Earlier, we discussed the Derrick Rose torn ACL injury. Now we have the video. As you can see in
the video, Derrick Rose's knee injury happened with less than 1:30 remaining in the game with the
Chicago Bulls up by 12 points.
While I feel horrible for Derrick Rose, I can't say I'm overly surprised.
Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls had homecourt advantage throughout the 2012 NBA Playoffs.
They appeared to have a good chance of winning a championship. However, all those hopes and dreams
came crashing down to earth on Saturday when Derrick Rose suffered a torn ACL.
Due to the torn ACL, Derrick Rose will miss the rest of the playoffs and might not be ready to
begin next season.
With ten days remaining before the end of the 2012 NBA season, it's time to take another look at
the NBA power rankings. Who are the best basketball teams on the planet? That's the question we
will be answering below.
Here is the April Edition of our NBA power rankings:
1. Chicago Bulls
With or without Derrick Rose, the Bulls are beastly.
This was how things were supposed to go last June. On Thursday night, the Miami Heat dismantled
the Dallas Mavericks by a final score of 106-85. But last June, the Mavs defeated the Heat to
capture the franchise's first NBA championship.
LeBron James led the way for the Heat with 19 points, nine rebounds and five assists despite
playing with an injured finger.
With March drawing to a close, let's take a look at the best teams in the NBA. While this
condensed lockout season has lowered the quality of basketball, there are still some great teams in
the NBA. Here are our power rankings of the best of the best.
1. Miami Heat
The Heat remain the team to beat due to their talent.
Technically, Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls were playing a road game against the Milwaukee
Bucks. But with more Bulls fans than Bucks fans in the audience, it felt like a home game for the
Bulls. And when Derrick Rose hit a buzzer beating game-winner to win in Milwaukee, the crowd roared
with approval.
The 2012 NBA All-Star Game is a thing of the past. That means we are now officially in the
second half of the season. There are definitely some teams that have separated themselves from
everybody else. Here's our look at the best teams in the league in this version of our NBA power
rankings.
1.
The Chicago Bulls are one of the best teams in the NBA, while the New Orleans Hornets are at the
bottom of the league. However, in the first game back from the 2012 NBA All-Star break, the Bulls
almost dropped a game in front of their home fans to the lowly Hornets.
With 1:15 remaining, the Bulls trailed by four points.
Before coming into the league, Dwight Howard built himself up as a very religious man who wanted
to make a mark on the league by being a great human. As it turns out, Dwight Howard is a loser.
Even though the Orlando Magic have helped him make it to the NBA Finals, Howard isn't happy in
Florida and has instead demanded a trade.
LeBron James just pulled off one of the greatest dunks you will ever see. In a game between the
Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls, LeBron James jumped over John Lucas III on his way to finishing an
alleyoop dunk. Watch the video below to see the greatness in action.
While Lucas is one of the shortest players in the league, it was still an impressive show of
athleticism by LeBron.
While it seems like every young player in the NBA wishes they were in a different market,
Derrick Rose is happy in Chicago. To prove his happiness, Rose signed a five-year extension with
the Chicago Bulls. The reigning MVP will be paid nearly $95 million over the life of the
contract.
Derrick Rose doesn't sound like a player that will get fat and lazy now that he's a rich man: "I
think I live a humble life.
Dear Scottie Pippen,
Please read the entire title of this blog post before you sue me for $1 million. Please. I don't
have $1 million to give you even if you really are bankrupt.
In case you haven't heard, Scottie Pippen is suing every media outlet on the planet that ever
claimed he was bankrupt.
Yesterday, we posted the video of Joakim Noah using a homosexual slur. In the video, you can see
an irate Noah yell to a fan, "F You, F ". Well, the NBA didn't take kindly to those words. On
Monday, Noah was fined $50K for using a term the NBA called "Offensive" and "derogatory".
The center for the Chicago Bulls has apologized numerous times sine the incident.
Usually, it's a good idea for a basketball player to be like Kobe Bryant. However, that's not
the case when it comes to using homosexual slurs. In Game 3 of the 2011 Eastern Conference Finals,
Joakim Noah of the Chicago Bulls aimed a homosexual slur at a fan of the Miami Heat. The Joakim
Noah homosexual slur video can be seen below.
Chris Bosh has gotten his share of heat this season and not in a good way. The power forward has
been in the shadow of Dwyane Wade and LeBron in Miami. However, in Game 3 of the 2011 Eastern
Conference Finals against the Chicago Bulls, Bosh carried the Heat to a 96-85 victory. The Heat now
lead the series 2-1.
After the Chicago Bulls drubbed the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the 2011 Eastern Conference Finals,
fans have jumped off the Heat bandwagon in a major fashion. Just a couple days ago, their bandwagon
was full. Now it's difficult to find a fan who still believes that the Heat can beat the Bulls.
But it's still very much possible.
The Boston Celtics appeared to be on their way to a Game 5 win against the Miami Heat. Then
everything changed when LeBron James played like LeBron James down the stretch. Often criticized
for not playing well at the end of playoff games, LeBron scored the Heat's final ten points as
Miami sprinted to a 97-87 victory.
Heading into a pivotal Game 3, the Atlanta Hawks were talking a bunch of trash. The top seeded
Chicago Bulls, specifically Derrick Rose, silenced the Hawks as they won by a final score of 99-82
to take a 2-1 lead in the series. In 38 minutes, Derrick scored 44 points, handed out seven
assists, grabbed five rebounds and turned the ball over only twice.
A big reason why the Atlanta Hawks were able to eliminate the Orlando Magic in the first round
of the 2011 NBA Playoffs was the play of starting point guard Kirk Hinrich. His timely shooting and
rugged defensive play played a vital role in the upset. Unfortunately for the Hawks, Hinrich could
be out for the rest of the playoffs.
The Chicago Bulls had a tougher than anticipated series against the Indiana Pacers in the first
round. The Hawks, on the other hand, were the underdogs against the Orlando Magic but were able to
stun many NBA pundits. Now, with the two teams matching up in the second round, who will win the
Bulls or the Hawks?
Although the Indiana Pacers played extremely hard and gave it all they had, the Chicago Bulls
were just too good. With a 116-89 victory in Game 5, the Bulls eliminated the Pacers. As you might
expect, the Bulls were led by MVP-to-be Derrick Rose, who scored 25 points and handed out six
assists in 30 minutes.
After the Indiana Pacers were eliminated by the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday by a final score of
116-89, Pacers all-star forward Danny Granger hand some unkind words for Bulls center Joakim Noah.
According to Granger, the always energetic Noah doesn't always play fair.
Said Granger: "He pulled a cowardly move.
Things have gone from bad to worse for Carlos Boozer. The highest paid player on the Chicago
Bulls struggled in the first round against the Indiana Pacers. In the final game of the series,
Carlos Boozer suffered a turf toe injury. His status for Bulls' next series is unknown; Chicago
will either play the Orlando Magic or the Atlanta Hawks.
It's the first round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs. However, even though the playoffs are just
beginning, there are some teams that appear to be the cream of the crop. While things my change
between now and the NBA Finals, these teams appear to be the top five teams to beat going forward
in the postseason:
1.
The Chicago Bulls are both lucky and good. In Game 1 of their first round series against the
Indiana Pacers, the BUlls were down 10 points with three and a half minutes remaining but went on a
16-1 run to end the game. The Pacers were giving the Bulls another hard push in Game 2 even though
they lost starting point guard Darren Collison.
The 2010-11 NBA regular season ends on Wednesday night. In the Eastern Conference, all the
postseason matchups are set. However, in the West, there are a number of spots up for grabs. That
means we'll see a couple hard-fought games on Wednesday. That said, in terms of the power rankings
headed into the 2011 NBA Playoffs, we know who we like.
Even though the Chicago Bulls have been on fire for months, NBA pundits have been slow to give
'em credit. But after what we saw on Thursday night, it's now impossible to overlook the Bulls.
Going up against the Boston Celtics, the Bulls dominated and won by a final score of 97-81. The
victory all but wrapped up the Eastern Conference for Chicago.
Just a week ago, it appeared that the San Antonio Spurs were destined to finish with the best
record in the NBA. But on Thursday night against the Boston Celtics, the Spurs lost their fifth
straight game. With Rajon Rondo leading the way, the Celtics took home one of their best wins of
the season in a game that featured two struggling title contenders.
Derrick Rose is very likely to win the 2011 NBA Most Valuable Player award. His chances to win
MVP just got better after he got a key endorsement ... from LeBron James. LeBron, who is also in
the MVP race, had this to say when asked who the MVP should be for the 2011 season: "I think
Derrick Rose".
The San Antonio Spurs were without Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and Antonio McDyess on
Monday against the Portland Trail Blazers. All four players missed the game due to injury. To the
surprise of no one, the Blazers were able to send San Antonio to their fourth straight defeat.
The surprise was how close the game was in the fourth quarter.
The Chicago Bulls hadn't lost at home since Jan. 18 against the Charlotte Bobcats. On Monday,
the Philadelphia 76ers ended that streak by handing the Bulls a 97-85 defeat. The Sixers built a
big first half lead and then held on late to improve to 38-36 on the season. The loss dropped the
Bulls to 53-20.
Derrick Rose can do no wrong. He has lifted his Chicago Bulls to the top of the Eastern
Conference. On a nightly basis, he cements his standing as the NBA's favorite to win the 2011 MVP
award. On Saturday, Brandon Jennings of the Milwaukee Bucks got a front row view of what Derrick
Rose could do and just how nasty he could be.
We can smell the 2011 NBA Playoffs in the air. Only about five weeks from the postseason, NBA
teams are fighting for position. Which NBA teams are a cut above the rest? Here's our look at the
current 2011 NBA power rankings where we list the ten best teams in basketball starting with number
ten.
Losing four games in a row is bad. Getting outed as a group of crybabies is even worse. That's
where the Miami Heat stand after they lost to the Chicago Bulls on Sunday afternoon. Following
their 87-86 loss Miami's fourth consecutive defeat that featured another fourth quarter meltdown,
Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra admitted his team is a team of crybabies.
Now that we are finished with the 2011 NBA All-Star Game, it's time to get back to business. Who
are the best teams in the NBA? That's the question we will answer below. There are currently six
teams with a legit chance to win the 2011 NBA championship. Here is our current power rankings in
reverse order:
6.
Each year, Forbes comes out with a report that lists the most valuable teams in the NBA. The
2011 version of the list has one big change. Despite winning back-to-back championships, the Los
Angeles Lakers are no longer the NBA's most valuable team. Instead, that honor belongs to the New
York Knicks, who saw their franchise's value jump a whopping 12% in the last year.
Tom Thibodeau, the head coach of the Chicago Bulls, is known for being a master of teaching
defense. On Thursday, those defensive teachings were on full display against the Dallas Mavericks.
In a tough, defensive struggle, the Bulls defeated the Mavs by a final score of 82-77 in front of
their home fans in Chicago.
Against the Boston Celtics, Derrick Rose was the best player on the court. And that's quite a
feat considering the Celtics have at least four Hall of Fame players on their roster. But on
Saturday, the game belonged to Rose, who finished with 36 points. When all was said and done, the
Bulls had a 90-79 victory over the Celtics.