“I’m just trying to make people fear me on the court.”
That’s what Derrick Rose said after he scored 15 of his 24 points in the second half of Saturday night’s win over the Wizards. Rose added 8 assists, 2 steals and a blocked shot to his statistical haul, outplaying rookie John Wall (16 points, 6 assists, 3 steals).
Of course, Wall sprained his left foot during the third quarter. I’m sure he can’t wait for a rematch.
As for Rose, he’s currently averaging 23.6 PPG and 9.5 APG. If people aren’t fearing him already, they should be.
The same goes for Joakim Noah. Against the Wiz, Noah grabbed 9 rebounds, earned 12 free throws (hitting nine of ’em) and scored 21 points. For some perspective, Jo never reached 20 points in either of his first two seasons. Last season, he scored 20 or more points three times. He’s now scored 20 or more twice this season, including a career-high 26 against the Celtics.
And get this: He’s averaging 16.5 PPG on 53 percent shooting to go with 13.3 RPG, 2.3 APG, 2.0 BPG and 1.1 SPG. His Player Efficiency Rating is 21.0. He has an Offensive Rating of 119 and a Defensive Rating of 99.
Those are some fearsome numbers.
Anyway, I was happy the Bulls put down the Wizards. Beginning the circus road trip with a loss would have been really demoralizing. Now they have a little momentum…and they’re going to need it.
That said, I wasn’t totally happy with how they played. Their shooting wasn’t terribly efficient (44 percent), they couldn’t figure out what to do with Gilbert Arenas (30 points, 11-for-22, 7-for-10 from downtown) and they gave up 38 points in the fourth quarter.
That’s not going to get the job done against some of the teams they’re going to be facing in the next couple weeks. I’m just sayin’.
Extras:
Recap, Box Score, Advanced Box Score, Play-By-Play, Shot Chart, Photos.
They couldn’t figure out what to do with Arenas because he was shooting out of his mind. I can’t tell you how many times he’d shoot it with someone draped on him and a hand in his face and it would just go in. He buried a 3 from at least 10 feet behind the line. Sometimes pure shooters just have those nights where they can’t miss. It wasn’t so long ago that Arenas was talked about in the same breath as the elite superstars in the league.
If Arenas doesn’t go off, the Bulls win by about 30.
Matt,
Win’s a win. The Bulls pretty thoroughly outplayed Washington, and they took care of business. The 4th quarter defense wasnt great, but they did hold Washington to 33 points in the 2nd and 3rd quarter combined. Right now, the defense is doing a great job creating turnovers, which I havent seen from the Bulls in a long time.
Lets see if the Bulls can get a couple wins on this trip. A 3-4 trip would be a success in my book.
Good win heading into the most dreadful part of Bulls season. Should have a better idea of Coach Tom’s ability after the road trip
And now the circus trip begins….this could get ugly…
So my reverse psychology on Rose is totally working. Before the season I compared rose to Stevie Francis. He has on cue gone and visibly demonstrated an improved passing game this season. And this without Boozer’s interior scoring. With the same poor shooting teammates he had last year, the one’s people proclaimed held down his assist numbers. Arguably with a downgrade at the SG position. I say this with the utmost confidence of a fan who knows that my actions completely and utterly influence the outcome of my teams’ (and favorite player’s) performance. I can thus say (tounge firmly planted in cheek), last year I criticized Rose’s shooting prowess beyond the 10 foot range and he promptly showed great improvement by extending his range. I also take credit for Noah’s new found offensive prowess by way of having lamented his ineffectiveness at that end of the floor. I won’t however take credit for Deng’s success beyond the arc. I gracefully acknowledge Matt’s constant needling for that bit of fortune. I don’t even know whom to give credit for Taj’s rise in confidence and improved post play.
If they keep this up on the road trip, we Bulls fans will have much to be thankful for by turkey day.
Send in the clowns, the Bulls are ready to settle the west.