[外電] Rose and Bulls just taking what Pacers give them

看板ChicagoBulls (芝加哥公牛)作者eertllams (Tree666)時間14年前 (2011/04/20 10:59)推噓3(3推 0噓 1→)

留言4則, 3人參與討論串1/1

By K. C. Johnson Derrick Rose has traveled to the free-throw line 34 times through the first two games of the Bulls' Eastern Conference quarterfinal series against the Pacers, drawing questions about the pain from all the punishment he has absorbed. A better question might be how his back feels after he has carried the Bulls offensively down the stretch of two straight playoff victories. Rose is averaging 37.5 points thus far, more than doubling runner-up Luol Deng's scoring average of 16 ppg. Nevertheless, the Bulls point to their 2-0 lead and a 100 points-per-game average as signs the offensive formula is fine, even if 41.2 percent shooting and an average of 18.5 turnovers are troubling signs. "Derrick's playing at a very high level," coach Tom Thibodeau said. "But when you look at who's scoring, Carlos (Boozer) is scoring. Luol is scoring. We're scoring fine. Our defense has to get better." Rose agreed, although he alluded to the offense not running smoothly. "All of us are surprised," he said. "We don't know what's going on. I think it's defense. Defense usually gets us going, gets us fast-break points. It just hasn't been there." There have been timely offensive contributions from others. Deng scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half of Game 1. Boozer posted a monster double-double of 17 points and 16 rebounds in Game 2. Kyle Korver has hit clutch 3-pointers down the stretch of both games off plays by Rose. In fact, though Rose didn't get the assist, Korver's 3-pointer with 64 seconds left to push the Bulls' lead to five points in Game 2 provided a textbook example of offensive balance. Rose recognized a hard trap right after he crossed half-court and found Joakim Noah in the high post. Noah turned and fed a wide-open Korver. "Perfect," Rose said. Rose committed six second-half turnovers in Game 2 and expects to see more aggressive trapping early in Game 3. Often, this featured a longer-armed defender like Paul George on him. "Delivering the ball, I have to be way sharper," Rose said. "The bigs have to be in the right spot. They were hitting and coming to double-team me randomly. It wasn't a coach call or anything. They were just coming out. It surprised us. If anything, they're going to hit more often and be aggressive at home. We'll be prepared for it. "Sometimes I have to attack them. Sometimes I have to make the smart decision and when the size comes, deliver the ball. My whole life, they always had people guard me who were taller, even in high school. I know how to play against size." Counting on Rose to take over every game can work against the eighth-seeded Pacers. But it's valid to question whether such an approach can work over a long playoff run. "You have to give their defense credit," Thibodeau said. "We're getting to the line more than we did. There are more fouls. So the game is choppier. But we do have to run the floor better, keep our spacing, keep the ball moving and take the right shots." To hear Rose tell it, his teammates contributed more than offense anyway. "I'm supposed to be the leader of the team and take over games and I easily could have lost us that game with my (six) turnovers," Rose said. "They hung in there with me and told me to stay focused and I fought through it because I knew they were on my side. I'm fortunate to have these guys on my side." -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 98.212.125.50