Minimum 8-Peat: Five Game Wrap (Games 48-52)

The Bulls pushed their record to 36-16 overall with a 3-2 road trip while Disney on Ice occupied the United Center. They currently sit atop the Central Division just 2.5 games behind Boston for the top seed in the Eastern Conference (if the playoffs started today they would be the three seed matched up against the New York Knicks). Side note: what’s more impressive, the Bulls being undefeated in the Central or the T’Wolves going winless thus far in the Northwest?

On the Backburner: NBA Cliques Exposed

The NHL recently announced that it will change its all-star game format to increase fan & player interest. Next Friday, three captains for each team will be drafting their teammates in a video game style fantasy draft. It will be televised on Versus at 7pm. I'll be honest - I'm the type of person that will tune in on Friday but still won't watch the game. I think the draft is must-see-TV, even though hockey players generally seem cordial to one another & there's little drama amongst stars in the sport.

On the Backburner: December Reflections

It's been awhile since I last made a contribution to this blog, so I felt like tonight was a good time to share my NBA thoughts; 13 games are on the slate tonight and Rick Kamla is hosting NBA TV. Nobody gets me more amped for NBA ball than Kamla. (He has me glued to this Nets-Cats nailbiter). This blog post will have no theme, wit, or structure. Essentially this is a lecture of random NBA thoughts from a die hard NBA fan, non-NBA junkies please close this webpage -------------- thank you.

Going Upstairs: Quick Schedule Update

First of all, great road trip for the Bulls. It's been written about several times already, but this team cannot get enough praise for what they did out West. They battled through injuries, tough opponents, and back-to-backs to come out with a winning  4-3 record on the Circus Trip. We saw tremendous resiliency night after night as they got used to falling behind early, but each time fought back. We saw Derrick Rose elevate his status as an elite player by averaging over 30 points a game on the trip. We saw how tough and how deep the Bulls are by coming within two John Lucas free throws from beating Denver without their best player. It's now time for a much deserved break.

Going Upstairs: I Love the Bulls

I'm not sure if you stayed up to watch the entire Bulls game tonight. If you did, you were rewarded with not only a great comeback, but an incredible display of will and guts.

On the second night of a back-to-back, the Bulls looked gassed from the beginning. Derrick Rose and company expended a lot of energy just to stay close against the Lakers the night before, and when they couldn't steal the win in L.A. you wondered if they had anything left in the tank for Phoenix. It turned out they didn't, and they fell behind 36-17 in the first quarter. But they spent the next three quarters scratching and clawing their way back, eventually sending the game to double overtime before prevailing, 123-115.

Jonesin' Around: Circ and the City

As this is my first post at Pro Basket-blog, I'd like to start by saying that I am thankful to Mr. Becker for opening his doors to a select few other writers, including myself. It is an honor and a privilege to contribute to this soon-to-be giant of basketball opinions.

In dealing with the lighter aspects of the sport, and having not yet graduated from the Bill Simmons' School of Writing, my posts will be more brief than that of my fellow bloggers.

I'd also like to state that the opinions I express are mine alone, and not reflective of the other writers.

Let's begin.

Going Upstairs: West Preview

I apologize for the delay in publishing my Western Conference preview. Unfortunately, the season is already two weeks old, but note that these are my thoughts are from before the season started (it's your choice whether or not to believe me).
 

Tier 1

LA Lakers - Let me just say that even if Kobe wins another title, and even if it's against Miami, that still doesn't put him in the conversation with Michael Jordan. Jordan did define much of his career after turning 32, winning titles at age 33, 34, and 35, so one would think Kobe still has time to catch Mike. But at age 32, Kobe has already played 1227 games (including playoffs) in his NBA career, whereas Jordan had only played 850 at that age. Kobe's clock is ticking, however it's time to start appreciating how great of a player he really is.

One of the beautiful faces of the NBA.