The first round of the NBA Playoffs continues today and we will see the Chicago Bulls take on the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclay Center in the Bronx. The game is scheduled for an 8:00 pm (Eastern) start time and will be televised on TNT. Currently the Odds for the game have Brooklyn favored by 4.5 points while the total sits at 183.5.
Analysis: The controversy surrounding point guard Derrick Rose is percolating again after the Game 1 rout. Rose tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in last season’s playoffs and hasn’t played at all this season despite the team having medically cleared him. The call is Rose’s over whether he will play and Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau continues to walk a delicate line when asked about the former MVP. “Most likely out, but you never know,” Thibodeau said shortly before Saturday’s game began. “The playoffs are stretched out too, so you have to factor that in. Who knows another week from now where he is? You always want to leave that possibility open.” Point guard Kirk Hinrich left Game 1 with a thigh injury and his status is uncertain. Chicago will need a much better effort both offensively and defensively to avoid returning home with an 0-2 deficit.
The Brooklyn Nets put on a tremendous display in the series opener as they raced to a 25-point halftime lead and cruised to a 106-89 victory on Saturday, making a strong statement with its high level of dominance. It will be interesting to see if Brooklyn matches its emotional Game 1 showing. The contest was the first major sports playoff game held in the city since the 1956 World Series and the atmosphere was electric. “Everybody was excited for this game,” said point guard Deron Williams, who scored 22 points. “I think it has been a long time coming for this franchise, this organization with the move and everything. We expected to be here, so we came out playing like we wanted to be here.” Center Brook Lopez added 21 points and shooting guard Joe Johnson scored 16. Nets interim coach P.J. Carlesimo notched his first postseason victory as a head coach since the 1996-97 campaign with Portland.
Pick: Game 1 of series was higher scoring than most expected, but allot of that was the energy that the Nets played with and the tempo they made the game into. That is not really their style of play and I expect this game to revert back to the lower scoring game that it was supposed to be in game 1. The Bulls played horrible defense in that game and you can bet that Coach T will have them ready to play at that end of the floor. This is a bulls team that ranked 3rd in scoring defense (92.9 ppg) and 9th in defensive FG% (44/3%), yet the Nets continued to get easy basket after easy basket. The Bulls WILL play much better defense in this one. The Bulls offense struggled vs the Nets defense in the opener, but I don't expect them to push tempo vs them here. That will only encourage the Nets to run as well. I really look for the Bulls to slow it down and get into a halfcourt game with the Nets here. The Nets really had it go their way, but I attribute most of that to the emotion of having a home playoff game in the first year in their new stadium. I expect this game to settle down into the lower scoring affair that should have happened in game one.
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