Early injuries fail to impeed a very quick start by Bulls
Would you believe that the United Center-based Chicago pro sports team with the highest winning percentage is the Bulls, not the popular Stanley Cup finalist pick Blackhawks?
OK, the Bulls have played just six games and won four, for a winning percentage of .667. Of the 16 games the Blackhawks have played, they have won 9, with 5 regulation losses and 2 overtime losses. In other words, they've won .56.1 percent of the time that they've taken the ice.
While it seems likely that the Hawks will surpass their NBA brethren sometime soon, the Bulls should be lauded for their promising start. Wins like Saturday's 93-90 defeat of lowly Charlotte aren't that impressive. Wins like the Bulls' opening-night 92-85 victory over San Antonio and their 86-85 upset of Cleveland last Thursday sure are.
Like the Blackhawks, the Bulls have been bit by the injury bug already. Starting forward Tyrus Thomas will be out for a month, maybe longer, with a fractured left forearm. Unlike the Hawks, who have been without the services of key pieces Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa, Thomas' injury might actually be beneficial to the team, both in the short term and the long.
With Thomas out, rookie Taj Gibson is getting a shot at the starting lineup. Gibson hung around in the 2009 NBA Draft until the Bulls landed him with the 26th pick, yet everyone and their brother was calling him a steal before the regular season tipped off. He may not set the world on fire initially — he had 11 points and seven rebounds against Cleveland, but just 7 points and no boards in the Bobcats game — but is more likely the long-term solution at power forward than Thomas, who is set to become a free agent this summer.
It is not as though Gibson does not have help on the interior. Center Joakim Noah is coming off his best game, having made 10-of-12 field goals during a 21-point, 16-rebound effort versus Charlotte. He's already reached double digits in points four times and double digits in rebounds five times. Off the bench, veteran center Brad Miller is averaging just under 10 points per game.
The highest-scoring Bull so far is swingman Luol Deng, who has averaged 16.7 points per game and is also second on the team in rebounds with 60. John Salmons started very slowly — he's still made just 34.5 percent of his attempts from the field — but he's coming around and now second among the Bulls in scoring average. Derrick Rose is off to a solid, if not spectacular start. In a shocker, he leads the Bulls in assists.
This week, the Bulls will get their first look at a pair of teams that could challenge them for the fourth and fifth playoff seeds in the Eastern Conference. They are at Toronto Wednesday — one day after facing Denver at home — and back home to take on Philadelphia Saturday. After that is their annual circus trip, which will keep them on the road for the rest of the month. Five of those games are against Western Conference teams, including the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers Nov. 19.
Should the Bulls continue to win two of every three games for the rest of the month, I'll be impressed. Staying above .500 is a more realistic goal for them. They've got a half-game lead on Cleveland and Milwaukee in the Central Division. I expect that the Bulls will have a hard time staying with the Cavaliers as the season progresses, but all that they need to worry about right now is winning as many games as possible.
Each win serves a dual purpose in that it makes the Bulls look that much more attractive to one of the superstars set to become a free agent at season's end. It will take much, much more than a strong six-game start to convince me that the current cast can be a true title contender. Hope you're watching, Dwyane Wade, and have you heard how unseasonably balmy the weather's been in your hometown?
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