The Bulls End the Pacers' Undefeated Season

What a beautiful win for the Bulls! The Bulls played their best basketball of the season, dominating the Indiana Pacers in every facet of the game. The 110-94 final score really doesn't explain what a blowout this game was truly was.

Defensive Dominance

You didn't have to watch the game very closely to see how defensively dominant the Bulls were, particularly during the first three quarters of the game. Kirk Hinrich, Derrick Rose, Luol Deng -- you name a player, and he played fantastic defense last night. I was particularly impressed to see Rose lockdown George Hill and Deng hold Paul George to 12 points on 3-14 shooting from the floor.

The Bulls looked like a team that was pissed off after losing to the Pacers earlier this year, and I did not see any of the sloppy rotations or lack of hustle that has been evident for most of the season.  Pacers not named Chris Copeland connected on just 1-12 threes during the the game. The Pacers' bench contributed little outside of some garbage time buckets.

D. Rose Goes Deep

A rare drive last night

Derrick Rose electrified the United Center last night, burying 6-11 three pointers en route to 20 points. Rose laughed any time the Pacers played the drive, and if not for a moving screen by Taj Gibson, Rose would have hit 7-12 attempts. He clearly has his legs back, and he finally got fantastic arc on his shots.

Though Rose's three point shooting was amazing, I'm worried he may be afraid to drive the lane. Rose only attempted 5 FGs, and he looked extremely scared to drive the ball into the lane. Rose is a dynamic offensive weapon, and though I would love if he becomes a 42% three point shooter, I do not want to see him abandon driving. Other offensive players (I'm look at you Dunleavy) can't create their own shots, thus the Rose drive 'n kick is essential to long-term success.

Bench Mob

The Bulls' core bench players played orgasmically. I haven't seen Hinrich so tenacious on both sides of the ball since his first run with the Bulls, and I'm unbelievably impressed with how confident he looked on offense.

Taj Gibson was similarly fantastic, extending plays with 4 offensive boards and chipping in for 15 points. Mike Dunleavy nailed both of his three point attempts and poured in 10 points in just 22 minutes. If the top 8 of the rotation can play like this for the rest of the season, then Bulls fans are in for a splendid regular season performance.

This was undoubtedly the most impressive game of the season. The Bulls played like hungry champions, and I haven't seen the team look this since the 2011-12 season. For real. I'm feeling extremely pumped.

Game Recap: Bulls send the Raptors to Jurrasic Park

I'm not really sure if that title makes a lick of sense, but either way, the Chicago Bulls easily defeated the Toronto Raptors last night, 96-80. With Derrick Rose out with his injured hamstring, the Bulls received a great all-around performance from the starting lineup, as every starter notched double figures in scoring.

DeMar DeRozan exploded for 37 points, but the Raptors couldn't buy a bucket outside of him and Rudy Gay. The Bulls rotated extremely well defensively, interrupting all of the Raptors' outside attempts.

Taj Gibson Impressed

Taj Gibson continues to impress me this season. He was off last year, perhaps due to the pressure of a new contract, and some injuries. Whatever the reason, it looked like letting Omer Asik walk was a terrible decision, and I completely hated the decision at the time.

Flash forward to 2013, and Gibson looks like the player who impressed during his first three years in the league. While he hasn't added the 3-point shot he's talked about since his rookie season, Taj has looked explosive and done a fantastic job defensively, less a weak performance against David West. Last night Taj played just 21 minutes, but managed to chip in 6 points, 6 boards, and 2 blocks. Plus, Taj does a great job closing out and altering shots in the Bulls' rotation heavy defense.

Deng is so good

Though Rudy Gay was a little more efficient that I predicted, scoring 20 points on 7-15 shooting, Luol Deng did a masterful job grabbing rebounds and scoring an efficient 19 points. Deng never does anything flashy, and he still isn't a great ball handler, but the Bulls were +24 with him on the court. He doesn't necessarily fill up a stat sheet like you'd think an all-star would, but make no doubt about it, Deng is an elite small forward. He's going to get paid in the offseason.

Strong Three Point Shooting 

The Bulls were 7-16 from the three point line last night, and I was encouraged to see Jimmy Butler nail a pair of triples. Hinrich missed 5 threes, many of which were wide open, but overall, he did an admirable job filing in for Derrick Rose.

This is a short recap, but my beloved Blue Demons played today, and I've got to knock out a preview for tonight's huge matchup.

Let's go Bulls.

NBA Blogs You Need to Read

While few doubt I am the best Bulls blogger east of the Mississippi (I kid), there are some awesome NBA stories that are posted daily. Here are the one's you need to read.

Beverly Hills

This is a great story on path of Houston Rockets' starting point guard and Chicago native Patrick Beverly to the NBA, written by Bulls reported Aggrey Sam. I love Patrick Beverly, and the worst part of this story is hearing about how much the Bulls front-office jerked him around. There's a very obvious reason why I don't trust GarPax, and this story explains it.

The Kirk Hinrich Accessories Timeline

I found this story via the footwear forum NikeTalk, and it's absolutely hilarious. Very lighthearted, but fun for any long-time Bulls fan.

3 Reasons Why: Kevin Love is the NBA's Early MVP

Another member of the NBA's stacked 2008 draft class, Kevin Love looks incredible for the Minnesota Timberwolves so far this season. His numbers are insane: 26 points per game, 15 rebounds, and 5 assists!

If you're listening GarPax, I'll never talk bad about you again if you find a way to get this man in a Bulls' jersey. 

What's Going on with Derrick Rose?

The last time this Bulls blogger was able to write consistently, Derrick Rose won the MVP, and then faced a year riddled by injuries.

Flash forward to 2013: Rose is perfectly healthy, except for a sore neck, which has lead to some Kerry Walsh-inspired athletic tape.

After a dominant preseason, Rose has certainly stalled out during the first few games. To start the season, the former MVP has averaged 14.3 ppg on a disgusting 28.8% shooting. The second figure literally causes me to vomit.

Offensively, this phenomenon can best be described as rust. His shot is flat, he's having a hard time beating the first defender, and his famous ability to split double teams has been non-existent.



On the plus side, he definitely did not lose any jumping ability; in fact, Rose asserted that his vertical is 5 INCHES higher now at 43 inches. The athleticism is there, the confidence to split double teams and hit deep shots is not.

It may take a while, but he will be the Rose of old, and if his preseason jumper provides any insight into the future, it suggests he will be shooting at a higher percentage than ever. I expect a 45-47% shooting percentage to become the norm when he's healed, and if he can learn how to get LeBron/MJ calls, we could see that number move over 50%.

Once Rose is back, the offense will look brand new. 

Let's face it: the Bulls don't have another creator on the roster sans Rose. Jimmy has occasional flashes, but he's much better as a corner three point shooter who runs the court for easy buckets. Carlos can do some wonderful things in the post, and frankly, he looks better than he has at any point during his Bulls tenure.

But Dunleavy, Deng, Noah, Taj, Kirk and co. do not create opportunities for themselves. Unless the departed Nate Robinson and Marco Belinelli were on the court last year, watching the Bulls play offense was an exercise in torture.

This year's offense looks familiar, but once Rose starts beating the first defender, defenses will collapse, corner three pointers will be open, and opposing defenses will have to choose between closing out on shooters and letting Rose drive, or stopping Rose and letting shooters go wild like they do in Miami. Here's a great story from SB Nation that explains why I love corner three's so much.

By no means is Mike Dunleavy quite the shooter that Ray Allen is (ok, he's the best shooter ever), but he will thrive when he gets open shots.

Patience is in order when it comes to this Bulls team. However, a championship is definitely not out of the question.