The Bulls are Barrymore, a team that has no identity and has to constantly be reminded by Adam Sandler, or in this case head coach Tom Thibodeau, of who they are: a title contender.

Up to this point however, coach Thibs hasn’t been as successful as he’d like to be. In the past the Bulls have been the hard-nosed defensive team that wore teams down and fought until the end.

That killer instinct has faded many times this season as they are giving up 99.1 points to opponents and the only consistency we’ve seen from them as a unit is their inconsistency. One night they’re beating the feared Golden State Warriors on the road in double overtime and the next they’re falling apart against a lowly, Kobe-less Lakers squad.

Some may argue it’s the injuries as the Bulls have gone through stints, some short some long, missing guys like Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson, Mike Dunleavy, Jimmy Butler and the list goes on. In fact, they’ve only had their starting five together for 20 games this season.

Yet, even when healthy the Bulls seem to lack the killer instinct and toughness that had propelled them through playoff runs as underdogs in the past. Nazr Mohammed disagrees however and thinks grittiness is still there, “We got us a dog. We got us a couple of dogs…There’s nothing in particular that we need. It’s more of us not having focus and desperation, along with the understanding of what it really takes to win a championship.”

We have seen Tony Snell step up as of late and Derrick Rose continues to show more and more flashes of his glory days. Noah has been on the ups and Pau Gasol continues to have what may be the best year of his career. First time all-star Jimmy Butler has been a treat to watch besides a slump in January and Aaron Brooks is the latest piece of evidence that proves any decent point guard can succeed in Thibs’ system.

So fine, maybe they do have some “dogs” but what’s scary is that Mohammed mentioned the Bulls not having focus. With only 28 games left in the season the Bulls must get focused immediately if they’re serious about bringing a title back to the Windy City.

Finishing the first half on a four game winning streak with a huge win against division rival Cleveland, who had stolen the first two of the season series prior to that Bulls 113-98 victory, was a very necessary step in the right direction.

Now well rested after the all-star break and seemingly healthy the Bulls will have to put it all together in the final months. They start the last stretch on Friday at Detroit before heading home for a big seven game home stand.

The pieces are in place to succeed. If they really want this all they need to do is focus.

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Since Rose has never played  a full season since tearing his ACL in his left knee in their first playoff game of 2012 after the NBA Lockout shortened everyone’s schedule.

He missed the entire 2012-13 season recovering from his injury but was largely criticized for not coming back during the playoffs even if he was not mentally ready. Some even called him selfish.

Last season he  returned but again got injured  only playing 10 games into the season, tearing his meniscus in his right knee. This was just another blow to Bulls fan because of the talent and explosiveness  he brings.

This season he has sprained both ankles and most recently injured his hamstring although that’s considered a small injury to Rose. He made more comments about his future:  “I think a lot of people don’t understand that when I sit out it’s not because of this year. I’m thinking about long term. I’m thinking about after I’m done with basketball.”

People say you should keep your personal life away from your sports career but they both affect each other and when the media asks you a question like that you have to answer it even if it affects what others will think of you.

Negative remarks

TNT NBA tip-off on Thursday’s featuring Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal ripped into him like a Thanksgiving turkey. Barkley calls Rose’s comments “stupid” because that’s part of the game and there are people who work just as hard as him and go home to a shack not a big house.

I don’t agree with Barkley’s comments about Rose being “stupid” because everyone allowed their own opinion and I think its better to speak aloud than bottle it up.

Shaq said “if you can walk, you can play, you see how Charles and I walk but it was worth it to provide for our family. Those comments make him look soft as a former MVP.

I like Shaq’s comments better because he defends people that limp after basketball. His soft comment is based off of being selfish and connected to his lack of return last year for the Bull’s playoff games.

Supporting remarks

Nazr Mohammed a veteran  reserve player for the Bulls compares how ridiculous the media is. He donates one million to charity but that’s only one day of news, whereas he comments about the future gets micro-scoped for weeks, sometimes even months.

Joakim Noah said “Everyone needs to chill out.” This is the best comment coming from a teammate who understands what Rose is going through as a player and helps stop the criticism.

Personally, I liked that he was being honest and straightforward about his playing future. Having Derrick Rose most of the time is better than risking him encountering  another season or possibly a career ending injury because he played to often without a break to rest himself.

Some players are injury prone and some never get injured. Brandon Roy is a player who retired at the age of 26 but attempted a comeback only to re-injure his knee and retire for good.  I would say he’s injury prone but the real question is why is he getting injured all the time? He plays hard every time he’s on the court regardless of a potential injury looming.  His body wears and tears like everyone’s. We just don’t hear about it much unless it’s someone in our community of or a well known player.

The bottom line is a person just like everyone else and has a family that needs him after his NBA career. I’ve seen many comments about how selfish he is caring for his future, but really they are the selfish ones that think  an athlete  winning or stats are more important than his life outside of basketball.

The post Derrick Rose Comments Criticized by Many! appeared first on KRUI Radio.

With a little more than half of the NBA season in the books, we are already seeing talks about where Carmelo Anthony will play next season. As we already know, he will most likely test the free agent market. Now, it just a matter of where will he go. It’s been speculated that Anthony might actually stay in New York with the Knicks, or he might go to Los Angeles and team up with Kobe and the Lakers, or even find his way to Chicago and team up with Derrick Rose and the Bulls.

We could see Anthony stating the time is right for his departure from the Big Apple. He will not win an NBA Championship in a New York Knicks uniform, given the team’s supporting cast, injuries, and current state.

If he were to leave New York, the best fit for Carmelo would be going to the Chicago Bulls. Some might say that it would be the Lakers because he and Kobe would be a highly dynamic offensive duo. But in Chicago it would be him and Rose and a lot of young and upcoming future all-stars like Jimmy Butler, and you still would have all-star center Joakim Noah.

Until the offseason, this is all just talk. And with how weak the Eastern Conference is this season, the Knicks are still well alive in the NBA playoffs hunt.

The NBA zeason is halfway done and it is only heating up. It is going to be a great end to this season.

The post Melo out of New York? appeared first on KRUI Radio.

1. Fowl expletives against Selig

• Recently, Major League Baseball took over ownership of The Los Angeles Dodgers due to financial troubles plaguing the owner Frank McCourt and The Dodgers organization.  Frank McCourt has expressed some displeasure for the take-over by MLB commissioner Bud Selig and how the league is handling the situation.  The Dodgers organization were potentially discussing a huge deal with the FOX network that McCourt argues would virtually eliminate the controversy surrounding McCourt’s financial troubles and his divorce. The deal would bring close to 3 billion dollars to the organization over the next 17 years.  McCourt went on MSNBC this week and was quoted as saying, “I want to talk to Bud, and I want to know why he is ducking me!”  referring to how Bud Selig and the MLB are not trying to work with McCourt to solve the financial problem.  This is not the first time that the MLB has had to take over a team, most recently The Texas Rangers last season and the 2001 Montreal Expos which ultimately moved the team to Washington D.C.  Mr. McCourt is allegedly going to sue Major League Baseball for taking over the team.  McCourt’s fowl (great pun right?) language against Selig brings the Los Angeles Dodgers situation into our Bottom 5 for the second straight week.

2. $2, 445,680.00, is cheap according to Granger

• After the Chicago Bulls squashed the Indiana Pacers hopes of moving on to the next round of the NBA playoffs Tuesday night, Pacers forward, Danny Granger, had some choice words about big man for the Bulls, Joakim Noah.  Granger was quoted as calling Noah “cheap” and “cowardly.”  Referring to Noah taking cheap shots during the game against Pacers players such as Josh McRoberts, which ultimately resulted in McRoberts getting ejected from the game due to a retaliation.  Noah has become known for his ability to instigate technical fouls from other players due to his tough play and his demeanor during the game.  Hopefully Granger makes enough money to go and buy some tissues because after the sob fest that was his statements towards Noah, he is going to need quite a few.  Good thing the Pacers will have the entire offseason to have team therapy to blame.

3. Tweet Tweet, Shut Up!

• Todd Tichenor, home plate umpire during the Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees game on Wednesday ejected White Sox Manager Ozzie Guillen for arguing balls and strikes.  No big deal right?  Ozzie gets ejected all the time because of that loud, fiery mouth of his, so it should come as no surprise, but thanks to the unlimited access to the internet and social media via Twitter, Ozzie was not done.  He tweeted during the game on Twitter, “This one going to cost me a lot money, this is patetic” and “Today a tough guy show up a Yankee Stadium.”  Yes, those quotes are verbatim from Twitter and are exactly what he wrote.  Ozzie, we know you do not like umpiring when it goes against you, but if you are going to bash umpires and are going to make a rouse out of getting ejected, please, for Pete’s sake, at least use the common courtesy to spell things correctly and not look like a total idiot.  Thanks.

4. All-time Lowe

• The lowest of the low this week is just that.  Derek Lowe, opening-day starting pitched for the Atlanta Braves was arrested late Thursday night after making an illegal lane change.  The police officer that pulled him over smelled what he believed to be alcohol on Lowe’s breath so he made him do a sobriety test after Lowe refused to blow in the BAC indicator.  Any time a professional athlete is arrested for a DUI it is low, but rumors have spread since the accident that Lowe was actually involved in street racing.  Derek Lowe is 37 years old and a seasoned veteran in Major League Baseball.  It is unclear what the repercussions will be for Lowe.  This is not the way that a veteran leader like Lowe is supposed to act and that is why he breaks into the Bottom 5.  Lowe man, real Lowe!

5. Homophobic Remarks Not Just In Basketball

• According to a fan that attended an Atlanta Braves game this week in San Francisco against the Giants, pitching coach Roger McDowell made homophobic gestures and comments to heckling fans.  The content of the comments has forced the Atlanta Braves to place McDowell on administrative leave starting Friday April 29, 2011.  According to a report on AOL.com McDowell asked a group of fans in the outfield bleachers, “Are you a homo couple, or a threesome?” and then made an obscene sexual gesture with a baseball bat.  Are you kidding me? This homophobic blast from McDowell comes just barely 2 weeks removed from the controversy surrounding Kobe Bryant and his homophobic slurs directed at officials in the NBA.  Come on people, this is the year 2011, get with the program and start being more accepting

The post Bottom Five: MLB/Atlanta Braves Edition appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The Chicago Bulls accomplished something last night that they had not done since the 2006-2007 season; they advanced to the second round of the playoffs.

The Bulls won the first three games of the series in extremely close contests before losing game four in Indianapolis, 89-84. Bulls superstar and MVP candidate, Derrick Rose suffered a sprained ankle in the first quarter of game 4 before returning later in the game. An MRI showed no structural damage and despite wearing a walking boot on Monday, Rose said he would play in game 5.

The atmosphere at the United Center was electric as 22,822 fans packed the Madhouse hoping to see for the first time in the series, the Bulls get out to a fast start and put the Pacers away early.

The Bulls came out of the gates firing on all cylinders, jumping out to a quick 10-point lead.  Making things even better, Rose showed no signs of having ever sprained his ankle.

Joakim Noah was playing with extra motivation as his grandfather, who had never been to an NBA game, was in attendance last night. Noah certainly brought the intensity last night getting into the paint, drawing fouls, rebounding the ball, blocking shots, and more importantly, getting into the Pacers’ heads.

An extremely physical series, in which the Pacers seemed to get away with murder, it was Indiana, not Chicago that finally snapped in game 5. After a missed 3-point attempt by Rose late in the 3^rd quarter, Noah ran into Pacers forward Josh McRoberts. McRoberts proceeded to throw a punch at Noah, which is a flagrant-2 foul and an automatic ejection from the game. Noah was fired up and so was the crowd. Bulls forward Taj Gibson tried to throw gasoline on the fire, visibly laughing at McRoberts as he walked off the court. Noah knocked down the two free throws and the Bulls entered the 4^th quarter with an 84-65 lead.

The Bulls refused to let up in the 4^th, dropping an additional 32 points on the Pacers. The Bulls bench and Luol Deng led in 4th quarter scoring. Noah was pulled early in the quarter finishing with 14 points, 8 rebounds and 4 blocked shots, receiving a standing ovation in front of his grandfather.

With 3:31 left in the game, Ronnie Brewer and Rasaul Butler, the only two Bulls to not have a point in the game, were brought in for Gibson and Deng. With just over a minute left, the Bulls flew down the court, finding Brewer for an alley-oop, getting him on the board. Now it was time to get Butler on the stats sheet. The Bulls had the ball on the side with 26.3 seconds left, meaning that they would have to take one more shot. The Bulls found Butler behind the arc who drained the 3-point shot, giving everyone on the team points in the game.

The Bulls finally looked like the team they were all season with the dominant win over Indiana. Carlos Boozer continued to under-perform, getting in foul trouble early again and finished with just 2 points and 5 rebounds. Derrick Rose showed no ill-effects from his ankle injury leading all scorers with 25 points adding in 6 assists and 2 blocked shots, one of which electrified the crowd pinning a Roy Hibbert dunk attempt to the rim.  Luol Deng continued to shine with 24 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds.

The bench also added 36 points of their own with big time performances from Taj Gibson and Kyle Korver. Gibson gave Bulls fans something to think about with 10 points and 7 rebounds, looking more effective in one game than Boozer did in the entire series. Korver, better known to Bulls fans as “Hot Sauce” thanks to TV broadcaster Stacey King, added 13 points of his own.

The Bulls will now have a little time to rest after a physical series as they await the winner of the series between the Orlando Magic and the Atlanta Hawks. The series moves back to Atlanta on Thursday as the Magic fought off elimination last night with a 101-76 win over the Hawks.

The post Running of the Bulls appeared first on KRUI Radio.