Nifty 50

The regular season has finally ended, Bulls fans.  And it ended as well as it could have given all your team has had to deal with this year.  A 91-85 win Wednesday over the Atlanta Hawks means the 2014-15 Bulls will go down as a 50-win club.  It also means they get the third playoff seed in the East and will play the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.

This game was not sharply played on either side by way of wildly missed shots and plentiful turnovers (12 for the Bulls in the first half).  Somehow, the Bulls trailed by only seven halftime.  Then, Atlanta quickly expanded its lead to 18.  The fourth seed and a first-round meeting with Washington seemed inevitable.

Suddenly, the Bulls went on a 19-2 run to come within two, a deficit they maintained by the finish of the third quarter.  For the fourth, Mike Budenholzer decided to pull his starters and play the back end of his bench.  The Bulls, even without Derrick Rose for the second half due to left knee soreness, were happy to take advantage.  It took a while for them to show urgency in putting the Hawks' reserves away, but they finally cracked down defensively and scored at just the right times.

Aaron Brooks, stepping in after Rose took himself out, led all scorers with 23 points.  He's going to be a menace in the playoffs, just like Nate Robinson two years ago.  Jimmy Butler scored 21 to cap his best season ever:  20 points per game.  You better believe the Bucks and all playoff opponents after will be putting him first in their playoff game plans.

Pau Gasol had 18 and 13 to bring his league-leading grand total to 54 double-doubles.  It'll be refreshing for him to return to the playoffs and shine as he did when the Lakers were title winners, given he's not gassed, of course.  Nikola Mirotic totaled 11 to finish a rookie campaign that has been nothing short of impressive.  Hopefully, he can continue playing well for a little bit longer.

While the Bulls obviously still have a few kinks to work out, it's refreshing to know their hard work during the regular season wasn't in vain.  Atlanta has been mostly unbeatable and Cleveland has been hot since LeBron James returned from an absence in January.  The third seed was as good as they could have hoped for.  Given all the injuries and turmoil that have followed them throughout the year, it says a lot.

Never mind that the Bulls didn't close the seed out against the best players on the best team in the East.   Don't mind that Rose and Taj Gibson (with a shoulder injury) weren't in the game at the time either.  They still needed to prove they could close out games, especially with an average group facing them.  This they did and everyone at the United Center left feeling confident about their team just before the real season began.

Game 1 between the Bulls and Bucks will be Saturday in Chicago.  I'll have a series preview tomorrow and, just as in years past, a recap of every playoff game.  For now, just let everything that's happened so far this season soak in.  Hopefully, the best is still to come.