LeBron James has stood in the way of Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls in the NBA playoffs in the past, and he’ll once again be front and center as the Bulls take on the Cleveland Cavaliers Monday night in Game 1 of a best-of-seven series.
The series will pit two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference against each other, but the Cavaliers come into the matchup shorthanded. Power forward Kevin Love, who was acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves before the season began, will miss the remainder of the postseason after suffering a dislocated shoulder during the Cavs’ first round win over the Boston Celtics. His loss is a big one to Cleveland, as he was a legitimate outside threat and a matchup nightmare for guys like Pau Gasol on the defensive end of the floor.
Even without Love, the Cavaliers still have plenty of weapons in their arsenal. James is still the best player in the NBA, and he showed that he’s ready for the challenge in front of him this postseason as he averaged 27 points and nine rebounds per game in the Cavaliers’ first round sweep of the Celtics.
Kyrie Irving has also had an explosive year for Cleveland, and his solid play continued into the playoffs. He averaged 23.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game during the first round, and he had a great game in the series clincher, scoring 24 points and hauling in 11 rebounds in 43 minutes of action.
With those guys on the floor, the Bulls’ defense is going to have a tough time slowing Cleveland down. Jimmy Butler is likely going to end up defending LeBron in this series, and Tony Snell could provide some help as well, but that matchup heavily favors Cleveland. As for Irving, he’ll be Rose’s problem on the perimeter, and that matchup, while more even, still favors the Cavaliers.
Despite those obstacles, the Bulls still have plenty to be optimistic about. After questions swirled around the team following two straight losses to the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round, the Bulls responded with a monstrous 54-point win to close out the series up in Wisconsin, and they roll into the playoffs as healthy as they’ve been all season long.
This is the kind of series where having guys like Gasol and Nikola Mirotic will come in handy for the Bulls. Sure, LeBron is likely going to cover one of the Bulls’ offensive weapons and render them mostly ineffective, but that still leaves a couple of other options to choose from. Whether it’s Rose or Butler or Gasol, the Bulls can spread the ball around and avoid getting trapped in a defensive struggle, and that’s a big bonus for this team as they try to knock off Cleveland.
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The big key for Chicago will be to embrace that kind of mentality. Too often the game slows down for Chicago when it should be picking up pace and intensity, and that would be a death blow to their chances against Cleveland. Rose has to be willing to drive to the basket and kick the ball out if the lane is clogged up. Butler has to be willing to find his spots and hit shots when he needs to. Gasol has to execute on offense in a big way without Love there to slow him down.
These things all need to happen in order for the Bulls to succeed, and if they do, there’s a strong possibility that this is finally the year that Rose and the Bulls get past LeBron in the playoffs. This is the matchup that they wanted, and it’s the one that will ultimately decide their fate as they push for their first championship since 1998.
