Game #57 | Bulls @ Cavaliers | Sat. Feb. 25 | 8:30pm

[Soar]

What's the outcome when we're only missing one guy & that guy is LBJ though? Has it been any different than it was tonight?

1) How many times has that even happened this year? JR has been out awhile.
2) Our team is a lot different. Korver, Deron etc. It just seems unfair to say we lost without LeBron in November or December when we have a brand new bench.
3) LBJ is the best player in the NBA.

 

[tain316]

First game we were coming off a back to back, as well as back to back losses. Second game we were without Love, Kyrie & JR. And tonight we were without LeBron, Love and JR. IF the Bulls make the playoffs, they're getting swept

First game we were coming off a back to back, as well as back to back losses. Second game we were without Love, Kyrie & JR. And tonight we were without LeBron, Love and JR. IF the Bulls make the playoffs, they're getting swept

Any other excuses you want to come up with regarding those losses?

The Bulls have always played tough series against LeBron-led teams and those teams have never swept the Bulls. That's telling and so I very much doubt it will be a clean sweep for the Cavs. I still believe the Cavs will advance though if such a matchup happens.

 

[DomCAVS95]

Any other excuses you want to come up with regarding those losses?

The Bulls have always played tough series against LeBron-led teams and those teams have never swept the Bulls. That's telling and so I very much doubt it will be a clean sweep for the Cavs. I still believe the Cavs will advance though if such a matchup happens.

Don't need to use any more "excuses" as I think the ones I gave were pretty legitimate. It happens every season, we look bad against one particular Eastern conference team and people think that will have a bearing on the post season. Detroit last season for instance. Chicago are just above .500 for a reason, they're not very good and this is the most stacked team Bron has played on. It'll be a sweep as long as everybody is healthy. We've just been particularly unlucky vs the Bulls this season with injuries and the way the games have fallen in the schedule. On to the next one

 

[Cavsfan1985]

It's hard to be mad. Irving played well and if Williams is here I think we win. Fielder is not ready or able to be only ball handler. Without LJ out there Fielder looked like a deer in head lights.

 

[Jscc]

They've beaten the Cavs three times so far. It's certainly not a good matchup for the Cavs.

Interesting. A poster that hasn't posted on this forum since that 2015 Derrick Rose game winner pops up to remind us Chicago--despite being 0-4 in post-season series and 5-16 in post-season games vs. LeBron-led teams since his being in the league--isn't a good match-up.

 

[tain316]

Don't need to use any more "excuses" as I think the ones I gave were pretty legitimate. It happens every season, we look bad against one particular Eastern conference team and people think that will have a bearing on the post season. Detroit last season for instance. Chicago are just above .500 for a reason, they're not very good and this is the most stacked team Bron has played on. It'll be a sweep as long as everybody is healthy. We've just been particularly unlucky vs the Bulls this season with injuries and the way the games have fallen in the schedule. On to the next one

Since when is citing a back-to-back as a reason for the loss, a "legitimate" excuse? Every NBA plays the same number of back-to-back games so that in no way is a valid reason to brush off a loss to any team. In fact, this very Bulls team tonight played an OT game last night before traveling to Cleveland for their very own back to back. As for the other two games, you do make valid points about key players not playing for the Cavs.

Regardless, this Bulls team isn't very similar to that Detroit team since the Bulls currently have two stars (one All-Star in Butler) who actually have meaningful playoff experience. Throw in a veteran like Rondo and there's even a more stark difference between those two teams. You are severely underestimating this Bulls team.

 

[tain316]

Interesting. A poster that hasn't posted on this forum since that 2015 Derrick Rose game winner pops up to remind us Chicago--despite being 4-0 in post-season series and 16-5 in post-season games vs. LeBron-led teams since his being in the league--isn't a good match-up.

Yes, if you just take a cursory glance at those stats, one would think the Bulls are no problem at all for LeBron-led teams. However, if you bothered to watch those series, they were tough, tightly contested playoff series. They also never resulted in a sweep which was my original point of this whole discussion.

 

[The Oi]

Bulls in 4.

 

[Jscc]

Bulls in 4.

Bulls in 3. Cleveland's going to forfeit once Chicago wins its first two consecutive post-season games vs. a LeBron-led team.

 

[DomCAVS95]

Since when is citing a back-to-back as a reason for the loss, a "legitimate" excuse? Every NBA plays the same number of back-to-back games so that in no way is a valid reason to brush off a loss to any team. In fact, this very Bulls team tonight played an OT game last night before traveling to Cleveland for their very own back to back. As for the other two games, you do make valid points about key players not playing for the Cavs.

Regardless, this Bulls team isn't very similar to that Detroit team since the Bulls currently have two stars (one All-Star in Butler) who actually have meaningful playoff experience. Throw in a veteran like Rondo and there's even a more stark difference between those two teams. You are severely underestimating this Bulls team.

How is a back to back not a legitimate excuse? That's the very reason LeBron has sat out three of the four games he's missed, and why he should've sat vs OKC, at 32 his age starts to show when he's fatigued.

As for the Bulls playing the Suns yesterday, that proves how under most circumstances they don't win again tonight. Against most teams in the league they'd have lost. Sadly this team without LeBron doesn't know how to win, the game just slips away from them in the 3rd quarter, typically.

With regards to Detroit, that was just one example and all I'm saying is it's unfair to conclude that the Bulls will give us trouble in the playoffs based on the games we've played vs them this season. And Rondo? Lol. That guy will be a non-factor in a playoff series. He won't have the fortune of being guarded by Kay Felder that's for sure

 

[KilgoreTrout]

Wasn't able to watch the game; what the hell happened?

 

[Andrew]

What the hell happened? The Bulls shot 30 threes and made half of them. They held Butler to like 3 points in the half and then he had 15 in the second, netting a triple-double. Hell, Wade almost had a triple-double. Cleveland just never has it against the Bulls even with Bron Bron.

It's gotta be a team effort when James is out and it seems only Irving, Korver, Jones and Frye showed up. It's hard to make up for the near triple-double James has nightly, but it's gotta be an overall team effort and it wasn't.

Just like Lue said after the game, not much can be taken away from this game. The Bulls are historically bad shooting the 3 and they hit their shots with 2 big guys out for the opponent.

Onto the next one.

 

[Bob_The_Cat]

These are the types of games I think the Cavs start winning once Deron becomes comfortable. Having an extra ball-handler out there tonight would have done wonders and would have made things much easier for Kyrie. Felder and Liggins offered nothing tonight.

 

[Zog]

Well, didn't watch a second of this game or read a single post in this thread. No TV til next week since I'm moving. Probably a good thing.

 

[UncleDrew]

Atleast Wade didn't get the triple-double...thanks, Cristiano Wdssfhhuhbfdd.