Monday Trivia

Name all the players on the Bulls to have their number retired. You can ignore the non player banners.

This Day in Sports (Jordan Scores 63)

Playoff Trivia: Bulls and Blackhawks

What is the only year in history of Chicago did both the Bulls and Blackhawks make it to the Finals?

MJ and Scottie Courtside. So Close, Yet So Far

In case you missed it, last night during the Bulls game against the visiting Charlotte Bobcats Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen had courtside seats for the action. According to this article, when showed on the Jumbotron the two of them received a standing Ovation. It's always great to see Micheal back in Chicago.


Here is a clip of my favorite MJ standing ovation, His last professional game in Chicago.

Chicago Sports Power Rankings

Our fine city by the Lake has gone through some tough times in the last decade in sports. Without exception, every single team representing the Chi has absolutely stunk at one time or another. The Sox winning it all in 2005 and the Bears' Super Bowl in '06 were high points, but other than that, the mid-2000s were a bit of a struggle for Superfans.

Now that we're in the offseason for the NHL, NBA, and NFL, and in the stretch run for baseball, it's a good time to see which organizations are doing well, and which ones are flailing.

1. Chicago Blackhawks - They just won the Stanley Cup, and have an excellent young group of stars to build around. New management has turned around fanhood with more accessible games on TV, and hey, everyone likes to back a winner. The 'Hawks bandwagon has never been more full.

On the downside, all of the cost-cutting moves this offseason, while necessary, have left something of a bad taste in fan's mouths. Losing Niemi and Byfuglien reminds me of the Sox having to dump Rowand after the World Series. Still, things are looking good for the Blackhawks going forward.

2. Chicago Bulls - Despite losing out on LeBron James and the rest of Miami Thrice, the Bulls have a new coach, lots of fresh blood, and emerging superstars in Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah.

Top to bottom, this might be the best roster in the NBA (at worst, it's still Top 10), and Tom Thibodeau knows what to do with good depth. (DEFEND! PRESS!) Also, the Bulls have made the playoffs the last two seasons in a row, and fan support barely even wavered during the crappy years.

I expect the Bulls to be a fast-breaking, fiercely aggressive team this year, a joy to watch even if they don't get to the Finals.

3. Chicago White Sox - Ozzie Guillen is the best coach in Chicago, and with his seven years' experience, the dean of Windy City coaching. He has his team, once again, in position to battle it out down the stretch with the Twins for the AL Central crown.

Is this a dominant team? No, but quality pitching and steady leadership (not just Oz, but also Buehrle, Don Cooper, Paul Konerko) make being a Sox fan easy these days. Also, US Cellular has the best food in town, ballpark-wise.

4. Chicago Bears - No doubt, this is OUR team, the team that every sports fan in Chicago really cares about. So why No. 4? Well, they were 7-9 last year. Lovie Smith is gone if they don't make the playoffs. Key players, like Brian Urlacher and Olin Kreutz, but including many others, are getting old.

This is a make-or-break year for the Bears. Succeed, and reclaim the top spot in Chicago fan's hearts. Fail, and we know we're in for a rough 2010-2020 at Soldier Field.

5. Chicago Cubs - Yes, it warms the cockles of my evil lil' heart putting the Cubs down here. Seriously though, they are overpaid and terrible, and Lou Pinella is on his way out.

On the bright side, Wrigley still fills up for games, Starlin Castro and Tyler Colvin look like they'll be good, and new ownership is willing to spend.

6. Chicago Rush - In case you hadn't heard, they just got eliminated from the playoffs. You hadn't? Oh. Right.

7. Chicago Wolves - I'll be honest. I have no clue how the Wolves did this year, or are doing. But I do know they signed Chelios for a minute there, so that counts for something. And they've always been a decent AHL/IHL team.

8. Chicago Fire - Technically they play in Naperville, so that's Strike One. Also, they have a losing record this season and are scuffling in their international league. Strike Two. I'm not ready to give up on the Fire yet, but with solid soccer teams emerging in LA, New York, and even Salt Lake City, it looks as if the Fire may be stuck in reverse.

9. Chicago Sky - We have a WNBA team? Yes, and they stink.

Did I miss anything? Lacrosse? Rugby?

Meet The New-Look Chicago Bulls

I figured I better get something up to avoid Armchair Superstar's first ever donut, and a lot has gone on at the Berto Center in Chicago, so let's see who we'll be rooting for next season on the Bulls:

Guards: Derrick Rose is a lock to start, and it looks as if new acquisition Ronnie Brewer will be his backcourt mate.

Bulls Summer League Game II: The Clippers

I realized today that one of the big reasons that the Bulls didn't land LeBron was that Chicago management told him they wouldn't provide paid positions for all of LeBron's boys. Forget where I read that - New York Times, maybe?

If that's the case, then good riddance and I'm proud of Reinsdorf, Gar, and Pax.

Just some tidbits from tonight's game:

Derrick Rose is in attendance, taking notes on players with Randy Brown, who I believe does player development for the Bulls.

Chris Webber is one of the announcers: Cool!

The squad seems to have found a good lineup with John Lucas III (8pt, 2ast in first quarter), Matt Bouldin, Samardo Samuels, James Johnson, and Trent Plaisted. All of these guys have at least a 25% to make the team. More coming later. They're interviewing Coach Thibodeau now.

Lucas is absolutely on fire, hitting two treys in a row to open the second quarter as the Bulls lead 26-16.

Bulls Summer League Game One: Nuggets

How sad am I that the World Cup is over/desperate for real sports to start up again?

Well, the Chicago Bulls have their very first Las Vegas Summer League match (starting NOW on ESPN3: The Ocho) and I'm goanna watch it and report back for everybody! They're playing the Nuggets, who star Ty Lawson from UNC (28pts, 7ast in their last game) as well as J.R. Smith (what is he still doing playing Summer League?).

First off, let's take a look at the Bulls' roster. A couple of guys have NBA experience. James Johnson should probably be the standout on the team. He's the only guy I expect to contribute for Chicago this season, and if he doesn't play well in Summer League, Gar and Pax better be looking for a replacement.

Other "veterans" on the squad include Joe Alexander, who came from the Bucks in the Salmons trade, Chris Richard, who signed a series of 10-day contracts with the Bulls and played fairly well, and others.

Game on! Chris Richard wins the tip. After a Derrick Byars made three-pointer, Johnson blocks a shot with a foul.

I'll be back with some analysis after the first quarter.

Carlos Boozer > Chris Bosh

Well, tonight is the night. And we still don't know where LeBron is going. Hell, I kind of think that LeBron doesn't know where LeBron is going.

Amidst reports that the Miami scenario is a "done deal," I got to thinking, and here's what I came up with after some film study; Carlos Boozer is better than Chris Bosh.

Let's go to the video, shall we?



God, the Fugees are awesome. I had to search for a few minutes to find a video without some crappy metal in the background. Now let's see some video of Bosh...



Here's my point. Did you see Bosh in that highlight, at all? Wasn't he supposed to be his team's star last year? Maybe his girlfriend should have been heckling him instead of LeBron.

Stats. Boozer averaged 19.7 and over 13 rebounds a game in the playoffs this year. Bosh didn't make the playoffs. You can compare them at NBA.com. Chris averaged a double-double in Toronto on a bad team (24 and 10), but watching video it just seems like he disappears in the post. Definitely not a strong presence.

I think that with Boozer and Noah in the post, Chicago is freaking scary. Add Taj Gibson to the mix and the Bulls are, perhaps, the best rebounding team in the league.

Bill Simmons today notes that Bosh has only played in ONE big game in his entire career as a basketball player. That would be the 2008 Olympics. Let's see...



Yep. Bosh is invisible again. Except when he fails to get over on defense. Then you notice. Like at 5:20. By the way, Simmons also really seems to be warming up to the Bulls, as noted in the Free Agency Summit from last week. I always think of him as a Chicago hater, so this is interesting.

"What should LeBron do? Pick Chicago. That's where the rings are. The fact that he didn't say to Bosh, "Come to Chicago with me, we'll play with Rose and Noah and win six titles together" was the single most disappointing outcome of the summer. That team would have been a true juggernaut with pieces that actually complemented each other, unlike this pickup-basketball situation that's brewing in Miami.

Even with Boozer there in Bosh's place -- and I think he's a great fit for them, with or without LeBron -- it could still translate to multiple titles, because Rose could have been the best second banana since Kobe in 2001. "

Nice. What do y'all think? Here, by the way, is one more of Boozer, just for education. Check out the post defense and fast break skills, and passing.



How lucky is Boozer to have played with Deron Williams, Jay Williams at Duke, and now Derrick Rose? That's one hell of a point guard list. By the way, let's not forget, Boozer won a title in college, and, as Simmons notes, Bosh never even made the Sweet Sixteen.



Yep. I'm happy with Boozer.

Bulls Free Agency Derby

I thought we'd lead today with some linkage from around the world, and see what's being written about this story you may have heard about - there are a few decent free agents in the NBA this year, apparently?

One of the top three picks from the 2003 draft JUST SIGNED A HUGE DEAL WITH MINNESOTA!!!!!

ESPN's Jon Greenberg: Chicago is ready for new sports King <- This is a well-written and honest look at where the Bulls and the sports fans of Chicago stand. There are bits that LeBron might not love hearing...

"The Bulls don't need a leader. Joakim Noah has donned that mantle. He's earned it. Teammates like him and they have started to look to him to speak to the press on their behalf and as a last line of defense on the court.

I know it sounds crazy to outsiders: The guy who acted the fool after winning NCAA titles and wore the bow tie to the draft is a legit NBA leader?"

... but where Chicago has a serious edge with LeBron is exactly in this respect. We don't need to BS with him like Miami, New York, New Jersey. There's no Kool-Aid to be drank here in order to get the King to sign. Just look at Chicago. Just look at the Bulls. I love it.

Six out of eight ESPN experts think Bron is coming to Chicago.

Chris Bosh loves twitter. A good source for updates straight from the guy himself. I don't like Twitter but I will make an exception here.

Pooooooor Cleveland. Did you know they lead the nation in drifters? From the Trib...

"AKRON, Ohio — There's a consensus among sports fans here that — despite the Jordan shot over Craig Ehlo, John Elway's Drive and Jose Mesa's blown save in the World Series — the worst tragedy in Cleveland sports history occurred when Art Modell packed up the Browns and left for Baltimore for seemingly no good reason.

As the countdown to the start of free agency neared an end, fans in this passionate but championship-deprived sports town were bracing for the sobering possibility that LeBron James may play for another city next season."

So, yeah. The Nets and Knicks are in Akron today to talk with LeBron, the first of the suitors to make their pitches. Let me guess. You're goanna tell him New York is awesome. Hey, we have great deli in Chicago too, man. And it's less crowded and dogs don't crap on the sidewalks as much. And it smells better in Chicago. Anyway. From the NYTimes' great sports section...

“We tried to put him in a New York state of mind,” Knicks Coach Mike D’Antoni said after the meeting with James.

After two years of diligently creating the cap room to pursue James — but without being able to say so publicly, D’Antoni got a little giddy.

“You know what was good? LeBron James being there,” D’Antoni said. “No one can call me for tampering. It’s liberating, really.”

I kinda think the Knicks have given up. That article mentions they've already offered Joe Johnson a max deal, too. Plus, they know they're terrible, no matter what eternal optimist Coach Mikey has to say. Now, the (soon-to-be) Brooklyn Nets, with Russian Mark Cuban and Jay-Z, they interest me a bit more, because LeBron does want to be a global icon. Times?

The Nets’ contingent, led by the new owner Mikhail Prokhorov, President Rod Thorn, Coach Avery Johnson and the music mogul Jay-Z — a Nets shareholder and a close friend of James — arrived at the offices of IMG in a series of black town cars at 10:58 a.m. James, who grew up in nearby Akron, arrived earlier, in a white sports-utility vehicle.

“Meeting went well,” Johnson shouted while walking out.

I don't think LeBron wants to play for The Little General, though. He might be more interested in Byron Scott, the Cavs' new coach. Cleveland sure thinks so, anyway.

God, I could go on for days with this stuff. Here's my prediction as of now:

Bosh/Wade to the Heat. Though I'm still not giving up on D-Wade coming to Chicago if the chips fall a certain way. Mostly, I think he's just trying to avoid living in the same town as his ex wife.

Johnson/Amare in New York, reunited with D'Antoni. God, I could get ten assists a game playing point guard for that team. Steve Nash won the MVP with those guys in 2004-05, by the way. Chris Paul, anybody? Joe Johnson actually may well be staying put in Atlanta and taking the money, according to ESPN.

LeBron/David Lee for the Bulls. Which gives us probably the best top seven in the league, especially if we add a SG like Korver or (sigh) Redick. Yes, that hurt.

Dirk stays in Dallas.

More to come. God, the 24 hour news cycle is rough!

Bosh and Wade Together... In Chicago

My sources have informed me that Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade are in Chicago hearing presentations. My sources being ESPN and Twitter of course. Seriously though, Bosh and Wade have heard the Bulls' presentation. According to ESPN, Miami has the leg up on all the teams for both Bosh and Wade. But my question is: Why are they both in a hotel in Chicago then? Why wouldn't Wade be at his home in Miami? If Bosh wanted to join him during the Free Agency process, Wade could show him around Miami. Instead, Bosh is getting to see Chicago and all that this city has to offer. It makes no sense to me.

But then again, maybe their all looking for a home in Chicago. While LeBron is the dream, Wade isn't the worst consolation prize ever. Perhaps Wade sees the writing on the wall: You need room to sign three max free agents to three max deals. The Heat don't have that. Instead, the Bulls have a far better surrounding cast, and a third superstar on the rise. So, if Wade wants to be a part of a championship team for a while, he should probably try to join the Bulls.

On top of all of this Wade actually fits in perfectly with the Bulls' roster. We need a Shooting guard and a power forward. You get both of them from that signing. With that said, I'd still much rather land Bosh and James. Which I still remain confident we will. After that, we will dominate for years to come!

Wilbon, Kornheiser, Simmons and Le Batard Discuss NBA Free Agency

Wait... I have the Internet?

Hello everyone. I finally got internet today, as I've been without it since May 29th. So, now I can post again. I'd like to address today's big news: Lebron, Wade, and Bosh meeting in Miami.

The good news is Lebron has been very non-committal. In fact, Chad Ford puts the Bulls chance of landing him at 40%. Which is by far the highest. If he comes here, I think it's a done deal with Bosh. I figure a huge selling point should be the fact that while Wade is very good he will be 29 this next season. While LeBron and Bosh are 26. The Bulls should emphasize that in a few years Wade's abilities will taper off. So, once Bosh and LeBron's career reaches its twilight there will be no one to pick up the slack. However, the Bulls have D-Rose who will be in his prime at the time Bosh and LeBron's ability tapers off, and thus he could lead them to extra titles.

The Bulls roster would be incredible next year with both of them, as we know. Can you say dynasty?

Rose - PG

Deng - SG

James - SF

Bosh - PF

Noah - C

Let's get this done Bulls!

Lebron and Bosh to the Bulls? Vegas Thinks so

I'm not saying this is meaningful, but Vegas/Bookies always seem to know more then anyone else when it comes to setting lines. That is why I found this comment from Bill Simmons, on his sports guy page at ESPN.com, so intresting. Simmons says "48 hrs ago: sportsbook.com had LeBron at +125 to sign w/ Bulls. Bosh was +300. Now? They're both -500. Hmmmmmm."

NBA Draft Quick Hits

In no particular order...

1. I can't remember a year where I cared less about the draft. Mostly it's the impending Free Agent Shootout, but also this is just a pretty uninspiring class.

2. The Bulls shipped Captain Kirk and the #17 pick to Washington for, basically, cap space. After surviving rumor after rumor, it looks like this one is for real. We will miss you in Chicago, Mr. Hinrich. Here's hoping some kind of buyout lets us bring you back for cheap.

Word is, we might be bringing back Chris Duhon to take his spot. Here is a picture of the old school boys getting down.

3. In the category of MMMM... THAT'S EFFIN DELICIOUS... I just cooked a pork chop and green beans in a cast-iron skillet. Total prep/cook time: 15 minutes. Spices used: Kosher salt, mixed-up salt, pepper. Extra virgin olive oil, a little cayenne, and a splash of the beer can just for a second, just for flavor.

Cook the chop first, then the green beans in the mixed fat and olive oil. Pretty self explanatory. Damn good. And that's your moment of zen. I ate it with some crusty white bread.

4. I think the Lakers might have gotten a couple of second round steals tonight, proving once again that the rich tend to get richer.

They took Devin Ebanks, former Indiana commit, at No. 43, and then picked Derrick Caracter with the No. 58 pick. Ebanks reminds me of a Lamar Odom Lite, and Caracter is a big guy who has finally put it together despite what has been a troubled career. I expect both of these guys to contribute in the Lakers rotation.

5. My pick to flop from the Top Ten is Al-Farouq Aminu. If you can't win in college, you won't be able to win in the League. Fittingly, Aminu went to the Clippers. PS- Dino Gaudio, Wake's coach, just got fired this year.

6. My pick to surprise, outside of the Top Five, is Token White Guy Gordon Hayward. Fittingly, he went to Utah (at No. 9). Who saw that coming?

7. Jordan Crawford (Xavier, formerly Hoosiers) was drafted by New Jersey and went to Atlanta, while Damion James (Texas) was drafted by the Hawks and will be a Net. This is a bit strange to me, since I see these guys being better fits on their original squads.

Jordan and Jamal Crawford can't really coexist, seeing as they are basically the same guy. But I like Jordan's game and think he will be okay wherever he ends up.

8. Predicted flops from this draft: Aminu, Cole Aldrich, Ed Davis, Eric Bledsoe (shoulda stayed in school, he's Daequan Cook v. 2.0).

9. Predicted all-stars: John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins.
a. If I'm right on this, I'm the man: Miami got Da'sean Butler from West Virginia with the 42nd pick. If anybody from that second round can surprise people and be an all-star, it's Butler.

10. Safest rotation players from Day One: Ekpe Udoh (Baylor/Golden State), Patrick Patterson (Kentucky/Houston), Hassan Whiteside (Marshall/Sacramento, 2nd round), Evan Turner (Ohio State/Philly, the only Big Ten player drafted).

11. Less than a week 'til Free Agency. Let's get LeBron!!!!

I Know, I Know, Lakers vs. Celtics, But...

Props to Send Lebron to Chicago for this.



At this point, let's do the math. Nets, Knicks, Heat, Bulls, Clippers. I pretty much think that's it.

The Nets have a core of Devin Harris, Brook Lopez, and the #3 pick. They are also coming off just a godawful season.

The Knicks are terrible.

The Heat would give Bron a great sidekick in D-Wade, but not a whole lot else.

The Clippers' have a nice supporting cast, not too bad -- Kaman, an aging but still effective Baron Davis, Eric Gordon.

And then we have the Bulls. As this video points out, LeBron James and Derrick Rose may be the two most athletic stars in the game today. Rose is only 21. James still has, what, eight good years left (if we use the Garnett model for high school sustainability)?

Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson, Kirk Hinrich, and Luol Deng are rock solid in their roles. This is a team that could become a dynasty with one simple move. No reaching for Bosh or Joe Johnson, or Amare. No complications.

Call it 'Just Add LeBron,' because unlike every other suitor, that is all the Bulls have to do to become instant championship favorites. Of course, we knew this already. But hey, cool video right?

Kelvin Sampson next head coach for the Bulls?

I saw this today thought it was interesting. KC Johnson of the Tribune mentions in his article that the Bulls could look at former IU and Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson for the vacant head coaching position. I always thought he was a solid X's & O's coach, but not sure how he would do at the NBA level. Any other thoughts on this?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/basketball/bulls/ct-spt-0520-bulls-chicago--20100519,0,3151299.story

The LeBron Derby...A One Team Race?

This morning I awoke to the following text from ESPN Alerts (which, btw, is the greatest service ever):

"ESPN CHI CLE - Chad Ford: Three NBA GMs think Bulls will land Lebron James; more at http://budurl.com/FordOnLeBron"

So is LeBron on the verge of becoming a Bull? Assuming those three GMs aren’t complete idiots (which is entirely possible with the state of some NBA teams)…then I say YES, yes he is.

According to Chad Ford’s story, one of the GMs offered up a scenario that would send Luol Deng to the Cavs in a sign and trade in order to land Wade or Bosh as LeBron’s running mate. I don’t know if the Cavs go for that – but assuming it’s a sign and trade than, correct me if I’m wrong, I believe the Bulls would be able to add on that extra $3oM and 1 year that only the Cavs currently can.

Chad also mentioned that two of the GMs believe that Calipari will be the Bulls next head coach. Cal mentioned last week he had no interest in the Bulls coaching vacancy, however, I don’t think you can turn down an opportunity to coach this line-up:

PG: Derrick Rose

SG: LeBron James

SF: James Johnson? (With no Deng this will be an interesting position…the Bulls could try and draft somebody like Gordon Heyward or Damion Jones to develop and then use the mid-level exception to sign a veteran SF)

PF: Chris Bosh

C: Joakim Noah

All the points above are moot if LeBron chooses to stay in Cleveland…but we ARE talking about Cleveland –

Do you think LeBron would rather be a part of this:



Or this…:




My early prediction? LeBron to the Bulls. The Knicks will sign Joe Johnson to a max deal and regret it for the next decade.

Three Candidates Emerge To Fill Vinny's (Tiny?) Shoes...

SI's rumor page is reporting...that the Sun-Times is reporting...that the Bulls have three guys in mind for the newly vacant coaching gig. (Keep in mind that these are rumors...)

My ranking of the three:

1) Mo Cheeks - No reason other than "Mo is better" (I went there).

2) Doug Collins - He knows his basketball...not sure his style of play will fit with D-rose, Lebron, Bosh, and Noah next year.

3) Calipari - I would only contact him when I needed a crappy used Chevy...at least NBA players don't need to worry about their GPAs...

Who do you want for the job??

Best Chicago Fight Song! Poll

I haven't posted in awhile but I was listening to the Bears fight song and this got me thinking, "What do other people think is the best fight song in Chicago?" Well let's find out. Rank your favorite fight song in order of 1-5 from best to worse. (Note there has been some discrepancy with my choice for the Bulls [Jamie] so if you can come up with a better song then my choice, let me know.


Chicago Bears





Chicago Blackhawks





Chicago Bulls





Chicago Cubs





Chicago White Sox