Keeping Ahead

Although the Bulls never trailed in Wednesday's game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, there were times when the lead didn't appear safe.  You have to give the Cavs credit for continuing to push even when their aspirations looked bleak.  They were able to give the Quicken Loans Arena crowd reason to erupt a few times.  Unfortunately for them, the Bulls had an answer each time and won 95-85.

Marco Belinelli, making his second consecutive start, had the best game of his young Bulls career by leading everyone with 23 points.  He shot 7-of-15 from the field and 7-of-8 from the charity stripe.  If I were Tom Thibodeau, I'd make sure he's not out of the rotation for the rest of the season.  Then again, this is the same coach who had no reservations of sitting John Lucas III last season, even after his big performance against Miami.  On the flip side again, perhaps Thibs has finally warmed up to the shooter.  That coupled with this contest can only do wonders for the shooting guard going forward.

Luol Deng shot 8-of-13 from the floor and made all five free throws for 22 points.  Joakim Noah expressed his continued love of Cleveland by dropping a double-double of 13 points and 15 rebounds.  Carlos Boozer loved that feat so much he decided to collect one of his own, this one to the tune of 10 and 12.  Kirk Hinrich looked better than I've seen him all year.  Going 4-of-7 from the field, he scored 11 points and dished out eight assists.  He looked aggressive, confident and not afraid to do anything.  The same could be said of Belinelli for the reasons listed in the previous paragraph, so the backcourt was key tonight.

With all the talk there's been lately about how the Bulls can't close the door against playoff teams, this game was refreshing compared to some of the heartache this team has recently experienced.  The Cavaliers are on their way up, but they're too inexperienced to stick with a seasoned team for an entire game.  There's a reason they're 4-15 right now.  It will probably be a couple more years before we see them back in contention.  That said, be fortunate that even with the Bulls' current struggles, they're at least treading water until Derrick Rose returns for the late playoff push.  I'm sure you'd rather see what a team can do in the playoffs than look forward to the draft lottery.  That's my view at least.  We may not see a title this year, but competitive basketball is better to watch than below average.  Some may not find the season worth watching with the lower expectations.  Not true Bulls fans though.

Friday means the Detroit Pistons will host the Bulls, probably in front of a sparse crowd.  I saw a picture of tonight's Palace crowd as the home team played the Raptors.  Not very impressive.  We might see more Bulls fans there than the club the place is supposed to be home to.  It routinely happens in Milwaukee.  Why not invade Auburn Hills too?