Healthy basketball, starting from eating the old Lakers F4

The regular season has come to an end, and what follows is the extremely exciting and bloody play-offs.

Fortunately, the Bulls continued to win in the second half of the regular season and advanced to the play-off zone ahead of schedule.

Otherwise, the Bulls, the defending champions, might be eliminated in the play-offs and fail to make the playoffs.

Because the Bulls played a seven-man rotation in the second half of the regular season, both the four core players Jokic, Curry, Durant and Wiggins, as well as the three main rotation players, Big Head, Ohashi and Lowe, were exhausted due to consecutive battles, and even suffered some minor injuries.

As time turns to April 4, the first round of the playoffs officially begins.

It was just that at the end of the second quarter of G1, Curry encountered resistance when he was making a layup. When he landed, his left foot paused for a moment, and then he began to feel some dull pain in his knee.

Before the end of the second quarter, Curry left the game early due to injury and did not appear again at the Wells Fargo Center until the end of the halftime break.

Under normal circumstances, the team's second-in-command left the game due to injury in Game 1 of the playoffs, which made the Bulls' prospects of winning this series not optimistic.

However, the Bulls' first-round playoff opponent this year, the Philadelphia 76ers, is not a traditionally strong team.

Even though they finished third in the Eastern Conference in the regular season, the team's effectiveness dropped sharply in the playoffs.

The star player Embiid was close to the regular season MVP in the regular season, but he was as soft as noodles in the playoffs.

The referees in the playoffs did not tolerate him either. Even when playing at home, the whistle Embiid wanted did not appear.

Instead, another star player of the 76ers, Ben Simmons, frequently stood at the free throw line.

In fact, Simmons himself didn't want to take the free throw. Simmons was quite resistant to shooting and even scoring.

It is also because of Simmons' psychological problems and weaknesses that the Bulls had to resort to the "cutting-down tactics" in order to win this game and even this series.

Once upon a time, Big Ben - Ben Wallace would be targeted like this because of his poor free throw shooting.

Before Big Ben, there were O'Neal and Chamberlain.

Simmons' free throw shooting is not good now. In the playoffs, due to the pressure of the game, free throws have become more unstable. So the Bulls just take advantage of the situation and use this killer move against Simmons.

Originally, the Bulls didn't want to use it so early.

Who would have thought that Curry was suddenly injured and absent in the first half?
The variable of Curry's injury made the Bulls coaching staff realize in advance the fragility and instability of the seven-man rotation lineup.

If anyone gets injured again, the Bulls won't be able to achieve any good results this year.

But there is still time. Although the first-year rookie is unreliable, he can still be used.

So, a blessing in disguise.

It was Curry's early injury that gave the Bulls coaching staff a wake-up call, forcing the Bulls to adjust their lineup and tactics.

The Bulls were forced to make a desperate move and sent their first-year rookies, Herbert Jones and Aaron Wiggins, who are better at defense, to the court.

When the first-year rookies first came on the court, they had limited defensive experience, were still prone to making mistakes, and their defensive quality was not good.

Not to mention the offensive end, he was just like an ordinary greenhorn. He got nervous when he got the ball, didn't dare to shoot, and dropped the ball when he broke through.

In short, rookies are rookies. They have no game experience and have never been through big scenes, so they are not reliable at all.

In this situation, Tyronn Lue could only take a desperate measure and make good use of the situation. He told Herbert Jones and Aaron Wiggins to foul Simmons immediately when they couldn't defend Simmons' footsteps.

Thanks to that, Simmons is one of the two core players of the 76ers and also the starting point guard.

In the 76ers' main lineup, at least half of the offense is initiated by Simmons.

Starting from the third quarter of Game 1 of the first round of the playoffs, the Bulls used their main players to slowly build up a score advantage in the first half of the quarter. When the number of fouls accumulated was almost enough, they would replace Herbert Jones or Aaron Wiggins and look for opportunities to foul Simmons.

Anyway, hitting someone is a foul, hugging someone is a foul, and pushing someone from behind is a foul, so the Bulls might as well make the standards a little bigger.

Simmons tends to become sensitive, fragile, and even nervous in intense competitions.

Simmons' passing is obviously very good, but because he is too nervous, he may accidentally pass the ball out of bounds with too much force.

And when the two core players of a team, one becomes as soft as a noodle when he can't commit a foul, and the other is like a frightened bird, constantly missing shots at the free throw line.

How can such a team go far in the playoffs?
111 to 102, the Bulls were not adversely affected by Curry's injury after playing only half the game, but instead used specific tactics and their own rich game experience to win the first round G1 in an extremely skillful manner.

It was also this real victory that confirmed in advance that the Philadelphia 76ers are just a regular season team.

The Bulls simply started training boldly in Game 2 of the first round, honing the five first-year rookies who had played with the team's veterans for a year in order to increase the bench depth and lineup potential.

Often, every attempt comes at a price.

The Bulls were no exception. They trained their troops in Game 2, which led to a crushing defeat, losing to the 76ers by 23 points.

But the Bulls don't care.

On the one hand, it can be seen that some first-year rookies have begun to adapt to the playoffs.

On the other hand, Curry's injury report has been released, with a mild sprain of the left knee ligament, which usually takes 2 to 4 weeks to recover.

This means that although Curry is basically unable to return in the first round of the playoffs, there is still room for him to play in the future. In this case, the Bulls need to hone the newcomers and ensure the health of other players.

The Bulls coaching staff plans to extend the first-round series with the 76ers to five to six games.

Of course, if the 76ers are not strong enough, the Bulls can still advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals in advance.

Anyway, it is difficult for Curry to catch up with the first two games of the Eastern Conference semifinals, and he will basically return in G3 or G4.

If his injury recovers, or if he takes painkillers to hold on, it's not impossible for Curry to return early, but from now on, it seems there is no need for that.

After all, Curry is getting old, and his physical condition is deteriorating.

Curry has won enough honors for the Bulls. The Bulls don't need to put pressure on Curry during the playoffs and force him to play with injuries.

So, just take it slow.

After the first round Game 2, the Bulls flew back to Chicago.

First, all the players underwent a comprehensive physical examination to identify potential injuries in advance.

Then they started preparing for the game in an orderly manner to meet the challenge of the 76ers.

The league obviously needs the Bulls to increase ratings. Since the Bulls have made the playoffs, they will naturally proceed as planned and wait and see how the situation develops in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Therefore, the Bulls finally had home court whistles in these two home games.

But this also caused trouble for the 76ers.

In these two games, the Bulls were obviously training their rookies and lineups, and the 76ers had just won a big victory at home, so they were in high spirits and had a good chance of winning.

Just at this time when they were chasing a victory, the Bulls took advantage of their home court advantage and went to the free throw line as soon as they fell behind, making the 76ers lose their temper.

In the end, the Bulls won two consecutive games with single-digit advantages, pushing the series score to 3-1.

By Game 5 of the first round, the Bulls had a completely new look. The veterans were not as tired as in the previous games, and the rookies were no longer as embarrassed as before.

Especially Datou and Daqiao, they were basically treated as the core and fought very well.

However, in order to win more games in the future, the Bulls strategically gave up the victory that was within their grasp in G5.

As early as the third quarter, the Bulls' main players went off the court to rest after playing for half a quarter. In the second half, the lineup was almost three seniors with two freshmen, a three-on-two lineup.

The Bulls did not just play badly in the fourth quarter, but they also gave the 76ers many opportunities to catch up.

As the Bulls gave up the victory, the 76ers won Game 5 in a slightly embarrassing way.

Until April 4, when the first round Game 29 started, the Bulls were no longer polite to the 6ers.

After all, if the Bulls play a game 7, they may still fail even if they have a lineup advantage.

In order to avoid any accidents and be better prepared to win the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Bulls' main players went all out in advance and defeated the 76ers who were preparing to take a holiday in the first three quarters.

Entering the fourth quarter with a huge 21-point advantage, the Bulls did not let their guard down.

Jokic, with the help of Okafor, Dennis Lowe, and Aaron Wiggins, severely ravaged the 76ers. When the score difference widened to 28 points and there were only 8 minutes left in the game, they called off the game early.

In the end, the 76ers didn't put up any decent resistance, and the Bulls won by 23 points, responding to their disastrous defeat in Game 2.

The difference between the two is that the Bulls' first-year rookie has undergone a qualitative change.

A rookie is still a rookie. After just one round of series, he is not very strong, but he can still hold his own in the playoffs and occasionally serve as a surprise weapon.

Unfortunately, the Bulls' next opponent is the Bucks, who ranked second in the Eastern Conference in the regular season.

In recent years, the Bucks have been one of the strong teams in the Eastern Conference, and it can be said that they have been strengthening their team every year in recent years.

The Bucks are visibly strong this year and seem to be only one step away from the championship.

Although the Bulls have successfully advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals, their second-in-command Curry is still recovering from injury and has not yet passed the team doctor's physical examination and health assessment.

In the absence of a core player, it is impossible for the Bulls to really pull out the first-year rookie to fight a tough battle and stage the annual drama of saving the big soldier in the arsenal.

I can only say that playing against a championship team is different from playing against a regular season team!
The Bucks are undoubtedly an important obstacle for the Bulls to win the championship this year!
If Curry hadn't returned yet, the Bulls would have been able to gain the upper hand, and it was very likely that the Bulls would play better and better, just like the Rockets in 95 when the veterans were still alive, and they would have won the championship.

But if the Bulls have a very difficult time against the Bucks, they will have to wait for Curry to return before they can win.

So, even if the Bulls win this series with great effort, the biggest possibility is that they will stop in the Eastern Conference Finals.

After all, in the Eastern Conference this season, there is a Celtics team that is stronger than the Bucks.

In the past, winning the championship was not simple or easy for the Bulls, but if you really think about it, it was not a big deal.

Now, if the Bulls want to win the championship, they have to take a road that is full of thorns, twists and turns, and difficulties.

Even though, long before, the Bulls had walked this path again and again. (End of this chapter)