Game 7.

Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? I mean, in all the two letter combination’s there are in the world of sports, there are not to many better than Game 7.

Baseball and Hockey feed off of nerve racking moments where one move or one play can turn the whole game and thus season around for the team, but basketball is special in the fact that the tide can turn back and forth back and forth in a matter of seconds.

You score, you’re up two. They score, Tie game. You score, up two again. They turn it over, you don’t score, they hit a big three, and all of the sudden, they go up one. Back and forth once again. If your a fan of either of the two teams, and even if you are not, your heat goes up and down with each pass, with each shot, and in these playoffs, with each controversial and decisive call or non call.

Tomorrow morning, the basketball loving public will be delighted to quite a treat: Two of these much loved Game 7s. While Boston and Orlando should be a fine game, the NBA world will most be looking forward to the mid afternoon (or early afternoon for those watching from Staples Center) tango between two Western Heavyweights

In one corner, you have the Los Angeles Lakers. Class of the NBA all year long. Not only has the discussion been Kobe or Lebron for MVP, but it has also been Los Angeles or Cleveland for NBA supremacy. With the first or second best player in the game, depending on who you ask, leading the way, it looked to be easy sailing for an LA team that was facing a Houston team that had not been in the second round since Sir Charles Barkley played in a Rocket jersey that was a lot different and a lot uglier.

The Lakers had it all, the star in Kobe, a great player in Pau Gasol, a healthy Andrew Bynum, the veteran Derek Fisher, the versatile Lamar Odom, the exciting Trevor Ariza, the sharpshooting Sasha Vuajacic and the Jewish Jordan Farmar.

The Rockets were a gritty team that just didn’t have enough to beat the Lakers. Yao and Ron Artest were supposed to be the only forces on a team that didn’t have enough steam to power over the Laker mountain.

Well, somebody forgot to tell the Rockets, and they have turned into the Little Red Rocket that could. In game 1 of the series, the Rockets shocked everybody outside of the 713, the 281 and the 832. Game 1 ended up only being an 8 point game, but LA were always trailing, always fighting, and very very awestruck with the fight that the Rockets were putting up. While not many thought Houston had a shot of winning the series, LA seemed to see it as a complete push over, and yet after one game, they were the ones getting pushed over.

What the Lakers seemed to have forgot that night is this: The Rockets might not have the star power of LA, but they do have the brute force and physicality to push LA. We all knew how tough this team was, but nobody could have expected what would transpire.

There have been hard fouls, flagrant fouls and dirty fouls. There have been referee over reactions and under reactions. There have been countless turning points because of the tough physical play, and the game, which has turned into a fantastically entertaining series has almost taken a back seat at times.

But it has been almost a storybook series. The pretty against the gritty, beauty taking on the best. Sure, LA has turned up the physicality, but Houston are special at this. Artest, Battier, Scola bring a certain grittiness and attitude that doesn’t really exist on the Lakers. Kobe has shown toughness over the years, but barely matches up to Artest, and outside of him is a Laker team that is not that unfairly labeled a “soft” team.

The series has been so great that we haven’t even gotten to the fact that Houston lost Yao Ming mid series (along with Dekembe Mutumbo lost earlier in the playoffs and Tracy McGrady, lost during regular season), and went on to win the next game, evening the series at two wins, and adding to a series that has failed to make sense thus far. Add in a 40 point Laker win in game 5 and another tough nosed, Lakers-were-never-really-got-going win for Houston in Game 6, and you have a Game 7 that will provide the same amount of intrigue as we saw with the Celtics and the Bulls, and have the advantage of being a later round and a better conference.

As far as a prediction, I see hard hits ahead. I see diving for lose balls and argued calls. I see brash talent on one side and unquestioned teamwork and drive talent on the other. I see the cliche “expect the unexpected” to become true, and in the end, I see a Laker team who will have their hands full when they take on Denver the next round, and a Houston team that will have the same “no please don’t go” feeling that we saw with the Bulls, when they “Go Fishing” tomorrow night on TNT.

Whatever happens, this a series that has given us a lot, and will give us even more when we reach once again that mouth watering two word phrase:

Game 7.

For anyone who has not been watching this game I believe you would agree with me that Rajon Rondo should be have just been tossed.

Last game Rondo fouled Brad Miller in the final seconds with a smack to the face.  He was nowhere near the ball and forced Miller to get stiches. In less than one quarter today, Rondo threw Kirk Hinrich to the ground, for no apparent reason.

In these playoff series I believe that the officiating has been terrible and inconsistent. These games need to be reviewed by a officiating committe and actions need to be taken against these refs. Theses bad calls or no-calls have changed the game and most likely cost the bulls the game the other night in boston which they should have won. Is this all one big conspiracy? Does the NBA want to see Boston advance to the next round without KG. Maybe the Celtics are going in the direction of the New England Patriots: cheating, dirty play and ignorance on Doc Rivers part. Something needs to be done and this bulls#*^ needs to stop..Rondo’s a$$ should be out.

Derrick Rose will receive a much deserved award today, being name the NBA’s Rookie of the Year.  After being the number on pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, Rose took an already young Chicago Bulls team under his lead from the beginning.  Rose solidified himself as the ROY in the first game of this playoffs against the Boston Celtics as he lead the Bulls to a victory in overtime.  Something Michael Jordan could never do.  Rose also tied Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for most points by a rookie in a playoff debut by dropping 36 points.  He also dished out 11 assists.

During the regular season Derrick Rose averaged 16.8 points and 6.3 assists per game.

Other notable rookie of the year nominations included: Michael Beasley and O.J. Mayo.

Check out our shop section for Derrick Rose merchandise.

As the trade deadline is upon us the Chicago Bulls made a trade yesterday to require former Bull Brad Miller and John Salmon in return for Drew Gooden, Andres Nocioni and Cedric Simmons.

John Salmons is averaging about 18 ppg this year and Brad Miller averages almost 12 ppg and 8 rbp.

Brad Miller played for the Chicago Bulls in from 2000-2002 before being traded to the Indiana Pacers.  Miller is now 32 years old.

The Chicago Bulls (1-0) opened up the 2008 season at home against former Bulls head coach Scott Skiles and the Milwaukee Brewers (0-1) at home.  The Bulls would ruin Skiles return to Chicago, defeating the Bucks 108-95.

The Bulls were able to pretty much dominate the game from the tip-off.  The starting line up featured only one player from last year, Luol Deng.  Number one pick Derrick Rose won the starting role at point guard during the preseason and Thabo Sefosha the shooting guard spot.  Rose got the most minutes at guard, scoring 11 point and contributing nine assists.  Ben Gordon and Kirk Hinrich each filled in well of the bench, scoring a combined 33 points and 10 assist.

As for down low, Drew Gooden and Tyrus Thomas pretty much stole the show.  Gooden held second year center Andruw Bogut to just nine points in 25 minutes, while scoring 13 points and grabbing eight boards himself.  Tyrus Thomas played all but 34 seconds.  He recorded his first double-double of the season, scoring 15 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.  Joakim Noah was able to offer his defensive presence off the bench as usual, grabbing 6 rebounds and 3 blocked shots in 19 minutes.

In the end, the Bulls pretty much dominated the Bucks.  The Bulls beat the Bucks almost every stat that matters.

Looking ahead to the Boston Celtics on Friday, the Bulls will need similar stats in order to win.  Tyrus Thomas will have the tough task of guarding all-star Kevin Garnett, and will need to keep his head in the game on both offense and deffenese.

MouthPieceSports.com taped a recent interview between Derrick Rose and the Chicago media. Derrick Rose is just finishing up his first training camp and preparing for his first NBA game tonight against the Dallas Mavericks.

During the interview Derrick Rose talked about the toughness of camp, his first game thoughts, his new diet, and about being back at the United Center.

Derrick Rose on MouthPieceSports.com

ESPN.com/Getty Images

The Chicago Bulls are preparing for their 2008-09 season to get underway with their first preseason game this Thursday against the Dallas Mavericks.  After hiring a rookie coach and having the number selection in the draft this off-season, the Bulls have plenty of answers to solve before opening night on Halloween against the Boston Celtics.  Lets take a look at somethings you should look for during the first preseason game.

1. Vinny del Negro: This will be Vinny del Negro’s first game as a coach in the NBA, let alone the head coach of one of the league’s youngest teams.  The Bulls line up is filled with plenty of potential.  Their are a number of young guys on this roster that could be potential stars in the NBA, it will be interesting to see how he handles the squad.
2. Derrick Rose: This will be Rose’s first attempt at running team’s point.  This is also a home game, meaning he will be playing in front of plenty of family and friends.  We all remember the last time the Bulls drafted a hometown boy (see Eddy Curry).  Rose will also have the tough task of guarding one of the leagues best point guards of all time, Jason Kid.  It will be interesting to see Rose’s role in his first game and how he gets the rest of the guys involved.
3. Overload at Guard:  The Bulls have a long list of guards, all of whom could be worthy of playing time: Rose, Ben Gordon, Kirk Hinrich, Thabo Sefolosha and Larry Hughes.  John Paxson has already stated the Bulls will develop Rose into a team leader at point guard this season, so he should get plenty of playing time.  Gordon has always been a great sixth man of the bench, so look for him to get those end of the game minutes when the game counts if he can reduce his turnovers.  Hinrich has been the captain of this team for a few years now.  He has always played tough defense, but his lack of shooting last year is a major concern.  Look for him to play against opponents top scoring threats. Sefolosha also has the backing of Paxson, as the Bulls would like to see him develop into a top scoring threat.  With Gordon likely leaving next summer, the Bulls will need to look for someone to replace the leading scorer of the previous three seasons.  As for Hughes, he is one of the Bulls few veterans.  His experience should be key to teaching these young players.  He also has a knack for playing tough defense, and could get some big minutes late in the game. It should be interesting to see how del Negro handles this situation.
4. Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah: Thomas and Noah combined, would be one great player.  Thomas is a savvy, quick offense player, who has a knack for finding lanes to get open away from the ball.  Noah plays hard nosed defense, and thrives on getting second chance shoots by getting garbage boards.  Del Negro has been public about Noah’s poor performance in summer league, and if he is healthy enough to play it will be interesting to see his role.  As for Thomas, don’t be surprised if you see him receive an ally oop pass from Rose.
5. Ben Gordon’s role: After failing to come to agreement on a long term deal two summers in a row now, it would be surprising if he stays with the Bulls after this season.  Gordon has lead the Bulls in scoring every year in his career, so his shooting ability will be needed.  Knowing that is probably not a long term option after this season, the Bulls would like to develop their young guys so it will be interesting to see how Gordon fits into the rotation.  Like I stated above though, I would like to see him off the bench.

This first game should be an interesting test for the entire Chicago Bulls team.  From the rookie coach to rookie point guard, it should be an interesting game to watch.  There will be a lot to learn in the first game, and even though the Bulls have plenty of players to figure out playing time for that is not necessarily a bad thing.

As you know, Ben Gordon resigned with Chicago earlier this week.  He signed a one year tenure and will remain with the team for atleast one more season, before becoming an unrestricted free agent next summer.  It is hard to believe that he would end up resigning with the Bulls, after turning down contract extension each of the last two summers.  His agent though, Raymond Brothers, say that Gordon would be willing to negotiate with the Bulls again next summer.  This coming after Gordon stated a little over a month ago that he would not be back in Chicago, that he would either be traded or end up in Europe playing basketball.

On Thursday, when Ben Gordon returned to practice, the log jam at guard began.  The Bulls have Gordon, Kirk Hinrich, Larry Hughes, Thabo Sefolosha and rookie Derrick Rose.  Rookie head coach Vinny del Negro has quite the job ahead of him, trying to get enough playing time for everyone.  Del Negro recently refered to the problem as a ‘good problem’ though and would like to set the rotation soon.  John Paxson said the Bulls are going to ‘develop rookie Derrirck Rose this season,’ so the rest of the guys will need to ‘play themselves into minutes.’

In other Bulls news, forward/center Joakim Noah will be unable to practice for about five days after being sctrached in the eye by Thabo Sefolosha during a contact drill Wednesday.  This is not a good thing for the second year Noah, who del Negro said he ‘wasn’t happy with his summer league play.’  He believes in the end Noah had a very productive summer overall and can’t wait to get the guy back on the court.

The Chicago Bulls are set to open up training camp tomorrow, and guard Ben Gordon has yet to sign an extension.  It is reported that he will sign a one year qualifying offer keeping him with the Bulls for at least one more season.

He must sign the one year, $6.4 million dollar contract by Wednesday to become an unrestricted free agent.  This will be the second straight offseason Gordon and the bulls have been unable to come to contract terms.  Last year Gordon turned down a 5 year deal worth around $50 million.

This leaves some interesting questions to what Ben Gordon’s role will be with Chicago this season.  The Bulls have a young bunch of players who need a lot of playing time in order to continue to develop individually and as a team. As been Gordon will most likely only be with the team one more year, it will be interesting to see how rookie head coach Vinny del Negro will work him into the lineup.

The Bulls were unable to come to a sign and deal trade with Gordon and other teams this off season, but perhaps his name will come up in trade talks again around the trade deadline if it becomes apparent he will not return next off season.

The Chicago Bulls released their training camp schedule yesterday which begins September 29th. Monday the 29th will be their annual media day beginning at 5:30 pm at the Berto Center.

The Bulls will begin practicing twice a day on the 30th going till the Saturday the 4th of October.  They will practice in the morning form 10-11:30 am, then in the afternoon from 4:30-7 pm.

Their first preseason exhibition game is scheduled for the 9th at home against the Dallas Mavericks at 7:30pm.  Tickets for all Bulls home game go on sale October 3rd at 10 am.  Be sure to visit SidelineTix.com for all you Chicago sports needs.