Orlando Magic vs Chicago Bulls -5.5

Tonight the Orlando Magic go into the United Center to face the driven Chicago Bulls in a contrasting match up. The Orlando Magic are not the most defensively sound team, nor do they have the offensive capability to take full control of games. The Orlando Magic I feel are fully dependent on their 3 point shooting, and their effort from Dwight Howard. Dwight Howard's effort is inevitable, he's most likely going to get a double double every night and that's alright for teams to face. The problems where most teams have against Orlando is with Ryan Anderson drifting along the 3 point line bringing their 4's outside to defend his 3 point shot. Chicago has won it's last 9 games out of 10. Last night Derrick Rose hit a game winner on Brandon Jennings, and I believe the Bulls are going to take their momentum from last night to contain the Magic. The Magic in their last 10 are 6-4 which isn't too bad, although they do tend to lose focus. On March 6, the Magic played in Charlotte against the Bobcats where the Bobcats won by 16 points. Is this enough for the Magic to come out tonight and play strong to find the motivation to try to get through the post season? Or is it foreshadowing the speculation that Dwight Howard is going to be traded by the deadline and it's time to start building the franchise over? The Magic as a team shoot 38.7% from distance, grab 43.3 rebounds, and average 15.2 turnovers per game. In order to keep this game close, or even win the game outright the Magic are going to have to shoot the 3 ball at a high percentage and prevent Chicago from getting out into the open court. The Bulls have a good enough center in Joakim Noah to try to defend Dwight in the paint, and also have Luol Deng, Ronnie Brewer and Taj Gibson on defense to guard Ryan Anderson and Hedo Turkoglu at the 3 point line. Derrick Rose is self explanatory because we know that he's going to come out and perform at the best of his ability every night and after that game winner from last night, I expect him to have humble arrogance and be on his high horse ready to play tonight. Tonight the Bulls are going to have to swarm the 3 point line, have all men going for loose balls and rebounds, and let Joakim Noah play Dwight straight up and initiate help defense when necessary in order to get the win. The Orlando Magic are going through their ups and downs, and tonight could be one of those nights where Orlando shows up. But I also took into account that the Bulls are playing like a championship caliber team with their mission on mind, and they aren't going to let other teams get wins easily on their home court. I think the Bulls win the game outright, and cover the spread.


Result: I'm not the biggest Dwight Howard fan, and I personally I still think Andrew Bynum is the better center but today, Dwight had an impressive show out against the Bulls on the road. Dwight went 11/19 from the field to score 29 points and got 18 rebounds for a double double. The Magic as a team went 11/26 from the 3 point line shooting at 42.3%, 4% better than their average which we said would most likely be the statistic that could keep the Bulls at bay. Ryan Anderson went 3/8 from the 3, and Jason Richardson went 4/6 from distance. The Magic at half were only up 5 due to a Bulls comeback in the last 3 minutes of the game led by Derrick Rose after being down by as much as 15 points. Carlos Boozer had a good night with 26 points and 7 rebounds, and Derrick Rose struggled with 17 points going 6/22 from the field although he did have 9 assists finding his team mates. The Bulls bench played a solid game with a good effort from Taj Gibson and Kyle Korver, but the starters looked uninterested and fatigued during the game. The Bulls have the best record in the east and they've won and done more than enough in a tight season to lose a game without criticism. The Magic let go of a lead, but it was enough to win against the Bulls on the road 99-94. The next time these two meet, I'm expecting a completely different game than the one that happened this past Thursday. It's not often the Bulls lose at home and Derrick Rose is always going to give his best effort despite things not going his way. Chicago goes to Orlando on March 19, and the Bulls being the best revenge team in the league and Joakim Noah probably being the funniest trash talker in the league.. I expect this game to have playoff vibes. 


12-5-1

Indiana Pacers vs Chicago Bulls -7

This rivalry between the Indiana Pacers and the Chicago Bulls has resulted in some entertaining games between the two. Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose both haven't forgot about the loss to the pacers at home on January 25th earlier this year after over hearing the Pacers celebrate in their locker room. As close as this game could potentially be, the Bulls are probably the best revenge team in the league. As far as statistics go, these teams are evenly matched. The Pacers shoot the 3 ball at 37% and the Bulls at 38%, Pacers turn the ball over at an average of 14.7 per game to the Bulls' 14.0 per game. The Pacers also average 8.3 steals a game to the Bulls' 7.3, and the Pacers rebound 44.5 a game to the Bulls' 45.6. When the Pacers beat the Bulls at the United Center, part of that was due to the injury of Luol Deng. Luol Deng defends the perimeter and is a good defender guarding slashers and cutters. Luol Deng is also another threat on offense to take some focus off of Derrick Rose, and he's also been playing at a high level since the all star break. The biggest factor here is the revenge factor. Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose are motivated for this game, and I see Chicago winning the game outright and also covering the spread. 


Result: After avenging their first loss to Philadelphia this past Sunday, the best revenge team in the league went at the Pacers today to avenge their loss at home to Indiana. This game started off back and forth, the typical Pacers-Bulls pace that we see in these exciting games. Indiana was up 1 (43-42) by the end of the 1st half. The Bulls struggled on the offensive side in the 1st half, but exploded in the 3rd led by Luol Deng. The Bulls scored 3 consecutive 3 pointers after the Pacers crawled to a deficit of 4 points. The Bulls also dominated the rebounding out rebounding the Pacers 60-32. The Bulls had 18 offensive rebounds to the Pacers 7 and held the Pacers to 3/16 (18.8%) from long range. The Bulls shot the ball well from the outside going 9/15 shooting it at 60%. Luol Deng led the way for the Bulls scoring 20 points with 6 boards and 4 assists. Rip Hamilton left the game in the 1st quarter after getting a bump on the shoulder by Paul George. Rip Hamilton is becoming more of a liability to the team, but as long as Ronnie Brewer is playing well the Bulls should be fine. Off the bench Ronnie Brewer contributed 12 points and 7 boards, John Lucas filling in for C.J. Watson who had a sprained ankle had 13 points, and Taj Gibson had 10 points and 9 boards. The only players who played well for the Pacers today was Paul George who had 21 points and George Hill who had 17 off the bench. The Bulls are now 2.5 games ahead of Miami in the east at 1st. The Bulls have two good big men in Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah who grabbed 17 boards today, two quality front court players in Luol Deng and Ronnie Brewer and Taj Gibson, C.J. Watson and John Lucas all hold their own on the court when the starters are on the bench. Chicago wins the game by 20 points 92-72 and I bet Joakim Noah is out somewhere showing the Pacers how to really celebrate. 

Joakim Noah celebrating.

12-4-1

Chicago Bulls -3.5 vs Philadelphia 76ers

Sundays are a typically good day for NBA basketball. This morning we saw an overtime game between the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks with Boston coming out on top. The Miami Heat and LA Lakers rivalry continued today as the Lakers came out today with a win. Another good match up I saw that isn't as popular as the NY Knicks or the Miami Heat is the Chicago Bulls going up against the Sixers. These two teams have quality young players who know how to put on a good show with Chicago at the top of the eastern conference, and Philly sitting at 4th. Philly in it's last 3 after the break have won 2 of 3 with wins over Detroit and Golden State, and a loss to Oklahoma City. Chicago on the other hand has won 3 straight after the break, and and 5 straight including their wins before. Like most match ups, this one comes down to rebounds and turnovers. Tim Thibodeau is known to be a defensive minded coach, and the Bulls as a team average 7.4 steals per game and 5.6 blocks per game. The Sixers average 10.6 turnovers per game which is actually not bad, although with tough defensive teams such as the Thunder and the Bulls the Sixers seem to struggle either keeping a lead, or keeping up with the defense. Joakim Noah is starting to shoot that outside jump shot more consistently and Luol Deng is finding his game gaining confidence after making the all star team. The Bulls average 13.2 offensive boards a game to Philly's 9.9 offensive rebounds a game. Philly as a team averages 42.9 rebounds in total and Chicago averages 45.6. If Chicago can lock down defensively which they have the full potential to do, then Philadelphia may have to rely on 3 point shooting where they're shooting 37.1%. I think Chicago takes this game covering the 3.5 point spread, but Philly keeps it close until the end. 


Result: Last time at the Fargo Wells Center on February 1st the Bulls lost to the Sixers by 16 points. When Chicago loses a game by that margin, or loses a game at all they tend to hold resentment towards the teams that they've lost to. In a position like this, the Bulls came out ready to play in a back and forth game against the Sixers. The first half was close, going back and forth in scoring where at the end of the 1st quarter Chicago was up by 2 just to go down by 6 in the 2nd quarter being outscored 22-14. In the second half the Sixers went up by as much as 6 in the 1st quarter, but led by Derrick Rose's 3 point shooting going 4/7 from distance started to pull away in the 4th quarter. After splitting a pair at the line, Derrick Rose put the Bulls up by 8 in the 4th but the Sixers led by Thaddeus Young cut the lead down to 4. With 3 minutes left in the quarter, C.J. Watson hit a big 3 to put the Bulls up by 7 but the Sixers (more so Thaddeus Young) cut it down to 2. Derrick Rose scored 35 points and had 8 assists, and scored a pull up jumper to put the Sixers away. The Sixers took good care of the ball and only had 5 turnovers for the game, but Chicago is more than capable of playing straight up defense to defend Philly's shooters. Philly had a horrible night from distance shooting 1/11 which most likely determined the winner of this game. It was a fun game to watch and Chicago locked down defensively to get the win 96-91. 


11-4-1

Detroit Pistons vs Memphis Grizzlies -6.5

Conversing with my friends last night while playing NBA 2k12, I said that O.J. Mayo is Memphis Grizzlies' James Harden. O.J. Mayo comes off the bench with no opposition to his position, and scores 11.9 PPG, 3.1 RPG and 2.0 APG. Memphis in their last 10 are 8-2 and are rolling into the second half of the season standing at 5th in a strong western conference. The Grizz go into the Palace of Auburn to face the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons aren't exactly a playoff caliber team although the talent in this Pistons team definitely has potential. I've always liked Rodney Stuckey as a point guard, and Greg Monroe is budding into a quality 4. Greg Monroe averaging a double double scoring 16.8 PPG and grabbing 10.1 boards per game. Considering he's a rookie, he's doing well for himself. Even though Greg Monroe is doing well, the Pistons are 5-5 in their last 10 games. Memphis after last year's post season run was unexpected, especially being without Rudy Gay. Memphis handled themselves well, and are doing the same this year without Zach Randolph. It may seem like I'm barely scratching the surface analyzing this game, but this game comes down to who's the better team and Memphis is levels ahead of Detroit. Memphis has advantages in the paint with the big foot all star Marc Gasol, O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay. Marc Gasol is averaging 15.4 PPG and 9.9 RPG as well as 2.2 blocks per game. Rudy Gay is averaging 19.0 PPG and 6.8 RPG. Memphis by average is out rebounded on the offensive end 12.1 to 12.4 to Detroit, but tonight I expect Memphis to control the rebounds tonight. This should be an easy win for Memphis as they continue to roll in the second half of the season. 


Result: What seemed like a close game for the first 3 quarters spaced out into a scoring frenzy by the Grizz in the 4th quarter. Rodney Stuckey did his best to try to keep the game in control leading the scoring for the Pistons with 20 points although he did shoot 6/22 and made 7/9 from the charity stripe. Greg Monroe had a double double scoring 14 and grabbing 11 rebounds. Rookie Brandon Knight on the Pistons also had a good night on the hardwood marking down 15 points and 7 boards. O.J. Mayo and Marc Gasol had 17 points a piece, and Marc Gasol also adding 2 blocks and 9 boards. In the 1st half the score was close and Memphis actually found themselves down by one 47-46. The 3rd quarter was also a stalemate and both teams scored 23 points each in the 3rd. In the last quarter led by O.J. Mayo, Memphis outscored Detroit 31-13. Memphis is the better team here, in a better position at home and also on a winning streak and it was just a matter of time before Memphis would take control of the game. Well played game by the Grizz for a final score of 100-83. 


Also consider this. Would you rather have O.J. Mayo or James Harden as your 6th man coming off the bench?


10-4-1

Oklahoma City Thunder -5 vs Atlanta Hawks

The Oklahoma City Thunder tonight head to the Phillips Arena to face the struggling Atlanta Hawks. The Oklahoma City Thunder are on a roll winning their last 7 games and have won their first 2 of the second half of the season. The Atlanta Hawks in contrast have won 3 of their last 7 and continue to struggle finding themselves at 6th in the east after a strong start to the 2012 season. Kevin Durant is averaging 28.0 PPG and 7.9 RPG while his partners in crime Russell Westbrook is averaging 23.6 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 5.6 APG and James Harden is scoring 16.7 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 3.7 APG off the bench. The Atlanta Hawks don't have that kind of scoring power and the Hawks' leading scorer is Joe Johnson who is averaging 17.6 PPG, 3.5 RPG and 3.7 APG. Oklahoma City Thunder, at least in my expectation are going to control the glass which is going to be key in this game. The Thunder also have a big advantage in the point guard position where Jeff Teague I feel is going to have trouble guarding Russy. Kevin Durant is going to get his points but to control the Thunder as a team the Hawks need to control James harden and Russell Westbrook. That is the threat of the Oklahoma City Thunder. When Kevin Durant struggles, there's Russell Westbrook. When Russell Westbrook struggles, there's James Harden. And when James Harden struggles.. well you get the point. There's not much to say about the Atlanta Hawks except that they're struggling. The Atlanta Hawks need a good point guard to facilitate because they do have offensive options in Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams and Josh Smith. But the reason I feel these 3 Hawks struggle to get wins for their team is because there's too much isolation and dependence when each of them have the ball. If Jeff Teague can facilitate and rotate the ball to find his offensive threats in the right scoring positions, then the scoring will come more naturally for the Hawks although I am not discrediting the one on one capabilities that each of these players have. The Thunder are going to control the rebounds, and if the Thunder can shoot the 3 ball well throughout the game then 6 points should be a reasonable spread to cover. Against Philly, the Thunder match ups were even in terms of a team effort. Durant and Igoudala matched up well, Louis Williams and Jrue Holiday are point guards who can hold their own against elite scorers such as Russell Westbrook and Thaddeus Young is a solid defender who can hold his own against a scorer like Durant. Orlando has Dwight Howard who can control the paint to counter defend the 3 point shot and the penetration from the stars of OKC. Both games were close due to defensive efforts and scoring from opposing teams to the Thunder which I think the Hawks lack. I think the Thunder play a good game, get an easy win (although the spread may not be easy) and cover for tonight. 


Result: Even the Thunder can't win 'em all. Tonight despite not having Joe Johnson, the Atlanta Hawks pulled a tough win at home while struggling against a rolling Oklahoma City Thunder. Josh Smith played a good game with a double double scoring 30 points while grabbing 12 boards. Zaza Pachulia had 14 boards, 9 of those offensive boards as opposed to the Thunder getting 10 as a team. Kevin Durant had 35 points and 8 boards and Russell Westbrook had 25 points. James Harden scored 10 off the bench and also had 6 boards. The Thunder shot 6 for 23 from 3 point range and shot 41% from the field. The Hawks shot the 3 ball well at 47% going 8 for 17 from distance. Jeff Teague also helped the Hawks today which is key when going against an elite scorer in Westbrook and scored 16 points. It was a tough night for the Thunder, and the Hawks got the W in a well played game 97-90.


9-4-1

Memphis Grizzlies -3 vs Toronto Raptors

If only the Memphis Grizzlies were still the Vancouver Grizzlies.. but I can dream right? Tonight the former Vancouver team goes to Toronto to take on the Raptors. In Memphis' last 5, they are 4-1 while the Raptors are 2-3. The Raptors are a team that's struggled to make the post season though the team does have some talent. DeMar DeRozan is averaging 15.9 PPG to lead Toronto's scoring while Bargnani is out. DeMar still has an average jump shot, but he is good taking it into the paint. Memphis has good size with Marc Gasol in the paint, Marreese Speights and Dante Cunningham are also two good big men who have a good chance at preventing DeMar DeRozan from getting to the basket. Memphis has to play good defense to get the turnovers from the Raptors because the Raptors are vulnerable to turning the ball over averaging  15.2 turnovers per game. Rudy Gay 18.9 PPG with 6.6 boards per game while O.J. Mayo is scoring 11.8 off the bench. For Toronto to win, they're going to have to control turnovers. Memphis is a good defensive team with Tony Allen, Rudy Gay and O.J. covering the wing, and with Gasol in the paint Toronto's going to have to shoot the ball well from distance, and also getting effort from everybody with rebounding. Toronto is up and down, and have lost to even the Charlotte Bobcats at home. I expect Memphis to control the paint and for Marc Gasol to have a good game. It's important that Memphis works the post this game and controls the perimeter shooting. If the Grizz can do that, then I expect Memphis to cover the point spread. 


Result: Although Toronto decided to show up tonight, Memphis came out with a good effort to continue their strong start to the 2nd half of the season. Toronto did a good job outscoring the Grizz by 7 (52-45) led by Jerryd Bayless who had 18 points and 4 assists. He shot 5/9 from the field and went 7/7 from the charity stripe. DeRozan went 2/8 from the field for 4 points and if my opinion even matters, he has to improve the jump shot in order to get W's for the Raps because this game was definitely winnable. The Grizzlies had 10 steals and forced the Raps to give up 16 turnovers for the game. Memphis also controlled the paint in rebounds getting 8 offensive boards to Toronto's 4 offensive boards. Marc Gasol took control of the paint on the offensive end for the Grizz with 21 points. Not only is he a force on the block, he also has a good jump shot for someone of his size. The key for Memphis here was their rebounding and their defensive effort forcing Toronto to turn the ball over. It was a close game. And nearing the end when Memphis missed their free throws for extra points, it definitely should have been a bigger lead. Final score to the game was 102-99 for a well played road win for the Grizz. 


9-3-1 

Miami Heat -3.5 vs Portland TrailBlazers

Lebron James and Dwyane Wade have been playing some of the best basketball I've seen them play. Tonight they will be without Chris Bosh due to personal reasons, which I think might have effect in guarding LaMarcus Aldridge. Kurt Thomas is also out after getting kicked in the head last night in the Denver game. Again, in this game I think statistics are irrelevant being that this is Miami's first game back after the all star break and Portland isn't exactly the most consistent team. Portland was handed an L in Denver (104-95) mainly due to the inside presence the Denver Nuggets have which Miami might not have tonight. This game comes down to who wants the win more. Portland is a good home team and Miami is Miami. The key for Miami to win here is to help on the inside against Aldridge and Gerald Wallace and also to limit distance shooting from Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum, and Jamal Crawford. Miami is also going to have to go all in on rebounds, controlling the offensive rebounds. Portland is averaging 11 offensive boards a game, and without Chris Bosh the Heat are going to have to do a good job on the boards. Miami's defense is overwhelming as Jeremy Lin saw, and I think Miami comes out strong tonight in their first appearance back from the break. 


Result: With Chris Bosh out tonight I expected the Heat to struggle a little bit on the defensive end against LaMarcus Aldridge and also on the rebounding. The Miami Heat definitely had no problem on the offensive side outscoring the TrailBlazers in the first half 60-42. Miami as a team had 41 rebounds, 12 being offensive against Portland's 36, with 8 being offensive rebounds. I expected this to be key for Miami missing their power forward. Scoring is never really an issue for Miami having two of the best players in the league throwing alley oops to each other so to win the battle on the glass is a bonus. LaMarcus Aldridge played a decent game scoring 20 points and grabbing 6 rebounds though it wasn't enough. Udonis Haslem did a good job and replacing Bosh for the night scoring 11 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Lebron James scored 38 points, got 11 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals while Dwyane Wade had 33 points, 10 assists and 3 steals. Combined the Heat duo scored 71 of Miami's 107 points in a well deserved win. Miami looks fired up and ready to go for the second half of the season sitting at 1st in the east. Miami cruised to victory with a final score of 107-93 and have now won 9 in a row. 


9-3

Oklahoma City Thunder -1 vs Orlando Magic

After a good defensive effort in Philadelphia last night, the Oklahoma City Thunder look to add to their second half season victories tonight against the Orlando Magic. In my opinion sitting at 5th in the east which is around where they usually are every season, the Magic aren't that good of a team. I still stand by my opinion saying Andrew Bynum is the better center between him or Dwight. Dwight Howard is averaging 19.9 PPG, 15.2 RPG, and 2.28 blocks per game. Dwight is going to get his points and his rebounds, there shouldn't be a doubt about that. If the OKC Thunder can contain Ryan Anderson and Jason Richardson's three point shooting, then this game should be an easy win for the OKC Thunder although OKC is winless in their last 7 in Orlando. Rebounding and turnovers are also key here. Kevin Durant is on a mission, and he's playing like it. The Orlando Magic are going to have a tough time defending him as they're going to have to rely on Hedo Turkoglu (who isn't the best one on one defender) and Jason Richardson to try to contain the Durantula. Along with having to contain KD, there's Russell Westbrook and James Harden. Jameer Nelson is going to have his hands full tonight, and if the Magic decide to put Jason Richardson on Kevin Durant then James Harden is going to get his opportunities tonight (not that he doesn't every night) against the Magic. I see too many opportunities here for the OKC Thunder to score, and other than Dwight I don't see much of a threat in the match ups in favor for the Magic. I think the OKC Thunder continue their second half of the season tonight with a win, and the less prominent Big 3 in the league (Westbrook, Harden and Durant) all have solid games. 


Result: Watching the pregame show before the game, I heard Charles Barkley say this is a bad match up for Oklahoma City because Ryan Anderson is going to force Ibaka out of the paint in order to guard the 3. Chuck also mentioned that Kendrick Perkins will get into early foul trouble guarding Dwight and that Ibaka would then have to guard him. I already knew this, but I did not think that it was a mismatch for the Thunder, nor would Kendrick have early foul trouble. It was a back and forth game early in the 1st half until about the 4 minute mark where Orlando went up by 9. Being that OKC has two top scorers and James Harden for when the ammo runs out, 9 points isn't a big deficit to worry about with the Thunder and by half they were only down by 3. At around the 4 minute mark in the 3rd, Orlando went up by 14 (74-60) which for even the Thunder is a big deficit to come back from and the 3rd ended with a 3 point lead in favor for Orlando. Although OKC's "big 3" isn't made by today's traditional standards of demands and high salaries, Harden, Westbrook and Durant took control of their team as any of the other big 3 trio's would and overcome the deficit at the 3 minute mark of the 4th. Kevin Durant scored 38 points with 8 boards, James Harden scored 13, had 5 boards and 5 assists and Russy Westbrook had a double double with 29 points and 10 assists. I expected Orlando's guards to have trouble against Harden and Westbrook, and Durant is a machine on his own and was too much for Turkoglu to handle. OKC as a team shot 44.4% from the field against Orlando's 36% 3 point shooting going 9/25 from the field, which is what Orlando needed to beat the Thunder. Ryan Anderson had 15 going 3/7 from distance, and Dwight Howard 33 points and 9 boards. The key here for the Thunder was to control the 3 point shooting, let Dwight get his and for the Thunder big 3 to do work. The final score was 105-102 for the Thunder who are off to a good start in the 2nd half of the season. 


8-3