At the core of the Detroit/Chicago series
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by user Barkingclam
Desire.
It’s driving a player as they play for a title. Every player wants it, but only a few can get it. Ask Reggie Miller or Pat Ewing what they would give for a title ring.
Or, better yet, ask Chris Webber.
After a grueling run through the 1992 and 1993 NCAA Basketball Tournaments, Webber found himself, and the rest of the Wolverines in the 1993 title game, down by a basket with just seconds left – and he called a timeout, it turned out to be one that he didn’t have.
Game over.
Since then, Webber has never been that close. Not with Washington, not with Golden State and not with Philadelphia. He was close with Sacramento, but even then he couldn’t go all the way.
But now he’s back home, playing in Michigan once again – and he’s so close one guesses that he can taste victory now.
Shadows.
When Michael Jordan retired for the first time, after the 1998 NBA Finals, he and the Bulls had just won the last of their six championships.
Since then, they haven’t even made it past the second round. Scottie Pippen couldn’t get out from under MJ’s shadow. And when he retired, the team floundered for five long years.
But this offseason, the Bulls signed Ben Wallace, paying him for more money then any player since MJ.
Wallace was there for the Pistons title runs in 2004 and 2005, is a four-time All-Star and one of the best defensive players in the game today.
And it’s Wallace’s job to take them out of the shadow of the Jordan era, to show that he too can bring a championship to the windy city.
However, it’s going to be tough.
The Pistons already have a 2-0 series lead, and they have played well, remarkably well, lately, outplaying the Bulls in every aspect they could.
But that was in Detroit, on their home court. The series has shifted to Chicago now.
Can the Bulls win game three? Or will the Pistons take a stranglehold of the series, a 3-0 lead, a lead that no NBA team has ever come back from…
It is possible, but not likely. The Pistons aren’t just better then last year, they are looking better as of each and every day. Even Chris Webber, as the age of 38, is playing great basketball, drawing fouls and draining shots like he was still in a yellow uniform.
Simply put, the Pistons don’t need Wallace anymore. They’re playing just fine without him. The Bulls, on the other hand, need more then just him.
They’re slow, not rebounding and are not stopping the Pistons offense. Far too often in this series they have let the Pistons control the pace of the game, and it’s killing them.
Perhaps now that the series has shifted to their territory the Bulls can win a game, as they have been 31-10 this season at home. Facing a Pistons team that’s on a roll, though, it doesn’t seem too likely.
The Bulls may win a game, but they will surely lose one as well.
And then one more, in Detroit, on the weekend.
