Bulls @ Wizards Game 3 Friday 4/25 7 Central Time

[Tenchi Ryu]

I'd feel a lot better if one of these past games were a blow out, cause then you can truly tell yourself we can improve and play better.

I honestly don't see anymore improvement for this team. And the killer for them has been consistent now, not being able to score when needed. I don't see that changing, especially now on the road. Bulls gonna need a miracle.

Rerisen mentioned "all the games were close", and that's the worst news we can hear IMO. Our specific weakness has killed us every game, don't see why that will not continue. This really does have 2011 written all over it.

[BullsfanLA]

I Bullieve

[BeatDaCavs420]

I just want this team to prove people wrong more then anything I would just LOVE IT!!!!

[MrSparkle]

I'd feel a lot better if one of these past games were a blow out, cause then you can truly tell yourself we can improve and play better.

I honestly don't see anymore improvement for this team. And the killer for them has been consistent now, not being able to score when needed. I don't see that changing, especially now on the road. Bulls gonna need a miracle.

Rerisen mentioned "all the games were close", and that's the worst news we can hear IMO. Our specific weakness has killed us every game, don't see why that will not continue. This really does have 2011 written all over it.

It has 2005 written all over it too ...

It's like Bulls are giving it their all... Washington's playing hard, but they look like they're having fun, and we don't like we're having fun, and I'll leave it at that. It'd really feel like a miracle if Chicago won 4, unless Washington had an epic collapse/180/chemistry-breakdown. Honestly, scoring buckets is looking like a 9-5 deep mining operation for Chicago, while Nene, Andre Miller, Ariza, and Beal are hoisting up nothing but net and partying on the beach. That's not even including their franchise player, who has yet to really "break out."

I'm not saying it as doom and gloom, just being pretty realistic about it. It's not like I expected much out of the Bulls, but I was hoping for an Indiana or Miami 4-1/4-2 bruiser. If Wizards lose this series, then they're a bunch of dumb asses, to be frank. They've got the Bulls and Thibs by the balls.

Seems like most of us are in agreement... It's not that I'm a Bulls bandwagoner. I really like basketball, i'm from Chicago, and I've been "waiting" since 98 for a GREAT team. We've seen flashes. I like parts of this team, I really like them at times, but it bums me out when reality hits again. I still maintain that Bulls have done 95% right the last few off-seasons. Ditching Nate/Marco was stupid IMO, but getting Dunleavy (and lucking into) DJ were very satisfactory replacements. Not their fault Rose got injured.

The time has come though: if they're serious about next season, they need to SPEND A LOT OF MONEY on building a good core around Rose AND a very powerful bench as well. We basically need 3 all-star offensive options on and off the bench, or else it's gonna be the same thing every year. We have a lot of the intangibles and chemistry that a great team needs, but we need not 1, not 2, but THREE star scorers.

Duncan, Parker, Manu...

Look: 1 of those guys was a bench player most of the time. We don't need a Lebron/Wade/Bosh 3, but we do need Rose, Melo and any available-bench-knucklehead-prime-JR Smith-Jamal Crawford/whoever type. Just to shoot us back into games when you're having a garbage scoring drought, especially if it's in the 1st quarter and you want to save your classier players for the 4th.

[BullsGate]

I'd feel a lot better if one of these past games were a blow out, cause then you can truly tell yourself we can improve and play better.

I honestly don't see anymore improvement for this team. And the killer for them has been consistent now, not being able to score when needed. I don't see that changing, especially now on the road. Bulls gonna need a miracle.

Rerisen mentioned "all the games were close", and that's the worst news we can hear IMO. Our specific weakness has killed us every game, don't see why that will not continue. This really does have 2011 written all over it.

Both wins would be blowouts if we played Brooklyn Nets.

[The Kane]

This team just does not have enough talent to win this series. We might steal a game or two, but at the end of the day our lack of scoring will come back to haunt us.

Thibs has made mistakes, but there is no adjustment you can make to give us a iso scorer in the clutch (unless Thibs plays Jimmer and he transforms into the Jimmer of BYU).

Heart hustle and muscle can only get you so far. Us Bulls fans should realize that more than anyone.

[ZUDAMAGIC]

BULLS IN 7

[mymysql]

The Bulls are exerting way too much energy during DJ/Taj minutes. With our regular rotations we're playing to lose. You could play Taj 48 minutes with better results. Taj doesn't even have a chance to pace himself right now because he's trying to do too much when he gets subbed in the game.

[The Explorer]

Coach Nick breakdown on Noah vs Nene.

http://youtu.be/2F3p8J4q0So

[Toasty]

This team just does not have enough talent to win this series. We might steal a game or two, but at the end of the day our lack of scoring will come back to haunt us.

Thibs has made mistakes, but there is no adjustment you can make to give us a iso scorer in the clutch (unless Thibs plays Jimmer and he transforms into the Jimmer of BYU).

Heart hustle and muscle can only get you so far. Us Bulls fans should realize that more than anyone.

I don't think we can expect Jimmer to come in to a playoff game and do well. He can shoot, but asking a guy to come in who NEVER plays, and be effective is asking a lot. He was rusty at first against Orlando...so asking to come in against washington?...nope.

Though if he is hitting I don't think he will be mismatched as much as people think. The one intangible I like about the guy is he has a dominating personality and really gets his team fired up when he plays.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMfA-TghJkM

If you look at 2:35...they are jumping up and down happy before it even goes in the basket. That is money,

I still think SNELL would be great on Beal more.

[TheGameChanger]

Win This Game. Would be alot of pressure on Washington for game 4.

[DASMACKDOWN]

Just come out early and jump over them. I might be the only one, but I truly believe that Washington wont hit such high percentages on long jumpers.

They have to fall short at some point, thats when we have to start capitalizing. Be quicker to the ball, grab the rebouds and execute on offense.

But the key to me, is definitely MDJ. We need the dude. We have have him show up for 1 quarter and be invisible the rest of the game.

Another person is also Jimmy. I know Jimmy has struggled on offense all year, but we need the guy to score now. He hasnt made a 3pt shot yet. He should be able to take Beal to the hole and or get him in foul trouble. But if Jimmy is playing 45+ mins, we need more than 10pts from him.

I hope everything clicks for us in Washington.

[cool007]

Every game from here on out feels like a MUST WIN game.

Bulls need to come out and put a lot of pressure on them by playing suffocating D like we have seen them do in the regular season. Right now Wizards are shooting pretty easily right from the get-go and we can't shoot or have hard time scoring right from the start. Since we can't make shots while they make almost everything to start, that really affects our defense.

We need to not let our miss shots affect our defense. Just do your best and lay everything out there. And please MAKE YOUR WIDE OPEN SHOTS.

That is all.

[Proven_Winner]

We REALLY need this game. I just want this team to prove everyone wrong so freaking bad. Im tired of the disrespect we get as a franchise. Let's come out the gate at full speed and crush these guys.

For the love of god Thibs stop giving up mid shots to Nene because it isn't working. Also let Taj start against Nene and let Boozer bumslay the bench.

[RastaBull]

22-19 is horrific to you? Where/when has anyone on the Wizards given the impression that they are super confident possibly to a fault?

Slow down high speed. 22-19 is absolutely atrocious for a home record. And beyond that, yes I sure as heck get that impression from the body language alone. Did you watch Beal and Ariza last night?

Milwaukee had a home record of 10-31. Now that is atrocious. By definition, 22-19 is slightly better than average. I think it would be more appropriate to say that the Wizards were an average team at home this season.

Or it would be fair to say Washington has the worst home-record of any playoff team. Since there are 17 teams with better home records (and two other teams tied with the same home record)...that is actually below average in a 30 team league

[BullsFTW]

Let's do this. One game at a time.

[Ice Man]

Do I need to state the obvious? Start better and finish better.

Q1 - Wiz +13
Q2 - Bulls +12
Q3 - Bulls +9
W4 - Wiz +17

Dig a hole, fight furiously back, get tired, can't respond to Washington notching up the pressure. Lose. Rinse and repeat.

[gstephanopulos]

I just can't watch another game when Andre Miller is owning us. Please don't let him score 8-10 points again.

[MrSparkle]

Coach Nick breakdown on Noah vs Nene.

http://youtu.be/2F3p8J4q0So

Pretty much sums it up man.

Geez looking at the slowed-down video analysis, I'm even more amazed with Nene's play this series. What in the ****? I'll echo what I said before the series started: SOMEBODY ALWAYS HAS THEIR COMING OUT PARTY AT THE UNITED CENTER.

Always. A guy who's had a so-so shooting season, or struggled all year long with injuries, or just flat out lost motivation, or better yet, isn't really that good (and goes on to prove that by being a complete non-factor in the next series)... they find themselves and their stroke right around the time they play the Bulls, and just start burying any contested long/mid-range shot they get.

Glen Davis, K. Perkins (2009)
Hansbrough, McRoberts (2011)
Haslem, Miller, Bosh (2011)
Lavoy f***ing Allen, Hawes, Turner (2012)
Blatche (2013)
This year: old man Miller, and mother****ing Nene

Seriously, not surprised in the least bit if Washington wins this series, and in the next round Nene can't hit broad side of the barn against Indiana, or especially Miami.

Again, if THIS is the REAL Nene, then get this man an MVP trophy. Sweet heavens, there is no one in the NBA right now who has his combo of size, speed, post-up skills, shooting and defense. Aldrige and Griffin are balling, but I don't think they could play such suffocating defense if they wanted to.

[bgroban]

Slow down high speed. 22-19 is absolutely atrocious for a home record. And beyond that, yes I sure as heck get that impression from the body language alone. Did you watch Beal and Ariza last night?

Milwaukee had a home record of 10-31. Now that is atrocious. By definition, 22-19 is slightly better than average. I think it would be more appropriate to say that the Wizards were an average team at home this season.

Or it would be fair to say Washington has the worst home-record of any playoff team. Since there are 17 teams with better home records (and two other teams tied with the same home record)...that is actually below average in a 30 team league

I don't think the Wizards are going to play like a below average home team tomorrow.