From Grantland today --
Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Chicago Bulls
Andrew Sharp: Michael Jordan owned the Knicks. From 1989 to 1996, he was the Grim Reaper. He was the destroyer of dreams. How many Finals would Pat Riley and Patrick Ewing have made if not for Jordan? Knicks seasons were fun, and then they usually ended with Madison Square Garden fans cursing their nemesis one more time.
That’s LeBron and the Bulls now. Except it’s bigger than basketball. There’s real antipathy here. Remember when
Derrick Rose refused to recruit LeBron in 2010? Bulls fans loved him for it. The players, the fans, probably even Thibs — everyone feels the same way. No matter how many titles he wins, LeBron will always be considered
Hollywood as hell in Chicago. Then LeBron wins in May, and the knife gets twisted a little deeper. It’s a better rivalry than anything else in the NBA. Even you, Clippers-Warriors.
That’s the series I want to see. That’s the series we all need.
Also, the Bulls are flying under the radar right now. Last night’s loss aside, they’ve looked better with Jimmy Butler back, and they’re getting healthy at the perfect time. There are pieces here that will matter in a playoff series. Nikola Mirotic is awesome. Joakim Noah has had
a rough year, but Pau Gasol helps them in ways Noah never has. Rose played last night, and
he had his moments. I don’t know whether any of them can beat LeBron, but I’m so ready to watch them try.
“It would be great to play them in the playoffs,” Noah said of the Cavs
this weekend. “It would be very, very exciting, something that I really hope happens.”
“You think Cleveland’s cool?”
he said in 2010. “I never heard anybody say, ‘I’m going to Cleveland on vacation.’”
Can we start this tonight?