Bulls-Knicks: A Disappointing Tale of Two Teams

The Chicago Bulls are struggling having lost eight in a row and part of the reason is because the Eddy Curry deal that they made prior to the season with the Knicks hasn't worked out in their favor. The Bulls really lost a lot of size in that trade and it shows on a nightly basis. They're just getting pounded by teams coming in and rebounding and shooting over the top of them. At the end of the night it just wears on the Bulls. With Tyson Chandler not being healthy, they just don't have anything to fall back on once he started to play with a lesser intensity from what he started the season with. The fact is that the Bulls don't have much of an inside presence that really draws a double team. I like Michael Sweetney but he's not a proven player. He can do some things in the paint, but the fact that teams are able to play the Bulls straight up right now makes it very difficult for Chicago to score. I didn't think that the Bulls would miss Eddy Curry's size because I didn't think he ever played with a lot of size as far as taking up space. But on the other hand, it's apparent that the Bulls sorely miss that height and presence out on the basketball court.

However, the Bulls' struggles haven't been limited to the Curry trade. Ben Gordon's struggles are something he has to fight through. It is the nature of the league that teams are going to figure you out and adjust to your game, which they have in Ben's case. Ben is going to have to bring something better and different to the table. Last year it was all about him coming off the bench and being a sparkplug, providing instant offense. This year it was time for him to show a little bit more of an all-around game, an ability to create opportunities for his teammates and I think the fact that he's really sort of pressing himself to score has forced him to not have the same type of success. He is still trying to play off of what he did last season when he was the NBA Sixth Man of the Year. He needs to build on his game and find other areas to get strong in.

With the trade deadline approaching on February 23, Scott Skiles probably wants someone to be brought in to give the Bulls some type of spark. But John Paxson has to really be patient and not lose the opportunity he has in front of him. The Bulls have a lot of cap space this summer and also own the Knicks' first-round pick and based on how they have been performing, that's becoming an increasingly valuable chip. To be able to finish this season off on an upbeat note with the team playing hard is the most important thing for the Chicago Bulls right now, more so than going out and trying to salvage something that is probably not going to mean much at the end of the day. The Bulls most likely won't make the playoffs and if they do, they're probably going to be out in the first round.

The Knicks find themselves a little bit of the same situation as the Bulls because of the Curry trade and because there was a certain level of expectation with Larry Brown coming in. Eddy is starting to show some flashes since he returned into the Knicks lineup after suffering a sprained ankle. His numbers ?17 and 10 ? in the last four games are numbers the Knicks need on a nightly basis. For Larry, he probably expected to get a lot more from certain individuals than what he is getting. You had to think that Stephon Marbury would be having an All-Star season under Larry. After all, Steph has one of the greatest coaches in the game on his side teaching him and guiding him. Most assumed that the response from Stephon would have been praising Larry Brown to better his career, and that just hasn't happened. You would think that maybe this would have been an opportunity for some of their players like Jamal Crawford to step up. Larry's relationship with these players hasn't come to fruition. It seems to be going in a bad way, which is not very good when you talk about a coach who just signed a very lucrative contract but also someone who has some physical ailments and can always walk away as opposed to trying to stay and fight it out.

When you're in a situation and the honeymoon isn't as sweet as you anticipate and things start to go bad, then everybody goes their separate ways. That is the situation that has happened with the Knicks. Isiah Thomas went out and got a lot of talent, but they don't have any chemistry. Chemistry is what you need at the end of the day. Larry Brown can't bring chemistry. You have to get the right mix of players, not just a whole lot of players that can play the game of basketball, if you expect to achieve results. And the only results the Knicks are showing is an 8-21 record, second worst in the NBA behind Atlanta's 7-22.

If I am Larry Brown I am going to do whatever is best for me to win and if that means playing the young players, then that is what you have to do. I think the fact that he is playing those young guys like David Lee, Nate Robinson and Channing Frye is because he is getting better production out of them. He is getting players who are hungry and players he can push. He knows they are out there hustling and working hard and you can live with their mistakes. Obviously you want to continue to let those players get better and develop. Right now, the play of the young guys is giving the Knicks at least some optimism in an otherwise extremely disappointing season.
Posted by Scottie Pippen - Jan 6 2006 5:48PM

Perhaps the Knicks have turned the corner since this article was written.

The Bulls could use Jerome James. ;)

Pippen wrote that?

We got 10 guys here that could have done a better job.

And do on a regular basis.

I thought pippen's alalysis was right on. wow me and nalod finally disagreed.

[Edited by - slimpack on 01-08-2006 11:57 PM]