The Los Angeles Clippers were hot coming into tonight's game and let everyone know it. They also made it known that they've owned the United Center in recent years. Yes, the franchise that was once a punchline has evolved into one that makes fans of most other teams jealous, including the one here in Chicago. Despite staying within striking distance all night, the Bulls simply got outplayed in a 94-89 loss, bringing the three-game winning streak to an end.
It's easy to be a Lakers fan in L.A., but Clippers fans have to be growing at a rapid pace due to their style of play. I haven't seen so many dunks in a game since Space Jam. There were enough that they could have filled out SportsCenter's Top 10 tonight. While that didn't quite happen, it was still like watching a live-action version of NBA Jam. The Lob City duo of Blake Griffin and Chris Paul combined for 40 points while Griffin and DeAndre Jordan each had 10 rebounds. This team is young, athletic and very big. If a window of opportunity for a title isn't opened this year, it will come in the foreseeable future. They'll have to rely less on flash and more on simplicity if they are to ascend to the top of the NBA (I frankly don't believe Vinny Del Negro is the coach to make it happen), but I'm sure everyone in the organization is well aware of that.
Carlos Boozer often registers double-doubles, but they actually meant something tonight. Without an impressive 24-point, 13 rebound performance, the Bulls would have been in much worse shape at the end of the game. Alas, he kept them in the thick of things until the last flickering hope was snuffed out. Can Boozer have more games like this? I'd like to see more than just a bloated line every night.
Marco Belinelli continued to step up in Rip Hamilton's spot by scoring 18. He hit four of his 10 three-point attempts, often sending the UC into a frenzy. Joakim Noah appears to have cooled off from his recent tear, but he was still respectable with 10 points and 11 boards. Taj Gibson made up for his Saturday ejection by totaling 10 of his own. It was a disappointing night for Luol Deng, who had just eight points on 3-of-14 shooting. When you're having a good season and Nate Robinson scores one more point than you, that's a disappointment. Had he played up to his season average, this may have been a victory.
It could be argued that the Bulls had a better game tonight than their win over the Pistons. That's simply because they stayed with a top West team throughout while they trailed plenty of times against a reeling Detroit club. This may have been a loss, but I was very happy with the effort tonight. Often times this year, they've had trouble when facing top teams. Not tonight. They were shades of the last two Bulls teams who could give balanced clubs fits even in defeat. While this team may not be able to pull this off in every match-up like tonight, you have to at least give them a chance before the opening tip. This game is an example of that.
Rather than dwell on what could been a win for a day, the Bulls head out to Philadelphia, where their season concluded last year. The 76ers already lost to the Bulls once this year. They'll want to protect their home court. Time to see if our team can have some sort of revenge for having such a miserable time at the Wells Fargo Center last spring.
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