Written by Tom, Cornrows
CHICAGO BULLS
Recap Rewind: The Bulls clinched a playoff spot last week after winning 3 of 4 games. They began the week wiping out the Portland Trailblazers. A couple of Central Division manhood games followed, first, with the Detroit Pistons in town Kirk Hinrich hit 2 of 3 free throws with 2.8 seconds left to give the Bulls an 83-81 win. The Bulls followed that win up with an excruciating loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in overtime. The Bulls had several chances to win the game in the last 30 seconds of regulation but couldn’t get the game winner to drop.
Notable News: The Bulls moved to within a half game of Cleveland in the Central Division. The spot is valuable because it would vault the Bulls to the two seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs…With Andres Nocioni, rookie Tyrus Thomas has taken advantage of the additional playing time to prove he can be a solid contributor, showing flashes of scoring, rebounding, defense and just pure energy…Former Bulls’ coach, Phil Jackson, was named to the Basketball Hall of Fame. Jackson’s six championship seasons with the Bulls highlight his Hall of Fame credentials.
Fast Forward: Chicago has a challenging week ahead if they plan to improve their playoff position. They begin on the road at the Detroit Pistons, return home to face the New Jersey Nets, and then head out of town again to face the Toronto Raptors.