat.sleep
]]>Atlanta vs Washington - Atlanta in 6
Golden State vs Memphis - Golden State in 5
Chicago vs Cleveland - Chicago in 6
Houston vs Los Angeles - Houston in 6
--wake.eat.sleep
]]>The simplest game summary is this:
So we're finally here again. Has it really been 5 years since the Bulls played in the Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals and it felt like we were going to be in it every year?
A lot has changed, a lot of new faces, and some rumors of familiar faces leaving.
If there is one optimistic/delusional thing that I can hold on to, it is the fact that the organization, including the coaching staff, despite the public appearance or perception has taken a very conservative approach to handling injuries. In past seasons, players have fought through injuries to win regular season games, only to have those injuries reduce their effectiveness in the playoffs. Keep in mind that the Bulls still won 50 games this season.
All that matters now is how well they do in the playoffs. Realistically, the minimum expectation is to advance easily out of the first round. Optimistically, it will be to compete and possibly beat the presumed best team in the East in the second round, if both teams advance. After that, anything is possible!
Here's some player projections/notes going into Round 1.
(Disclosure: Updated to add Taj!)
]]>Sorry for the radio silence, but we're back!
Let's start off with some quick predictions for Round 1.
Western Conference
#1 Golden State vs #8 New Orleans - Golden State in 5
Expect Anthony Davis to make a statement in this series, and to help steal a game in New Orleans.
#2 Houston vs #7 Dallas - Houston in 7
Coaching will keep Dallas in this series, but despite the injuries, Houston should prevail.
#3 Los Angeles Clippers vs #6 San Antonio - San Antonio in 7
Will the difference in home court ultimately make a difference here? Tough to pick against San Antonio as they have been playing at a high level going into the playoffs.
#4 Portland vs #5 Memphis - Memphis in 6
Without Wes Matthews, Portland has been at a disadvantage. Memphis should be able to close this out in fairly bland fashion.
Eastern Conference
#1 Atlanta vs #8 Brooklyn - Atlanta in 4
I expect low ratings and low highlights in this series.
#2 Cleveland vs #7 Boston - Cleveland in 5
Could Boston steal a game 3 or 4 at home? The first two games in Cleveland will not be pretty.
#3 Chicago vs #6 Milwaukee - Chicago in 5
My initial instinct suggests that this will be a sweep. The casual fan impression is that this will be a defensive struggle. The reality is that the Bucks are strong at defense, weak at offense. The Bulls are strong at defense and offense this season. Presuming full strength, the series will be fun and competitive and over in 5 or less games.
#4 Toronto vs #5 Washington - Toronto in 7
Will Washington rediscover their playoff magic from last season? Both teams have higher expectations than last season's playoff appearances, but one of these two will be going home unhappy.
St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch decided to immediately release as much evidence as possible to the general public immediately after the decision not to indict Darren Wilson:
http://apps.stlpublicradio.org/ferguson-project/evidence.html
Was this an attempt to be completely transparent? Or cynically, was this an attempt to further step away for taking responsibility for the duties of his office? Rather than make the decision and have it clearly on his office, and largely him, he offloaded it to a grand jury who we will never meet. Additionally, by releasing the information to people that don't typically look at this information, and allowing them to make their own decisions, it increases the amount of noise on the discussion, further diluting his role in all of this. That's the cynical way to look at it.
One piece from the packet of interest, is Darren Wilson's testimony.
]]>After 108 days, tonight will mark the hopeful beginning of the healing process for the community of Ferguson. The Ferguson grand jury has made a decision in whether to pursue a criminal indictment of Darren Wilson in the death of Michael Brown.
No matter where you stand on this, tonight's response to the decision will come down to a matter of trust.
Does the community trust that the grand jury was impartial, fair and thorough in its decision?
Does local and state law enforcement trust that people will peacefully express their freedom of speech, no matter the result, no matter the presence of the National Guard?
Does anyone trust the decision making process that allowed the announcement to be made at night? Low light and visibility appears to favor those that will abuse their rights to protect or protest under the cover of darkness and the shadows of chaos.
I hope and pray for the best. I still trust that people feel the same as I do.
-- wake.eat.sleep
]]>
Derrick Rose recently did an interview with ESPN where he talked about his return from his second major injury has been going and his affect to his game.
From the article:
"I'm good, man," Rose said. "I felt like I've been managing myself pretty good. I know a lot of people get mad when they see me sit out or whatever, but I think a lot of people don't understand that ... when I sit out it's not because of this year.
"I'm thinking about long term. I'm thinking about after I'm done with basketball. Having graduations to go to, having meetings to go to, I don't want to be in my meetings all sore or be at my son's graduation all sore just because of something I did in the past. [I'm] just learning and being smart."
Many people did NOT like hearing this at all for various reasons. Sports radio, social media and various columnists like notorious ranter Steve Rosenbloom were ready to share their opinions on him, particularly as a person.
To me, you call it what you will, but I'll call it what it is, hypocrisy.
]]>We interrupt our normal topics to cover something important. There is a fellow named Julien Blanc that normally would not be known outside a smaller group of people, that gained some viral notoriety through a video that has been spreading through the Internet:
He's known as a pickup artist (PUA) and someone that runs a company that teaches his take on PUA principles. By its wiki definition, the intent is sexual relations.
Many men haven't developed the social charms or skills in meeting women. The PUA community has developed around helping each other understand how to get better at it. It broke into the mainstream due to the publishing of The Game. Once it broke into the mainstream, more and more men and women have emerged to help / "help" men pick up or meet women through videos, blogs and of course paid courses or workshops.
At its best, the goals and principles of PUA is how to better connect with and date women that you are interested in. It teaches and encourages confidence and helping those who may be socially awkward on how to get out of their own way. Truly listening, connecting, reading body language, respecting verbal and non-verbal cues and ultimately looking at women as people. In most cases, it makes no promises that you can have any woman that you want. But that you can be more comfortable and confident in going up to talk to any woman that you want.
The Bulls open the 2014-2015 season in New York tonight.
What's in store for our team this year?
]]>With the season tipping off in the next hour or so, let's get in some quick predictions for the season.
There was the first steps toward closure today when the family of Michael Brown was able to hold a funeral for him today.
Of course, there is still a lot that will still happen in the next couple of weeks and months that will hopefully bring closure and justice for everyone that's been affected: the family of Michael Brown, the police officer involved and his family, the community of Ferguson, the county police and the St Louis area.Baring an unexpected surprise, it looks like Carmelo Anthony will return to the Knicks as expected. It will be mildly entertaining to hear the reasons and of course all of the anguish that he must have gone through to make his decision.
LeBron James will be another big name that we should hear from a lot today. Based on all of the reporting so far, I think it will come down to one of two scenarios: He'll stay at Miami for a shorter term contract with a player option (2 years + option), or he'll return home to Cleveland for a 4 year deal. Based on what he does, then Bosh will either stay or sign with Houston.
What about the Bulls? Well, I wouldn't mind if they targeted a certain Spaniard.
NBA Free Agency is set to begin in less than two hours, and although there may be a few surprises here and there, the people that will really get things going are Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James (and by association Wade and Bosh).
Has my mind been changed on what will happen over the next couple of days?
]]>As it became clear that New York was not going to make the playoffs, stories began to bubble up on the possibility of Carmelo Anthony wanting to opt out of his contract to join another team. Since then there has been a pretty steady stream of official and unofficial reports that lay down the narrative that Melo wants to join the Bulls, and the Bulls want to make it happen.
Is this really the case? Or is this the same story of another potential free agent using everything in his power to increase his leverage by creating interest? Haven't we seen this story before, with Tracy McGrady and even more recently with the likes of LeBron, Wade, Bosh, etc? Haven't we learned out lesson yet?
Let's break down some of what we've heard.
]]>If there is anything my recent trip to Japan this year taught me, it's that I've been a fan of vocal idols for longer than I realized.
(A picture of the vocal idol group, Wake Up, Girls! All of them play fictionalized versions of themselves in the anime)
I'd like to introduce an occasional series here called Idol Thoughts, a quick dip into the world of vocal idols and the things that happen in the real world and online. I hope you'll find my random musing and thoughts useful.
-- wake.eat.sleep
]]>Last off season was full of hope and optimism that the Bulls would finally get deliver on the promise of having luck finally turn our way.
Instead, it was another season full of tough breaks and overachieving despite adversity lurking around every corner.
Basketball is over for the Bulls, but at least there was some acknowledgement of individual achievements.
]]>I'm going to be as optimistic as everyone else and hope for a fun entertaining series. A lot of history to be made either way for both franchises.
Spurs in 7.
-- wake.eat.sleep
10!!!
]]>The quick review? Everything is boringly falling into place.
Here are the Round 3 Quick Picks.
]]>...And this is probably why I wouldn't be able to do this for a living.
Here's the quick review of my picks, and a little bit more detail:
Eastern Conference
#1 Indiana vs #8 Atlanta: Indiana in 6 - Actual Result: Indiana in 7
It turns out that Indiana has a lot more structural issues, and Atlanta is better coached than we gave them credit for. In the end, Atlanta went cold in Game 7 on a majority of open looks that were falling earlier in the series, and Indiana did what they needed to do to advance.
#2 Miami vs #7 Charlotte: Miami in 5 - Actual Result: Miami in 4
Al Jefferson got injured in Game 1, and although he continued to play they didn't have enough to win.
#3 Toronto vs #6 Brooklyn: Brooklyn in 7 - Actual Result: Brooklyn in 7
I figured that Toronto's relative inexperience would hurt them in a long series. This series brought back the surprising return of Joe Johnson to playoff relevance.
#4 Chicago vs #5 Washington: Chicago in 6 - Actual Result: Washington in 5
I'll do a longer write up, but Washington came prepared with a better strategy and executed better throughout the series. If there was a perception that Washington would lack poise going into the playoffs, there was very little evidence of that in this series. Great start for Washington, and another disappointing playoff exit for Chicago.
Western Conference
#1 San Antonio vs #8 Dallas: San Antonio in 5 - Actual Result: San Antonio in 7
A fun, well-coached series as Carlisle did his best to find ways for Dallas to keep up with San Antonio. In the end, regular season San Antonio had more than enough in Game 7 to pull away.
#2 Oklahoma City vs #7 Memphis: Oklahoma City in 6 - Actual Result: Oklahoma City in 7
Who knows what might have been? OKC never looked comfortable against Memphis, but with Randolph suspended after throwing the punch on Adams, and Conley limited by a hamstring injury, would they have been able to win Game 7 in Oklahoma City?
#3 Los Angeles vs #6 Golden State: Los Angeles in 7 - Actual Result: Los Angeles in 7
Off-court issues aside, this was the high scoring affair we all expected it might be. Oddly enough, I thought that Golden State's organizational issues were more internally divisive than Los Angeles'. Los Angeles at least got to bond together over their issues.
#4 Houston vs #5 Portland: Houston in 6 - Actual Result: Portland in 7
Similar to the other 4-5 matchup, I underrated the coaching on one team. This series had some wonderful individual performances from Aldridge and Lillard. Of course, it had the fantastic end to the series:
Now what about Round 2?
]]>Doesn't get much simpler than this tonight: Win or the season ends.
The Bulls have lost every 1st quarter in this series. If they win tonight's quarter, they have a greater chance of winning the game. (We can worry about trying to win the series later).
Look who's on the ticket tonight:
-- wake.eat.sleep
To quote Ron Burgundy: "Boy, that escalated quickly! I mean that really got out of hand fast!"
Going into the game, I had predicted that if the Bulls couldn't win the first quarter, they wouldn't win the game. I felt that if they couldn't change the momentum of the series early on, and if they fell into Washington's pace it would be more of the same in this game.
Bulls win the first quarter, they win the game. #CHIvsWAS #ChicagoBasketball #SeeRed #GoBulls
— Wesley Rizal (@wrizal) April 25, 2014
Turns out that I am as terrible at predictions as Bradley Beal, and I couldn't be happier to be wrong!
]]>
With no rhyme or reason, here's my quick picks for Round 1 which starts today:
Eastern Conference
#1 Indiana vs #8 Atlanta: Indiana in 6
#2 Miami vs #7 Charlotte: Miami in 5
#3 Toronto vs #6 Brooklyn: Brooklyn in 7
#4 Chicago vs #5 Washington: Chicago in 6
Western Conference
#1 San Antonio vs #8 Dallas: San Antonio in 5
#2 Oklahoma City vs #7 Memphis: Oklahoma City in 6
#3 Los Angeles vs #6 Golden State: Los Angeles in 7
#4 Houston vs #5 Portland: Houston in 6
-- wake.eat.sleep
]]>Well, that was a lot of fun!
The very first time I went, I didn't stay very long. This time I stayed until close: 17:00 (5 pm). It was a fun time seeing stuff, hearing from fans and just being in the general atmosphere of people that enjoy the same things that you do.
I took over 1000 photos, so eventually the link above will have a lot more.
This was also physically exhausting for my feet, but I had one more event to join.
]]>I took my time to head back to Tokyo and returned back to Asakubashi.
I was still pretty exhausted from my Osaka night out, so other than some small wanderings around Akiba, I called it an early night, since tomorrow would be a huge day for me.
#3dc
-- wake.eat.sleep
]]>