Best Bulls Moments of 2010: Part 1
By Josh Hill
6) Deng Drops 40 on Blazers
With the emergence of Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose as stand out superstars in Chicago and the faces of the franchise, Luol Deng was lost in the shuffle. He was given a contract extension in 2008 in which he can earn up to $80 million. You’d think his name would be called on a little more than it has, after all he’s not even a team captain. But Deng isn’t loud about his role, he’s the equivalent to the cool secondary character in the movie who isn’t in it much, but every time he is he helps out the main characters. That’s Deng’s role on the Bulls; Luol Deng is R2-D2. But Deng went all Luke Skywalker on November 1st against the Trailblazers.
Deng scored a career high 40 points in that game. Deng said of his performance, “I think it’s just a coincidence.” Sorry Luol, it’s just a mere coincidence. Deng would be a star on any other NBA team, but with the Bulls he’s a secondary guy, which just shows how deep this roster goes. His 40 point performance is like Fredo Corleone deciding he want to run the family business for a day and does it better than Michael. Deng is an extremely talented player and even though he doesn’t score 40 on a nightly basis, he contributes just as much. November the first was Deng’s day to finally get the recognition he deserves on this team, and he coudn’t have gotten people’s attention any better.
Coming Tomorrow: Best Bulls Moments Part II: Moments #5-#1.