Well, it looks like we’ve got a series on our hands. Fans of the Chicago Bulls might have had to put the brooms away, but their team still has a 2-1 series lead over the Boston Celtics. Obviously, Game 4 is important for both teams.
Sunday afternoon in late April. It was just one week ago that the Bulls stole Game 1 in Boston and started the series on the path to where we now stand – Chicago clinging to a series lead, but looking very vulnerable.
The vulnerability is understandable. The Bulls looked surprisingly in control of this series with a healthy Rajon Rondo. In his absence, they have been exposed by the mediocre play of Jerian Grant and Michael Carter-Williams.
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It won’t matter which of those guys are on the floor on Sunday, stopping Isaiah Thomas is going to be next to impossible. The smallest guy in either starting lineup has one of the biggest games of any player in this contest. He’s incredibly quick and has left behind Dwyane Wade, Jerian Grant, Robin Lopez, and just about anyone else who has squared up on him defensively through the first three games of this series.
Brad Stevens also made some very slick adjustments for Game 3, moving Al Horford out and away from the rim regularly. He’s also gone to the pick-and-roll over and over, looking for a mismatch of a big on the speedy Thomas. It worked well during Game 3, which Boston won easily.
This game will be huge for Chicago. If they lose, it might be the beginning of the end. Letting the Celtics back into this series once again establishes Boston as the favorites and bringing the series even turns this into a best of three over the next week.
If the Bulls get the win, it vastly improves their chances of winning. Teams have certainly blown 3-1 leads in the past, but when I consult the math I see that this series would need to go the full seven games possible and the Celtics would have to win out to avoid elimination.
Next: The Chicago Bulls Point Guard Solution
If Fred Hoiberg figures out a good solution to the point guard problem, Chicago has a fighting chance at the win. If Stevens continues to adjust and Thomas gets help from Boston’s other big names, we’re going to be back to an even series, heading back to Boston for Game 5.
Matchup: Chicago Bulls (2-1) vs. Boston Celtics (1-2)
When: 5:30 p.m. CST
Where: United Center, Chicago, IL
Stream: fuboTV
TV: CSN-Chicago, TNT
Radio: WLUP-FM 97, WRTO 1200 (ESP)