Maybe it is indeed time for fans of the Chicago Bulls to push the panic button. I still maintain that they’re going to be fine in the end and that all the negativity we’ve heard lately is an overreaction. The main producer for ESPN’s NBA programming agrees with what I said a few days ago that the Chicago Bulls should be alright when it counts.
However, I also understand the causes for concern. There are plenty of issues to be worried about.
Most of them were on display for a national TV audience on ABC in a deflating home loss to the Miami Heat. The Bulls are 13-11 at home, while 16-6 on the road. It’s difficult to understand, and you can debate why that is until the cows come home.
More importantly though, it’s a bad sign for the postseason. You know that the Chicago Bulls under Tom Thibodeau have been “regular season champions.” That’s where the team has truly shined. The Bulls know how to earn those higher seeds.
However, what’s the point of earning home court advantage if you’re not a good home team? If you’re better on the road than what does the advantage in a best-of-seven series for you?
It might have been expected, a Chicago Bulls slow start, given the time needed for Derrick Rose to return to his full capabilities. Rose is convalescing, and improving. However, the team’s record is getting worse as he’s getting better. That is also hard to understand, and counter-intuitive.
Although this might be best explained by the fact that Joakim Noah has missed a quarter of the season, and hasn’t been 100% in the games he has played.
Trying to make sense of all this with me is ESPN on ABC Lead NBA Analysts Marc Jackson and Jalen Rose. They did a media conference call this week, and I asked them what to make of the Chicago Bulls recent slide and if the worries exhibited by the Chicago Bulls community are indeed justified.
Podcast is below:
Jackson disagreed with me about the idea about classifying it as a Chicago Bulls “overreaction.” And now, I might be coming around to his point of view.
“That’s a great question but let’s not classify it as an over-reaction. We didn’t over-react when we said they were a great defensive team, when the numbers indicated that,” said Jackson.
“I wouldn’t classify it as an overreaction when we watch them struggle. There’s a reason to be concerned. They’ve got to get back to playing the type of defense that we’ve become accustom to watching them play.”
For what it’s worth, Jalen Rose stuck to his guns on his preseason Bulls prediction. He said later on the call that he believes Chicago will represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals; just like he said in the preseason call.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with Fox Sports Digital, eBay, Google News and CBS Interactive. You can read Banks’ feature stories in the Chicago Tribune RedEye newspaper and listen to him on KOZN 1620 The Zone. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)