Kyle Korver Punk'd the Bulls

I don't even know where to start. Last night was probably the third most depressing day of my life. Honestly, I didn't think that the Bulls inexperience deep in the playoffs would affect this squad. Apparently, (and shockingly not for the first time)
I was horribly wrong. Game 4 followed the template of the previous 2 games. Bulls started out shooting poorly but were still in it because of their defense and they were even up by 11 at one point. But the pressure in the 4th quarter to close out the game was too much for the Bulls. All that stuff about the Heat not being able to close games is pretty much null and void seeing as they did it to Boston and now the Bulls. Derrick had 23 points (8-for-23, 4-for-13 in the first half) and had his third bad game in a row. Boozer had his 20-and-10 but was a disaster on defense. Joakim was somehow making all the plays no one expects him to (running the break in transition and making good decisions with the ball) but not converting on plays that he should (the majority of the time when he has the ball). Deng had a decent game scoring 20 while chasing LBJ around the whole game. If you heard that Rose/Deng/Booz went off for 20 a piece (and Bogans scored 6), you would probably have thought that the Bulls won. NOPE.

The Bench was almost non-existant. AsikAndDestroy has been destroyed. Taj was a non-factor and played 10 minutes. CJ kept us in the game in the 2nd quarter scoring 6 points (maybe even got us the lead at one point) and did a good job when Derrick needed rest. Not so much when sharing the back court with Derrick. RonRonJuice played great D and hit hit a few big buckets. The dude even hit an open 3 bomb to cut the lead down to 1 in OT. RRJ got a majority of the minutes down the stretch because Kyle Korver is pretty much ineffective. He has turned into Carlos Boozer from the first round series. Seems like he's lost confidence in himself, and maybe Thibs has too. If he isn't scoring buckets and stretching the Heat's defense, he's about as useful as a poop flavored lollipop.

MIKE MILLER??? SERIOUSLY??? You haven't played a meaningful minute all post-season and you decided to get it poppin' in game 4 of the ECF? If it isn't Udonis Haslem, its an overrated white shooting guard (who Steve Kerr apparently believes is one of the best rebounding guards in the league). Wade pretty much sucked the whole game except when he unleashed his inner Dikembe Mutumbo in OT (without the unintentional comedy). Bosh didn't throw up a 30 spot, but he still knocked down almost every shot and got to the line when he wanted. LBJ did everything. Scoring points, getting his teammates easy shots (especially when the Bulls were slipping on banana peels, how did they not see them?!?!), making a living a the the free throw line, and guarding DRose.

The Bulls looked tired and way over their head down the stretch and in OT. DRose was trying to put the team on his back and was trying to do too much. Can't blame him because his teammates weren't helping all that much. I think Reggie said that maybe he has lost confidence in his teammates, and it seemed that way. DRose couldn't adjust when LBJ started guarding him. I didn't mind the first step back fade away he took because it looked like he had the separation, just didn't knock the shot down. The 2nd iso against LBJ to end regulation was not so well executed. Going into OT, I thought the Bulls had a great chance to win. They should have won in regulation, but that should have drove them to get it done in OT. Instead they started the extra period with wasted possessions 2 out of the first 3 times down the court. The Heat capitalized on those turnovers converting them into fast breaks and easy points. The Bullsoffense lost all rhythm and they looked like they didn't belong there. They looked very tired and played like it too. But that will happen when DRose doesn't get a blow the entire 2nd half and OT. Jo was playing very hard on the defensive end was dead tired by the time he jogged down to the other side. Deng had been guarding LBJ the entire game. Not good seeing as the Bulls were supposedly the "deepest" team in the playoffs. The Bulls have learned just how important possessions down the stretch are and that they can't be wasted (and at the very least not turned into points for the other team).

The Bulls hadn't lost 3 games in a row all season. But they didn't have to play the Heat 3 games in a row. The Heat are the better team and they are playing like it. I know Derrick will get better in the next few years, but my fear is that his supporting cast has peaked. Jo and Taj need to get better offensively or GarPaxDorf need to figure out how to turn them into Dwight Howard.