Bulls in conversation for best team in East

In Michael Jordan's final year in Chicago, the Bulls went 62-20 and won their sixth NBA title in eight years. The following season under Tim Floyd, they won just 13 games in a shortened season and commenced a run of nearly unwatchable basketball that blew the Bulls right off the front pages of the Windy City's sports sections.

The Bulls have finished over .500 just twice since then, providing one jolt of excitement when they took the more-talented Celtics to seven games in the first round of the playoffs two years ago. They posted a perfectly mediocre 41-41 record each of the last two seasons, and Vegas set the over/under at 46.5 wins for this year.

But with their next win, the Bulls will have already exceeded last year's win total. At 41-18, they're just three games behind the Celtics and two behind the Heat for the best record in the Eastern Conference. Their seed will be vitally important given that they've lost just four home games all year--only the Spurs have lost fewer--but are a pedestrian 15-14 away from the United Center.

Though the Bulls are still looking up at the Heat and Celtics in the standings, they've separated themselves a bit from the rest of the pack and made a case for their Eastern Conference supremacy last week with a riveting win over the Heat, the second time they've beaten them at home this year (though they were LeBron-less the first time). The Bulls will face Miami again Sunday, though this time they'll be taking their talents to South Beach.

The Bulls came up empty in their two trips to the Garden this year, but defeated the Celtics at home and will try to do the same on April 7. A win in that game could go a long way toward improving the Bulls' playoff seed.

With Derrick Rose playing at an MVP level, Carlos Boozer providing a consistent threat down low, Joakim Noah crashing the boards after returning from injury, and a coach who's actually competent calling the plays, the Bulls look ready to make their playoff push. When fully healthy, the Bulls just might be the best team in the East, and it's been way too long since we could contemplate such a possibility.

The Bulls spoiled their fans in the 90s but took none of the spoils over the last decade--after all, they were rarely the victors--but there's finally a reason to be excited in the post-Jordan era. March Madness is just around the corner, but in Chicago, more madness will finally follow in April and maybe even beyond.

It's July 1--do you know where YOUR LeBron is?

If LeBron James comes to the Bulls, I will become a big Bulls fan again. I want to apologize in advance to all those who have carried the torch through the 15-win season in 2000-01, through the Bill Cartwright era--through the last decade, essentially. Basketball has never topped my list of sports, and throw in some last place finishes and sub-.300 winning percentages, and my basketball meter drops pretty low. But I've watched them here and there the last couple years and I followed them closely in the playoffs. Still, kudos to those who have worn the jerseys and knew names like Ron Mercer and Fred Hoiberg.

I'm sick of the "sources" and the "summits" and the Stephen A Smiths. I'm ready for some real, live free agency and some actual signings. There's never been anything like this in any sport before. One summer will change the entire landscape of the NBA. Some teams could go from also-rans to title contenders while others will be left out in the cold, free agent-less and regretful that they traded their best players away just to chase a pipe dream that never came true.

Hopefully the Bulls will be an example of the former, and hopefully King James will write a new and amazing chapter of Bulls history. No team really has the right to get both an Air Jordan and a King James, but to hell with that. Come to Chicago, LeBron! The hardcore and the bandwagon fans await you, with a Rose in hand.

Bulls set to hire Tom Thibodeau as new head coach

ESPN and other outlets are reporting that the Bulls have found a successor to Vinny Del Negro--Celtics assistant Tom Thibodeau. Though the official announcement cannot come until after the NBA Finals, it's being reported that Thibodeau will sign on for three years.

The Bulls weren't exactly aggressive in their search for a new coach, but many analysts believe they ultimately found the best candidate out there. Though he has never been a head coach in the NBA, he has coached with the Timberwolves, Spurs, 76ers, Knicks, Rockets and Celtics. His teams have finished in the top 10 in team defense 15 times, and the Celtics held opponents to the second-fewest points of any team this season.

So, Bulls fans, here is your team's new head coach!

Oh my God, no, that's not going to work. Let's try this again:


No! What is going on here?! BAD Tom Thibodeau! One more chance:

Okay, that'll work. Thibodeau will be the Bulls' 21st head coach.

Bears offense will Martz to the beat of a different drummer

One coordinator down, one to go.

And the "one down" deserves a thumbs up. Mike Martz, who offensively coordinated the Rams to 526 points and a Super Bowl victory in 1999, is the Bears' new offensive coordinator. Martz coached the Rams to the playoffs in 2001, 2003 and 2004 (with Lovie Smith serving as defensive coordinator in '01 and '03), including a Super Bowl appearance in 2001. He also coaxed two 4,000-yard seasons out of Lions QB Jon Kitna, which is clearly the most impressive line on his resume.

The real question is why it took this long for the Bears' brass to get around to interviewing Martz. Hue Jackson? Ken Zampese? Kevin Rogers? Snuffleupagus? (Just checking to see if you're paying attention.) At least Martz can fill a whole page with his resume and presumably has some ideas about how to run an offense.

One wonders if Martz kindly suggested in his interview that the Bears sign a #1 receiver this offseason. After all, we can assume that Martz will help make the offense better, but we can also step back and realize that the Greatest Show on Turf didn't have Devin Hester and Earl Bennett as its co-stars. There's also that whole "blocking for the quarterback" thing. Martz does not bring a magic potion with him to the sideline, but he is a known quantity and a proven offensive mind.

P.S. Does anyone else think it likely that during the dinner meeting between Cutler and Martz (which, by the way, was a ridiculous thing for the Bears to require of Martz), Martz asked Cutler to please pass him a roll, and then Cutler tossed one across the table only to see it sail over Martz's head and get intercepted by the waiter?

An addendum to Friday's post (that's right, an addendum)

I mentioned on Friday how impressive the Bulls had looked in winning four straight road games against good teams. After winning yet again on Friday night in New Orleans, the Bulls became the first team ever to win five straight road games against teams with winning records. This according to Blog-a-Bull.

Keep in mind, teams don't often play five straight road games against teams with winning records. So, would the '95-'96 Bulls have done the same thing given the opportunity? Almost certainly. So it's one of those slightly misleading statistics where at first you go, "Holy crap!" and then you go, "Wait, how often does that even happen?" I don't know the answer to that, but it's still impressive.

Too bad the Bulls pulled a Bulls by losing an obscenely winnable game in their return home against the Clippers.

No Bull: Vinny's boys are suddenly road warriors

What in the world has gotten into the Bulls? The past week has easily been the team's best stretch all year, and quite possibly represents the best week in the last several years (save the week when they drafted Derrick Rose). They defeated Phoenix (17-4 at home at the time), Houston (13-5), San Antonio (17-8), and Oklahoma City (12-9) in a six-day span, all on the road. And this despite the fact that the Bulls were just 4-15 on the road heading into the game against the Suns. So the Bulls had four road wins on the season, then picked up four more in six days against four Western Conference contenders. Huh?

You can take any team--the Cavs, the Lakers, the Celtics, you name it--there's a good chance none of them would accomplish what the Bulls just did given the opportunity. Earlier this year, Cleveland went to Denver, Portland, Golden State and Utah, and lost the first and last games of that stretch. The Lakers lost three straight road games earlier this month, including a 20-point defeat in San Antonio. When Boston headed West to take on the Clippers, Golden State and Phoenix, they lost all three.

Winning four tough road games in four days just doesn't really happen in the NBA. Winning four games in a row of any kind doesn't typically happen to the Bulls.

If this level of play continues, there's no way Vinny Del Negro can get the axe. If the season ended today, the Bulls would be in the playoffs as the 7 seed. On top of that, they're just 1.5 games back of the 5 seed! Granted, this speaks more to the NBA having too many playoff teams and to the weak nature of the Eastern Conference than it does to the Bulls' success, but that doesn't change the facts.

So what's changed?

1. Derrick Rose has scored 20 or more in five straight games. More importantly, the team is confident giving him the ball when there's 15 seconds on the clock and they're down by one. That is to say, he's becoming the guy for the Bulls, something every team needs.

2. Joakim Noah is not just a big ball of energy any more--he's applying that energy and filling up the stat sheet. The man is second in the league in rebounds and averaging a double-double on the season. Some people said the monster playoff series he had against the Celtics last year would elevate his confidence and lead to a strong 2009-10 season. Some people were right.

And that's it. Let's be honest--not that much has changed. The Bulls are still just a .500 team and currently the 7th best team in the East. They were the 7th best team in the East last year when Rose was a rookie and so was Del Negro. The Bulls were expected to build on last year and be a serious contender this season, not half contender/half pretender. But this recent run of success has been awfully nice to see; let's hope it continues.

Bulls can't seal victory, which may seal Vinny's fate

Vinny Del Negro, meet Scott Skiles.

For lunch. To get advice on how to handle getting fired right around Christmas. Because that's what's about to happen to you.

Skiles--who now coaches the Bucks, a team with a better record than the Bulls--was fired by the Bulls on Christmas Eve in 2007. Del Negro seems to be begging for the same fate to befall him. His hapless Bulls have gone 4-13 since mid-November, but just to make sure John Paxson fully understood their incompetence, they blew a 35-point third quarter lead against the sub-.500 Kings. At home.

It was the biggest comeback in the NBA since 1996. It was pathetic. Del Negro has clearly lost this team.

While the Bulls took the Celtics to seven games in one of the greatest playoff series ever played last year, they were just a 41-41 team in the regular season. And now they're 10-17 this year and getting worse. Though I'm not sure it can get any worse than Monday's performance.

Oh, and Vinny--when you have that lunch with Scott Skiles, bring Lovie with you.

And now, for some ... hockey?!!

You may have already seen/heard this, but it's pretty funny. The Florida Panthers radio announcer has a rather interesting way of calling goals.

He never ceases to amaze

Good column by Dan Wetzel on the continued arrogance and me-first attitude of the 40-year-old Vermin. (hat tip: my mom)

Planting a (7) seed

Well, the Bulls couldn't quite pull off the upset over the Celtics, but they got some much needed experience for youngsters like Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Tyrus Thomas and even coach Vinny Del Negro. For Del Negro to match wits with Doc Rivers while Rose battled Rajon Rondo, Noah found ways to exploit his energy and contribute to a winning cause, and a team came together at the right time to nearly pull off something nobody expected--all in the most watched opening round series in NBA playoff history--well that just might be the start of something good.

Don't get me wrong, epic series or no, this was still a 41-41 team. And if Kevin Garnett had played in the series, the Bulls surely would have made a quick exit. But a banged up Celtics team gave the Bulls an opportunity to grow and build a foundation for next year. With a maturing Derrick Rose, a healthy Luol Deng, and some solid pieces in John Salmons, Brad Miller, Noah and others, the Bulls should be able to put the .500 mark in the rear view mirror and compete in the East. Their best opponent this year was often themselves, as they lacked intensity at times and had a tendency to lose focus. But the Bulls were 18-11 after the All-Star break, and they certainly showed some passion in the series against the Celtics, a series which I believe requires a warning to viewers who may be pregnant or nursing, or who have a heart condition.

The big question for now: What happens with Ben Gordon? He says he wants to be in Chicago, but has turned down contracts worth $50 million or more each of the last two offseasons. To sign Gordon, the Bulls would need to move payroll or risk entering luxury tax territory. John Paxson has some work to do over the next few months, but the Bulls provided their fans a level of excitement we haven't seen since the 20th century, and hopefully this experience planted a seed that will help them climb higher than the seven seed they attained this year.

Cubs win, but do they lose Zambrano?
The Cubs offense continued to produce Sunday in a 6-4 victory over the Marlins, their third in a row. It's the third time this season the Cubs have won three in a row--they'll go for a season-high four in a row Monday against the Giants. Dempster would love to get a win in game one of this short two-game set, because Tuesday the Cubs will face reigning Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum.

Good news from Sunday? Derrek Lee hit another home run--a grand slam--and Fontenot added his fifth of the year. Lee's slam--which traveled over 400 feet to straightaway center--marked the first time he had homered in back-to-back games since last April15-16 versus the Reds. Soto also showed signs of breaking out of his early season slump, drilling a double off the wall in right, hitting a hard liner to center, and driving one deep to left center in the 8th.

But the bad news could be really bad: Zambrano laid down a beautiful bunt in the 5th inning but strained his left hamstring as he beat it out. If Zambrano has to go on the DL, expect to see a fill-in from Triple-A Iowa. It could be Randy Wells (eight career appearances), Jose Ascanio (six appearances out of the 'pen last year, 7.94 ERA), or Mitch Atkins (never appeared in majors).

So we await news on Zambrano's hamstring, and hopefully he won't miss much time. Zambrano has never gone on the DL for any type of leg problem.

MLB notes
-The Rays' Carl Crawford stole six bases against the Red Sox Sunday. That ties the modern major league record and it's just the fourth time the feat has been accomplished since 1900.

-Only two of the top 10 batting averages in the majors are held by National Leaguers (Carlos Beltran and Joey Votto).

-The Giants have scored just 82 runs in 23 games this year, though they still find themselves with a 12-11 record. They beat the Rockies Sunday 1-0 in 10 innings.

Not over(time) yet

Is it too late to change the rules and make it best of 13? I can't get enough. The Bulls-Celtics series has lasted longer than the Joey spinoff and has had more drama than an ad for TNT. Believe it or not, this series has now had more overtime sessions than that Syracuse-UConn marathon in the Big East tournament.

When the Bulls went up 91-81 with nine minutes left, I said to Trevor Sierra, "Looks like we get a Game 7." Boston then immediately launched into an 18-0 run to go up 99-91, and I texted Khair Sadrud-Din to lament that the Bulls had blown it. 3:44 and three overtimes later, Derrick Rose did indeed force a Game 7 with an amazing block on Rajon Rondo.

Ray Allen dropped 51 points, including nine threes, which ties the NBA playoff record (Allen took one more three--18--than the Bulls as a team); John Salmons became the third Bull to put the team on his shoulders and carry them to victory in this series (along with Rose and Gordon); Rose had 28, 8 and 7; "Big Baby" Davis couldn't be stopped; Joakim Noah was charged up all night and had a huge steal-and-dunk over Paul Pierce in triple OT ... the list goes on and on.

And just to add a little more spice to the Game 7 stew, Kirk Hinrich got a little testy (isn't that Ben Gordon's job? bah-dum-pssh) when Rondo chucked him into the scorer's table, and the refs had to prevent a fight. A veteran team trying to claw their way into Round Two as they defend their title vs. a young bunch of start-ups trying to prove something to themselves and the world--Saturday should be an awful lot of fun, and someone is finally going to get the last laugh.

On a side note, do NBA players go through some sort of swear word training before they're allowed to enter the league? I don't mean training to be respectful, I mean training to use swear words as often and effectively as possible. It seems like every time there's a closeup of a player, they're either celebrating a made basket with "F--- yeah!" or "That's right, motherf---er!"; lamenting a ref's call with "F---!" or "No f---ing way!"; or on the sideline screaming "Let's f---ing go!" NBA games really should be rated TV14 with that little "L" under it for "language." We're used to hearing that MLB needs to "clean up the game" with reference to steroids, but the NBA needs to clean up their game with regard to all that foul language. It's really f---ing inappropriate.

Cubs notes
-Cubs pitchers lead the league in walks allowed. You can't win consistently when you give up that many free bases.

-What is wrong with Lou Piniella? Thursday's loss is on him, if you ask me. Because he:

1) brought in Marmol in the 8th instead of Heilman. Marmol walked the world Wednesday, and might still be getting over his injury. Heilman's been our best reliever all year, but remained in the 'pen until the 10th. Granted, he imploded, but that could be because he threw about 10,000 pitches in the bullpen before coming into the game.

2) pinch-hit Zambrano in the 8th instead of Hoffpauir or Reed Johnson. Um, Lou, we do have bench players. Feel free to use them. But worse:

3) Zambrano ran for himself in a 2-2 game, even though we have Joey Gathright on the bench. The Cubs stole three bases Wednesday, and Gathright could have come in and tried to take second with Soriano batting.

4) pinch-hit Reed Johnson for Mike Fontenot in the 9th, meaning Koyie Hill had to play 3rd base in the 10th, a position he hasn't played in years.

Then on Friday, Piniella pinch-hit Zambrano AGAIN. Does Big Z have some dirt on Big Lou?

-I pointed out recently (though not in this blog--you'll have to trust me) that Ryan Theriot's been swinging with a bit of an uppercut. That's not at all his game. He hits grounders through the hole and line drives, but not fly balls. I was listening to Friday's game and when Theriot lifted a fly ball with the bases loaded, I immediately assumed it would be an inning-ending flyout. But somehow Theriot managed to put enough oomph into it that he got the Cubs on board with this grand slam trend sweeping baseball this year. Just like we all figured: if you need a grand slam, just call on Ryan Theriot.

-Cotts had a good inning! Cotts had a good inning! I mean, he walked the leadoff man on four pitches, but he didn't give up any runs!

Boston OT party

The Bulls found a way to force another overtime against the Celtics, but ended up down just two points and one tooth. Brad Miller needed two free throws to tie it with two seconds left in OT, but missed the first, possibly because he had lost several ounces of blood after getting a tooth knocked out.

Though Ben Gordon had a team-high 26 points, Kirk Hinrich was probably their best player. Gordon played through a strained hamstring, but continually forced up bad shots--he was just 6-for-21 from the floor. Hinrich scored 19 points on just 12 shots from off the bench, and it was the Bulls' 24-5 point advantage off the bench that kept them in the game.

Derrick Rose was tentative as he was in Game 2, settling for jump shots instead of driving the lane. Look, no one expected the Bulls to battle in this series, and Rose set the bar unreasonably high for himself with his stellar Game 1 performance, so while I don't want to be overly critical, Rose needs to be more aggressive and create more opportunities for himself and his teammates for the Bulls to have a chance. He has shown the ability to penetrate and be a leader, but has failed to do so in Games 2, 3 and 5. To his credit, he grabbed eight rebounds and had six assists to go along with his 14 points on Tuesday.

How about Joakim Noah? He had another double-double in Game 5, and is averaging a double-double for the series. Noah had just two double-doubles in the last 18 games of the regular season.

And what a series it's been overall. Four overtimes total, and the first playoff series in NBA history to have three different games go into overtime. There have been nearly 50 tie scores throughout the first five games, and over 80 lead changes.

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If you have not seen "Extras," you are not a good person

In honor of all the extra periods in the Bulls-Celtics series, I want to take this opportunity to share a clip from the HBO series "Extras," starring Ricky Gervais. It's a great show that you should check out if you haven't already:



Cubs notes
-Milton Bradley was back in the lineup Tuesday, and he had two hits, a walk and a run. Though Bradley never went on the DL, he ended up on the shelf (except for a few pinch-hit appearances and one start) for 16 days, one more than the minimum DL stint. Had the Cubs known he'd be limited to rare pinch-hit appearances for that long, they could have called up Jake Fox.

Fox is absolutely tearing it up in Iowa. He's batting .443 with a .506 on-base percentage, and he's already whacked 11 home runs, seven doubles and a triple. Word is he can't play a lick of defense, but neither could Bradley for the last two weeks!

-Every Cubs starter had at least one hit in the 11-3 victory, including Carlos Zambrano who had three. Zambrano also scored three runs, meaning he came across the plate as many times as he allowed the Diamondbacks to do so.

-The Cubs starting lineup had seven consecutive lefties (including switch-hitters batting lefty). Anyone know the record for most left-handed hitters in the same lineup? Considering D'Backs starter Yusmeiro Petit allows lefties to hit 25 points higher than righties, he was probably not real thrilled when he saw Piniella's lineup.

With Lee and Ramirez still expected out on Wednesday, the Cubs could have a difficult matchup against lefty Doug Davis, who you may recall beat them in the playoffs back in '07.

Having a Ball

Is it just me, or are the NBA playoffs about 180 degrees (okay, maybe 150 degrees) different from the regular season? It's the selfishness, the lackadaisical play, the lack of teamwork that limits my interest in the sport from October through March. But the first round of the playoffs--highlighted by the Bulls-Celtics series--has nearly lived up to the not-so-great slogan, Where Amazing Happens.

The 76ers came back from an 18-point deficit in Game 1 to beat Orlando, then hit a game-winning shot with two seconds left in Game 3, and had a chance to tie Game 4 at the buzzer.

Three of the four Rockets-Blazers games have been decided by four points or less.

Deron Williams hit a game-winning shot with under five seconds left in Game 3 to keep the Jazz in their series with the Lakers.

But the best of them all has been the Bulls and Celtics. Game 4 managed to top the Game 1 thriller, as Ben Gordon grabbed the ball (pun intended) and drilled a game-tying three-pointer to send the game into double overtime. Ben Gordon must never need an ice bath after games because he's got ice-cold blood running through his veins. He's also got something in his shorts he'd like you to see:



After playing Game 3 as if they thought it was a best-of-two series, the Balls--I mean Bulls showed up in a big way Sunday, going back and forth with the defending champs and giving the United Center faithful a game to remember. Young guards Rajon Rondo and Derrick Rose engaged in battle, and with one more Rose assist, they both would have finished with triple-doubles.

All seven Bulls who saw action scored in double figures, and all five Celtics starters did the same. The win guaranteed that the United Center will see more NBA playoff action, and while it's anyone's guess as to which Bulls team will take the court that day, here's hoping for some more excitement the likes of which we haven't seen since last June. Hopefully Ben Gordon will be at full strength for Game 5--he strained his left hamstring during Game 4.

Cubs salvage one
The Cubs are quickly turning into an Abbott and Costello routine. Ramirez and Marmol were unavailable Sunday, and after Lee left the game early with neck spasms, it appeared for a second after Soriano was hit in the helmet by a pitch that Lou Piniella would have to add himself to the 40-man roster and play left field (remember, Bradley's out as well). For most of Sunday's 10-3 victory, the Cubs had an atrocious defensive infield comprised of Mike Fontenot, Ryan Theriot, Aaron Miles and Micah Hoffpauir.

Luckily, they don't expect Lee to go on the DL, and Ramirez and Marmol could be ready as early as today. Bradley's status remains more mysterious than that polar bear on Lost.

Despite all the injuries, the Cubs offense finally exploded, scoring 10 runs behind Fukudome's five RBI (on his 32nd birthday), Micah Hoffpauir's second homer of the season, and a solid six innings from Rich Harden. Fukudome is now fourth in the league in batting and tied for eighth in RBI. Kosuke started strong last year as well, so I'm not quite ready to assume he'll do this all year. But he sure looks a lot more confident at the plate than he did post-All-Star Break last year. And it's worth pointing out that through April last year, Fukudome had one home run and 10 RBI; so far this year he has four home runs and 15 RBI.

The Cubs now head to the desert to face a struggling 7-11 Diamondbacks team with no Stephen Drew. Lilly, Zambrano and Dempster will face Dan Haren, Yusmeiro Petit and lefty Doug Davis.

Did you know ...
-Fukudome's home run Sunday was the 14th of his career, but his first off a left-hander.

-The Rays have struggled and find themselves in last place, 6.5 games out of first.

Stunning of the Bulls

Let's play a game called Which Statistic From Game 3 Most Offends You as a Bulls Fan?

A) The Bulls lost by 21, and trailed by as many as 34
B) The Bulls shot just 37% from the field
C) The Bulls turned it over 22 times
D) The Celtics had 16 steals, including six by man-beast "Big Baby" Davis
E) The Celtics were 12-21 from the three-point line
F) all of the above

The Bulls were dominated from the start in Thursday's 107-86 pounding by the Celtics. If you only had one word to describe their performance? Sloppy. They looked unfocused and unprepared, a very different team than the one we saw in Boston. The Celtics wrested home court advantage back with the victory, and Game 4 is now a must-win for the Bulls.

What a dump
Rarely has there been a purer example of a salary dump than the Cubs' trade of Jason Marquis to the Rockies this past offseason.

The return on that trade--reliever Luis Vizcaino--was officially DFA'd (designated for assignment) Thursday after Hendry was unable to trade him. If Vizcaino signs elsewhere for the league minimum salary, the Cubs will eat $3.6 million. Add in the $875K they sent to Colorado as part of the trade, and the Cubs will have essentially paid $4.475 million instead of Marquis' $9.875 million salary.

So the final math looks like this: $5 million in the coffers, one less starting pitcher. That, my friends, is a salary dump.

Cubs notes
-Just what any sane person would have predicted on the heels of a three-game winning streak: the Cubs scored a total of one run in two games against the Reds, and consequently lost their first series of the year.

-The red hot Cardinals (10-3 in their last 13) swept the Mets, upping their record to 11-5. The matchups for this weekend's series in St. Louis will be:

Dempster vs. Wainwright
Marshall vs. Walters
Harden vs. Wellemeyer

Hopefully, facing the "W"s of the Cardinals will result in some "W"s for the Cubs.

-Soriano has a 10-game hitting streak.

-Milton Bradley will sit until he's completely healthy (is that an oxymoron?), and will bat sixth when he returns. I'm not sure if that means Fontenot will move up to five, or if the lineup will look more like Thursday's, with Theriot moving up to two, followed by Fukudome, Lee, Ramirez and then Bradley. I prefer the latter--Theriot's a good fit in the two spot. It's unfortunate that injuries and struggles at the plate have quickly eroded the lefty-righty balance Piniella was seeking when we traded for Bradley.

Did you know ...
-Carlos Quentin leads the majors with seven home runs.

-Oakland has hit just four home runs; Texas leads the league with 27.

-This is completely inconsequential, but I can't help myself: I saw on the interweb today that a no-hitter was thrown on this date in 1946. The pitcher who threw it was named Ed Head. Ed Head. I just thought you should be aware of the fact that there was once a person with the name Ed Head.

Bulls are in it to win it

In Game 1, the Bulls were nine point underdogs. After shocking Boston with a 105-103 victory, the Bulls were ... 8.5 point underdogs in Game 2. Well, the Bulls couldn't quite pull off another upset, but they once again played with Boston the entire game and lost on a Ray Allen 3-pointer with just two seconds remaining. No one--including yours truly--gave the Bulls a real shot to win this series, but they have thus far scored at will and been unfazed by the defending NBA champions. Now the Bulls will try to do what the Blackhawks just did--win two playoff games at the United Center.

Ben Gordon kept the Bulls in Game 2 with 42 points, including six threes. But the Bulls were killed on the boards, allowing the Celtics to claim 21 offensive rebounds and take 96 shots compared to 80 for the Bulls. One would hope that the energy in the United Center Thursday will help the Bulls clean up the glass more effectively.

The young Bulls were once again composed, remaining calm despite going down by 12 in the first quarter. Vinny del Negro didn't always have his guys focused this season, but they've been locked in during the playoffs. It's also becoming more and more clear that the midseason trades made by the Bulls were good ones, as trade acquisitions Brad Miller and John Salmons combined for 33 points Monday.

Bulls notes
-The Bulls set a franchise playoff record with 14 blocks, including six by human pogo stick Tyrus Thomas.

-The Bulls shot 50% and scored 115 points on the heels of their 105 in Game 1--this despite the fact that Boston allowed just 93.4 ppg during the regular season, good for third in the NBA.

Samardzija watch
Jeff started for the second time Saturday, going six innings and allowing two ER on just one hit. He walked one and struck out five. The outing dropped Samardzija's ERA to 3.75.

-In other minor (league) matters, OF Jake Fox is absolutely tearing it up with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs. He's batting .478 with seven home runs and 22 RBI in just 11 games. Fox was the Pacific Coast League Player of the Week last week, and leads the Minors in homers, RBI and hits.

In spring training with the Cubs this year, Fox played in 22 games, batting .350 with four home runs and 16 RBI. Fox is 26 years old.

Every Rose has its horns

All year, Derrick Rose has been a superstar waiting to happen. Well, the wait is over.

In his first ever playoff game, the 20-year-old rookie went on the road against Rajon Rondo and the defending champion Celtics, and all he did was drop a game-high 36 points, adding 11 assists and four rebounds for good measure. The 36 points are the most he has scored all season, and are tied for the most points ever by a player making his playoff debut. He played 48 minutes (out of 53) and was 12-12 from the free throw line.

On the back of Rose's amazing performance, the Bulls stole Game 1 from Boston 105-103 in overtime, and no doubt came to believe they can win the series in the process. In a season in which the Bulls have at times lacked intensity and been consistently inconsistent, they showed some serious guts as they maintained their composure during a second half Celtics comeback, forcing overtime and ultimately getting in the playoff win column for the first time since 2007.

Sans Kevin Garnett, the Celtics looked awfully pedestrian, allowing 97 points in regulation, shooting just 39% from the field, and letting all five Bulls starters score in double figures. Boston was 35-6 at the Garden this season, but did not intimidate the young Bulls on Saturday. So the Bulls strike first, and have the advantage of knowing that if they hold serve at home, they'll be moving on to the second round.

Cubs notes
-Milton Bradley was suspended for two games, meaning it took him less than two weeks to get injured and suspended. Some things never change.

I don't mind the passion he showed after striking out with the bases loaded on what appeared to be a ball inside. But unfortunately, he made slight contact with the ump's hat, and however slight it may have been, that's a big no-no.

Bradley's appealing the suspension, but remained out of Saturday's lineup due to injury (though he did pinch hit). If he's not going to play anyways, couldn't he just serve the suspension while he's hurt? Maybe MLB rules somehow prevent this clever maneuver, but I'd rather he serve it now instead of in a few weeks when he's healthy enough to play.

-How good would Dempster be if he didn't tend to have one inning each start in which he walks several guys, can't find the plate, and consequently sees his pitch count skyrocket? It was Dempster's debacle of an inning that led to a loss in Game 1 of last year's NLDS.

-I've been saying this for a while now, but the Cubs are going to have to improve their bullpen if they want to a) win the division, and b) do anything in the playoffs. Specifically, they have to add another lefty. Cotts's ERA should be much higher, except other pitchers keep bailing him out after he walks and/or hits multiple batters.

-Is every Cubs/Cardinals game going to be like this? The rivalry seems to be in full force this year. I'll be at Wrigley Sunday with Trevor Sierra and Tony Fuggiti, and while another nail-biter would be exciting, a blowout wouldn't be so bad either.

MLB notes
-Oh, those poor Nationals. Friday, they took a 2-1 lead into the 9th against the red-hot Marlins, only to lose 3-2 in 10 innings. Saturday, they took a 5-0 lead in the first and navigated their way to a 6-3 lead in the 9th. But an RBI single and a two-run homer later, they had blown another late lead and a great chance to win their second game of the season. After 10 games, the Nationals are 8.5 games out of first.

-Chien-Ming Wang won 19 games in '06 and '07, and was 8-2 last year before suffering a season-ending injury. In three starts this year, Wang has pitched a grand total of six total innings and has allowed 22 ER, good for a 33.00 ERA. I wouldn't be shocked if the Yankees DL'ed him, if for no other reason than to give him some time off mentally.

Wang was knocked out of the game Saturday as part of a 14-run 2nd inning for the Indians--17 batters stepped to the plate in the frame. It was the second time in the series that the Indians had put up at least nine runs in an inning. Through 10 games, the Yankees' team ERA is 6.84, good for 27th in the Majors.

-After 47 consecutive saves, Brad Lidge finally blew a save with the Phillies--the Padres scored four runs in the 9th to win it 8-5. Lidge's streak was the 3rd longest in MLB history.

UPDATE: The Nationals took another lead into the 9th inning Sunday, but gave up four runs and lost 7-4 to the Marlins. It was the first time in MLB history that a team had come back from three consecutive 9th inning defitics to sweep a series.

Also, the Yankees have placed Wang on the DL.

Thinking green

Woo hoo! The Bulls made the playoffs!

If you sense a little sarcasm there, that's because the Bulls finished the season exactly .500, 41-41, and there's a pretty good chance the Celtics are about the put the "bull" in bulldoze as they show Chicago what a real playoff team looks like. Doc Rivers vs. Vinny del Negro? That just ain't fair.

The Bulls had a great chance to lock up the #6 seed in the East, but they had a rare slip-up at home in the final game of the regular season, losing to a bad Raptors team with nothing to play for. So instead of playing the struggling, 3-pointer dependent Magic, the Bulls will take on the defending champion Celtics.

Now despite what I said above, there is at least a bit of intrigue in this matchup. It sounds like Kevin Garnett is going to be out for the whole series, if not the entire playoffs. Also, the Bulls are 9-3 in their last 12 and 14-2 in their last 16 home games, including a victory over Boston. Winning one in Bahstin will be a challenge, but the Bulls may be able to make some noise at the United Center. But for anyone holding out hope for a miraculous NBA championship? The highest seed ever to win it all was a #6 seed--the #6 seed the Bulls threw away against Toronto.

One good thing is that even if the Bulls get trounced, Derrick Rose will get playoff experience in his rookie season. The Bulls hope D Rose can be the one to lead them back to the promised land, and spending some time on the big stage is a solid way to begin his career.

Series prediction: Celtics, 4-2

From green uniforms to a green jacket


What a great Masters.

First, Tiger and Phil were paired together for the final round, and lived up to expectations with a combined score of -9.

But they couldn't quite catch the leaders, who ended up in a three-way playoff when Kenny Perry posted back-t0-back bogeys on 17 and 18. It ultimately took 20 holes to crown Angel Cabrera the winner, and I must say that I'm getting used to these Major tournament playoffs. Did Tiger institute a new PGA rule? Did he demand that any Major he plays in must end in a playoff? Bravo, Tiger.

Though Tiger didn't win it, it was good to see him back on his game--he finished eight under par and tied for 6th. But we all know who's way happier than me about Tiger's comeback--the PGA. After a solid 12-year marriage, TV ratings slapped the PGA around a bit and then abruptly left, but now they've come crawling back with their (Tiger) tail between their legs. Tiger was just one back through 16, and finished in the top 10. Add it all up, and you get:

Golf is back.

Fit for two Kings

The Bulls didn't make THE trade (Amaré Stoudemire), but they did make A trade, landing forward John Salmons and center Brad Miller from Sacramento (click post title for NBA.com story). Andres Nocioni, Drew Gooden and Cedric Simmons head west to the Kings.

The Bulls cleared cap room by unloading the four years, $28 million left on Noc's contract, and freed up some serious facial hair room by shipping Gooden.

Miller was with the Bulls for about a year-and-a-half from 2000-2002, and this year is averaging 11.9 points and eight rebounds. He's no Dwight Howard, but the Bulls could use an inside presence, and Miller has made two All-Star teams and is a good passing big man.

This is Salmons' seventh year in the NBA, and also his best, as he's averaging 18.3 points per game. He is a 6-time winner of the Whitest Sounding Name for a Black Player award.

A Look Back

The Illini had a good day on Tuesday without even taking the court. As some bloggers predicted, Purdue stepped it up with a big win over Michigan State, giving the Illini a realistic chance of catching the Spartans in the Big Ten. Here are the updated Big Ten standings:

TEAM	CONF. W-L	OVERALL W-L
Michigan State	10-3	20-5
Illinois	9-4	21-5
Purdue	9-4	20-6
Ohio State	7-5	17-6
Minnesota	7-6	19-6
Penn State	7-6	18-8
Wisconsin	7-6	16-9
Michigan	6-7	16-10
Northwestern	4-8	13-10
Iowa	3-10	13-13
Indiana	1-11	6-18

Michigan State lost for the first time on the road, as they were pasted 72-54. It was a three-point game at halftime, but Purdue dominated the second half. It looks like it will be an exciting final three weeks in the Big Ten! And I won my free sports bet at centsports.com!


My other prediction was in the NBA. The Bucks did indeed topple the Pistons, but it wasn't their offense that did the trick--it was their D. Milwaukee registered a 92-86 upset victory, and is now two games behind Detroit for the 7th spot in the Eastern Conference. The Bulls are just 2.5 games behind the Bucks, which is absurd, because that means they're 2.5 games out of a playoff spot, and the Bulls deserve a playoff spot about as much as Alfonso Soriano deserves a Career Postseason Achievement award. I'm selfishly glad the Bulls have a shot at the playoffs, but seriously: why does the NBA allow so many teams into the playoffs? It's Bulloney.

A Look Back

Illinois got all Jekyll on their Hyde last night, ending a brutal road slump by staging a comeback victory against Northwestern. Down by 14 with just 5:28 left, the Illini went on a 17-2 run, and Demetri McCamey banked in the winning jumper with 2.9 seconds left (17-2, oddly, matches the Bulls' run to beat the Pistons Tuesday). Northwestern dominated the first 35 minutes of the game, but once Illinois instituted a full-court press, the Wildcats fell apart, showing why they've never made it to the NCAA tournament. C'mon, Northwestern. The NCAA tournament has been around since 1939, and you've NEVER made it. NOT EVER. Your last conference championship was in 1933! There was no TV or radio in 1933! You are clearly the 11th wheel in the Big Ten.

The Bulls, proving they are consistently inconsistent, dropped their final game before the All-Star break, losing to Miami 95-93. The Bulls trailed most of the game, tied it with 6.5 seconds left, then lost on a Shawn Marion dunk with 1.1 seconds left. At the break, the Bulls are 23-30, in 10th place in the East.

Notre Dame's losing streak had to end sometime, and you figured that when it did, they were going to unleash their anger on someone. The Irish took out their religious wrath on Louisville, getting revenge for an OT loss earlier this season with a 90-57 victory. Louisville shot a pathetic 39 percent, while ND was 10-18 from three.

On a separate note, I'm glad to see Field of Dreams did well in the poll. Whoever voted for The Natural: you are wrong.

A Look Ahead

One day--that's right, ONE--until Cubs pitchers and catchers report for spring training. Exercising, stretching and ... well, that's actually about it for now. But still, there will be Cubs players on a baseball field, and that's what counts.

As ESPN.com points out, Illinois has won every home game and lost every road game since early January. With road games against 4-6 Northwestern and 1-10 Indiana this week, the Illini hope to change their road fortunes. Despite their struggles away from Assembly Hall, the Illini are favored by 2.5 points tonight (8:00, ESPN2), in part because they've won 11 of their last 12 at Welsh-Ryan Arena.

Illinois knows it's time to crank things up (only seven of 18 conference games remain), and given the fact that Illinois won't have the opportunity to beat down NW in Champaign this season, plus the fact that they only have to travel a few hours for this "road" game, I think Illinois will finally figure things out tonight. Northwestern is in the top 25 in points allowed, and scoring has been the problem on the road for the Illini, so while I expect a close game, Illinois has more talent and athleticism, and should pull it out.

It's also #1 vs. #2 tonight. No, not in college basketball. Rather, #1 overall pick Derrick Rose and the Bulls will try to stay hot as they battle #2 overall pick Michael Beasley, Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat (6:00, TNT). Wade has struggled at the United Center in the past, and lately, he's been their whole team. Therefore, the call here is that the Bulls take their last game prior to the All-Star break.

Did you know: Notre Dame is French for "Not that much better than DePaul." DePaul, who wishes they had never joined the Big East in 2005, is 0-12 in conference play. Notre Dame, a program with a storied history and a preseason ranking of nine, is just 3-7, having lost their last seven. Now I know why their football team doesn't join a conference! Their seven consecutive losses have been by an average of 13.8 points. Wow. Is there anything the Pope can do?

The answer is no (I think--I'm not entirely familiar with all the teachings of the Catholic church). And tonight, there won't be much Luke Harangody or Kyle McAlarney can do to stop the bleeding against Louisville (6:00, ESPN). There doesn't seem to be much fight in this year's version of the Fighting Irish. ND goes down again tonight.

A Look Back

The Titan women took care of business, winning 67-45 over the Big Blue. A win at home against Wheaton this Saturday at 2 pm would clinch the regular season conference championship. Of course, the women have loftier goals in mind, as most 21-0 teams would.

If you'll recall, I suggested yesterday that Villanova would beat Marquette, while the Bulls would down the Pistons. Read on:

Villanova shot a ridiculous 58 percent from the field, and laced Marquette 102-84. The victory pulls them within one game of the Golden Eagles and two games of conference leader Connecticut (10-1), and leaves Marquette with back-to-back Big East losses after winning their first nine league games.

The Bulls stayed hot, staging an exciting comeback to beat the Pistons. The Bulls trailed by as many as 15, and by 10 with about 3:30 left, but ended the game on a 17-2 run to win 107-102. Which means three things:
1) the Pistons have lost five straight at the United Center
2) the Bulls are actually playing pretty well of late
3) I am a sports genius

Plus it means I won my free bet on centsports

A Look Ahead

Two of the Big East's six ranked teams go head-to-head as Marquette visits Villanova (6:30 CST on ESPN2). To me, this is one of the better mascot match ups you'd want to see: a wildcat vs. a golden eagle. Cats like to eat birds, so it's an inherently good pairing, and here you've basically got a crazy-ass super-charged cat against a rather intimidating bird with an 8-foot wingspan. Think about it ... see? Tough to say what would happen. You might jump to the conclusion that the wildcat would win, but keep in mind that cats often struggle against speedy opponents because they have a tendency to lose focus and start plotting evil deeds, fantasizing about inflicting large-scale suffering upon all humankind. Because they're evil.

On the court, Marquette dropped a stunner to South Florida on Friday, the Bulls' first ever win against a top 10 team. Villanova has won 5 in a row, and is 11-1 at home. I think the one-point loss in Florida might still be messing with the Golden Eagles' heads, and 'Nova's been on a roll. The cats get the upper hand in this one.

On the NBA side, the Bulls finally return home to face the Pistons (7:30 on Comcast SportsNet). The Bulls looked to have gained a spark during their road trip, beating the Clippers, Sacramento, Phoenix and New Orleans, and losing to Dallas by one in overtime. The Bulls are about as predictable as Power Ball numbers, but I think they'll take down the Pistons, if for no other reason than because the Bulls are actually favored, and it would be rude of them to ruin such a special occasion.

I don't think I--wait, let me think ... nope, I've never predicted a sports game incorrectly, so find a bookie and go make some money!