If the Chicago Bulls want to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals, the team must win Game 4 in Miami. There is no other way to put it. With the talent Miami has on the court, Chicago has very little to no chance of winning the series being down 3-1. In the two previous Heat wins, the Bulls have lost their confidence on offense because of missed shots and tough defensive play on Bulls star Derrick Rose. If the Bulls want to win Game 4, they must come out hot from the start. The Bulls need to hit deep shots early from either guard Korver or Bogans, in order to spread the court and give more opportunites for Derrick Rose to find openings and drive to the basket. If the Heat team is able to establish themselves and get the fans involved, the Bulls will not be able stop the eventual scoring outburst by either Lebron or D-Wade. The Bulls need to be confident early and take a lead into the second half. The Bulls, in Game 2 and 3, hung around for three and a half quarters before Lebron or Wade eventually took over. The Bulls must get established early and foster a lead late in the game.
The Heat, on the other hand, could use another big performance from Chris Bosh. With Bosh effective, Lebron is passing and using his entire repertoire. When Bosh is aggressive and hitting the mid range jumper, the Heat are very difficult to stop. Throughout the regular season and playoffs, the Bulls have done a great job on help defense and rotating. However, with the explosiveness and speed of Lebron and Wade, the defense of Chicago seems in trouble at times. With three players all capable of creating their own shots, Chicago just doesn’t have enough manpower to keep up. If the Heat gets 25 points from two of the big three and a decent game from the third member, then the Heat will have a great chance of being victorious.
The emergence of Haslem in the series has not brought just an offensive weapon, but a big defensive body as well. Throughout the playoffs, the big men of Chicago have been abusing the inside and the offensive boards. However, with Joel Anthony playing aggressive and Haslem’s rebounding skills, the Bulls no longer have that advantage. Noah and the bigs for Chicago must win the battle down low and create second chance points to be effective in this game.
With no one on the Bulls making key long range baskets, the Heat have been able to double Derrick Rose and close the lanes off. Therefore, Rose has not been able to get comfortable and be the explosive and exciting player he can be. He must find shooters early, in order to find openings and keep the second defenders from cheating over.
Because of both team’s explosive slashers and attackers, the key to the game will focus around defense and fast break opportunities. Lebron James, Derrick Rose and Dwayne Wade may be the three most dangerous players in the League in the fast break. Both teams must focus on good help defense and quick rebounds to push the ball up court. Once the ball is in the fast break, these three players are nearly impossible to contain.
In the NBA, defense is a necessity to be successful and win a championship. However, great offense will always overpower great defense. When a team has more scorers who can create and make shots, defenses can be helpless. We witnessed this last night, as Dirk Nowitzki took over in the fourth quarter. Collison played lockdown defense, but Dirk and his great offensive plays pulled his team to victory. With the Heat’s big three, Chicago just doesn’t have the weapons to compete when they aren’t moving the ball and finding openings.
The Bulls also could use major scoring production from Boozer and Deng. These two players are keys to complimenting Derrick Rose. However with their inconsistency, it is hard to gauge their performances. In the end, it’s going to come down to MVP Derrick Rose and his ability to score and create opportunities for his teammates. Lebron and Wade both know a lot about being a lone superstar and having complimentary help issues. We will see tonight if Lebron and Wade can complement each other and their teammates and get one step closer to getting to the championship.
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