I've composed myself (enough) to begin a post I would have rather done a few weeks from now. Instead, the Bulls' season has already come to an end thanks to a tight 79-78 Game 6 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.
Andre Iguodala led all scorers with 20 points, but the last two were for all the marbles. With the Bulls nursing a one-point lead in the final seven seconds, Omer Asik missed two free throws. Iguodala ran coast-to-coast uncontested to draw a foul, setting up the two free throws he promptly knocked down to win the game and the series for Philadelphia.
Luol Deng and Rip Hamilton (who easily had his best game this series) each had 19 points to lead the Bulls while Deng grabbed 17 rebounds for a double-double. Taj Gibson, still favoring his ankle, did his best once again to make up for Joakim Noah's absence by pouring in 14. Those three were the most responsible for keeping the Bulls in the game throughout and they came very close to pushing the series back to Chicago for Game 7.
There are many reasons the United Center will be dark on Saturday, but three in particular stand out. They happened to be in tonight's starting lineup. First, C.J. Watson shot poorly tonight and played too conservatively up top. Still, he had 10 assists and appeared to have the biggest one when he passed to Asik for a dunk with less than 30 seconds to play, extending the lead to three. Ironically, it was that duo responsible for what led to the Bulls' demise. After Philly cut it to one, Watson brought the ball up the floor and passed it to Asik instead of dribbling it out until he was touched himself. That leads to reason number two, though not to as big of an extent. Asik had 10 points and played his heart out to the point of exhaustion. But no matter what he did in the previous 47:35, you can't excuse not rising to the occasion when he was needed. Okay, I admit he's not the best free throw shooter around and he probably wasn't on the floor at the right time. Still, he's not notoriously bad like Shaq and Rodman were. He even made a pair earlier in the fourth quarter. You gotta play the cards you're dealt with and unfortunately, Asik went bust. Third, Carlos Boozer was nowhere close to the player who showed up for Game 5. He had 13 rebounds, but shot 1-for-11. It got to the point where Tom Thibodeau sat him in the third quarter and never let him see the floor again. He didn't earn his giant paycheck tonight. Otherwise, the season is still alive.
The Sixers got it done tonight because the Bulls didn't take advantage of enough opportunities, particularly at the start of the third quarter. Philly couldn't buy a bucket, but the Bulls turned it right back over, especially Boozer. Overall, they shot better, especially beyond the three-point line. The defense the Bulls are known for playing collapsed at critical times, leaving the Sixers open for opportunities that shouldn't have been there. That combined with an offense that had questionable shot selection at times added up to the loss ending the Bulls' season after 72 games.
These last two games showed that the Bulls had learned to play without Derrick Rose or Joakim Noah in the playoffs. It looked very possible that they had found the horses needed to get past Philadelphia and move on to the next round. Instead, the losses of two of their best players proved too much. The Bench Mob is best when it's the Bench Mob, not plucked to fill the gaps left by injured starters. So many factors separate starters from reserves like capabilities, stamina and court awareness among other intangibles. Even though the Sixers aren't the better team, they were healthier, gelled together better and above all, made the big plays when it counted. Not having any of those advantages will almost certainly spell doom for a team, whether you're seeded first or eighth. Even if the Bulls had come all the way back and won Game 7, the personnel needed to win a championship (i.e. Rose) wasn't there. Still, it doesn't make a first-round exit any easier to take. It'll be a long summer for the players, coaches, front office and fans.
I'll write a post about the offseason outlook for this team soon. It won't come tonight because I still need to fully recover from this blow. On another note, this blog will continue to be updated as team news breaks because that's what I'm dedicated to doing here. Hope you keep on reading because it gives me a purpose to write. It'll be a long summer, but I'll do my best to keep you company with everything Bulls basketball.
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