On Febuary 2nd the Chicago Bulls visit the Los Angeles Clippers for a showdown of the ages. The Bulls have the best record in the league at 36-10 and their tenacious play on both ends make them a dangerous opponent. The team is led by Chicago native “Derrick Rose” and a perfect medley of supporting players including an intimidating frontline of former Florida Gator teammates “Joakim Noah” and “Al Horford”. Bulls GM “Marco” has made carefully considered trades and brought in prized small forward “Nicolas Batum” while still sporting a potent bench of “Jordan Farmar”, “Danny Green”, “Bogdan Bogdanovic” and “Tyler Zeller”. Although the team is a bit weak in frontcourt depth the balance is very good and this may be an expected win for the Bulls given how good they’ve been. It’s also a bounce back game and losing two in a row isn’t likely.
On the other end the Clippers have made moves specifically to reinforce their nightly advantage at center. The team is only 24-23 but considering they didn't have Howard for most of that, it may not be a true representation of their ability. "Dwight Howard" is back and is on a mission to supplant “Anthony Davis” as the best big man in the game. Perhaps this comment in made out of bias but we heard coach Hollins say “Howard’s ability on both ends is second to none”. Rubio hasn’t been the same player he was on Charlotte on the offensive end but many speculate with a much lower USG%, “catch and shoot” SG in "Bradley Beal" it will put the ball in Rubio’s hands more. On defense the Spanish wizard has been a force and will prove key in slowing Rose down. One could argue a bench of “Phil Pressey, “Deonte Burton”, “Danny Granger”, “Taj Gibson” and “Andrea Bargani” is an advantage in this matchup but they are less proven and less battle tested as compared to Chicago’s bench.
Lineups:
Dwight Howard/Andrea Bargnani
Jarnell Stokes/Taj Gibson
Wesley Matthews/Danny Granger/Niels Giffey
Bradley Beal/Deonte Burton/Eric Atkins
Ricky Rubio/Phil Pressey/Ben Brust
Joakim Noah/Tyler Zeller
Al Horford/Sam Dower
Nicolas Batum/Bogdan Bogdanovic/Dorell Wright
Gary Harris/Danny Green
Derrick Rose/Jordan Farmar/A.J. Price
Key Matchup:
Ricky Rubio vs. Derrick Rose
Perhaps we should have let this game go under the radar in case we lost but where’s the fun in that? Who do you think will win this one?
2028
