GAME#23 LAKERS @ BULLS 12/15 5PM KCAL9

[Slava]

Well, D Rose do workout there in LA in the summertime, btw everyone and their mama knows what the bulls problems our. They let BG go thinking that Salmons and Kirk was gonna take up his scoring, but what we know is that so far Salmons and Kirk has regressed to this point and a thin bench. Even as D Rose has mentioned in the papers here that his job is to be more of a distributor. But if you cant hit wide open shots............what can ya do.Everyone needs help and for now the Bulls isnt near close to the lakers or any team thats competing. Our big move is in the summer or 2010

The situation seems very very similar to our 2006-07 team.

Thank God for Pau Gasol & Fisher.

[Danny Darko]

well Bynum definitely has a hard time doing the blue collar things when he's not getting any love and attention on the other side of the ball. And for a guy with that kind of shooting percentage, the other lakers aren't looking for him enough. I don't think it's good for Kobe to carry us like that very often, I think it damages the team- win be damned.

It's clear that Drew has a pretty delicate sense of balance in his game. I wish he was more focused and rugged, but I also feel like they are doing a really crappy job of running an offense that is supposed to be about who's open and creating opportunities with ball movement. I see Pau passing really well, kobe down to get his and prove he's a stud with injuries for the sake of his own glory, and I see LO playing pretty iffy again. Ron missing the shots he gets... etc...

but in the end we're still ok and nothing is that bad.

[Slava]

Yeah, we do miss ben but the long term question was is Ben worth 11million per year?? And Bulls mgmt (the owner) for some oddball reason didnt like Ben anyways.Last year before training camp they pulled away the 6 yr 54 million offer, even when he wanted to sign it

I guess the money they invested in Hinrich would have been better invested in Gordon but again that could compromise your 2010 plans? They offered the fat contract to Kirk before Rose was drafted so can't fault them for that.

You could have traded Hinrich to get a pick and shed salary and re-signed Gordon but if Wade comes over in '10 its all good and rosy.

[DEEP3CL]

I think the whole board is in agreement with you on Drew now. I'm pissed with him. He has too much potential to pull this crap for stretches. Look at my posts about him tonight. I'm glad Phil isn't let him play in crunch time right now. If you ain't going to rebound, sit yo a** on the bench! As far as my shoes being too tight, I finally took them off but your post seemed to be directed at me so I was answering.

Naw........maybe because it was after one of yours, but it was just from what I saw from the whole spectrum of post. I don' t know what Drew deal is........this is why I was saying he can't be the type of player that just concentrates on the offensive end because they're not going to run an extensive amount of play calls from the Triangle with him. He has to get dirty on the boards, hell if he rebounds on the offensive glass then he has every right to hoist it right back.....it's his shot to take.

Just rebound I called this in the summer when a stupid Rocket fan said he couldn't average 18 and 10 with Pau, I laughed at the sucker because it's possible with rebounding on the O glass. Drew just don't have the resolve to go at boards.....like iamworthy says he's not a rebounder, he just grabs rebounds if they come his way. It' s a big difference.

[DEEP3CL]

Yeah, we do miss ben but the long term question was is Ben worth 11million per year?? And Bulls mgmt (the owner) for some oddball reason didnt like Ben anyways.Last year before training camp they pulled away the 6 yr 54 million offer, even when he wanted to sign it

No he isn't worth that money. Well that offer was pulled because he rejected the offer from the year before right? If I'm correct it was 5 and 55 mil not sure, but either way both mgmt and Ben miscalculated the whole process big time. Now Ben is in a situation much worst than the Bulls. The Bulls will get right once they get rid of guys who are holding them back.

[dafunky1]

Man, the Bulls aint never gonna be right, not with the meddling Reinsdorf.Who do you think hired the bumbling idiot known as Vinny Del Negro?? Pax wanted D;Antoni, but our owner steps in the way.Who do you think took over the Deng neogoiations?? Our meddling owner, the one who signed Deng to the now horrible contract( glad some of its deferred) Then instead of getting a real floor spacer, who to they sign?? Pargo, then they sign Gray to 1 yr deal?? They could have least found a credible shooter like Von Wafer................btw.................all this started with the Obi Wan Kobe rumors back in the summer of 2007....................then Ben felt he should have been offerered the bigger contract when they were attempting to extend Dengs and Gordon's rookie deals.After that , it was Ben Wallace downhill sprial and then the players quit on the coach...............at least we did get the no 1 pick ..........so it wasnt to bad

[Tee212]

lol pathetic spoiled bitches...they won.

you hate kobe and how dumb he is including those 8 to's, hes been like this for the past 14 years so just accept it...the bad comes with the goods. Start complaining and trade kobe when we are below .500

btw bynum with 3 boards fing pathetic.

[Sofa King]

Man, the Bulls aint never gonna be right, not with the meddling Reinsdorf.Who do you think hired the bumbling idiot known as Vinny Del Negro?? Pax wanted D;Antoni, but our owner steps in the way.Who do you think took over the Deng neogoiations?? Our meddling owner, the one who signed Deng to the now horrible contract( glad some of its deferred) Then instead of getting a real floor spacer, who to they sign?? Pargo, then they sign Gray to 1 yr deal?? They could have least found a credible shooter like Von Wafer................btw.................all this started with the Obi Wan Kobe rumors back in the summer of 2007....................then Ben felt he should have been offerered the bigger contract when they were attempting to extend Dengs and Gordon's rookie deals.After that , it was Ben Wallace downhill sprial and then the players quit on the coach...............at least we did get the no 1 pick ..........so it wasnt to bad

So sorry to hear how low things have gotten for you. You said you wanted Von Wafer. So sorry indeed.

You Bulls can have Sasha for some decent Bulls tickets, a hand full of snow, and a open bottle of beer.

[cool007]

The more I watch D Rose, the more I'm impressed. Great physical tools, athletic ability and body control. That lay up where he got around Gasol was a beauty. This guy needs a mentor plain and simple and if works on his off the dribble and step back jumpers more consistently, he could become virtually unguardable on offense.

I hope for the sake of the Bulls that they end up getting someone like Wade next season, who can stay with Rose and mentor him on the psychological aspects of the game. A better and more experienced coach would also help. This guy is too good a player to be playing with the deadweight supporting cast he's got and carry the scoring load, expectations like he's doing now.

I like that Kobe reached out to him after the game. If Rose takes this seriously and sets up a offseason work out with the Mamba he'll have one heck of a development coming into the new season.

Good point. I always welcome other teams' fans perspective on our players/team (especially Rose).

You really nailed it. Rose needs a mentor and a lot of teaching. He has got the tools to do it and also desire/willingness to go with it. This is why I really hated the Vinny hiring coz he has never coached before and you hire a guy like that that would be LEARNING himself on the job??? This is one of the MANY reasons Rose was struggling for first 10 games.

1) He hurt his ankle and was out 1 month before season started and was not allowed to practice/run. So he got out of game shape and wasn't 100% when came back. He is barely getting to 100% healthy finally now but got a setback coz of rib injury.

2) No shooting on the team WHATSOEVER. Every game, we have usually made only 1 or 2 3 pointers all game long. How can you win games/stretch defense??? Teams pack lanes for Rose to drive.

3) Hinrich/Salmons have been pretty darn WORSE than crap all year. They can't shoot to save their lives.

4) No postup big man/or another reliable 20pt scorer on the team to take some pressure off of Rose. Teams usually double triple him and let others shoot/score and only Deng has responded on the scoring side but he is also not a great scorer/3pt shooter. More of a slasher.

There you have it. That about sums it up. This is why when I see the threads on the general board as people saying Rose is a bust or why was there a hype etc etc and I can only shake my head.

[whatagame]

The guy shot 50+% in a win. There's been reasons to criticize Bryant's play before, but this seems kind of petty. The 8 TOs is a negative of course, but not everyone of those was the result of Kobe "playing badly". Gasol will be fine, as will evryone else. Kobe is actually a quality floor general. His passing/playmaking has been critical in all 4 of his championships. His teammates praise his ability/desire to teach, and give direction in practice, the lockeroom, and on the court.

Can he improve as a teammate? Sure, nobodys perfect. But if We're to trust the words of his teammates themselves, then he's already a pretty good team leader.

It's beyond the shooting percentage. Look at the game over if needed.

Wont be neccessary. like I said, I agree there are things he could've did better, but in the grand scheme of things, I just dont think its that big of a deal.