Ben Gordon -- 18th time with double-digits in the 4th

[Kori Ellis]

Is he some kind of (not-so) secret weapon for the Bulls?

Does he hold himself back and save it all for the fourth quarter, or is he just clutch?

Tonight, he scored 14 of his 22 points in the 4th, including the basket that put them ahead for good, to beat the Sonics.

This was the 18th time this season that he's been in double-digits in the 4th quarter -- first in the league.

IMO, this makes Chicago a very dangerous playoff team for the top dogs in the East. Ben Gordon can steal games for them and I can easily see them knocking out one of the "better" teams in the early rounds.

[PM5K]

I've never watched a Bulls game, except when they play the Spurs, I guess a good question is how many minutes does he play total, and how many are in the fourth?

Maybe he just plays a lot of fourth quarter minutes, or maybe he's just clutch....

[milkyway21]

Ben Gordon SHOULD be on the 1st & 2nd ballots for ROY this season. What a game tonight! 14pt-4th Qtr, incl that runner w/ 12.1 left for the winning shot.:wow

gordon logged in 20 minutes the entire game.

[MannyIsGod]

Gordon definetly gets my vote for both ROY and Sixth Man. The kid is sick. Watching him school Bruce Bowen was not pretty, and I'd imagine it's what he's doing to players night in and night out.

To think that Chicago has a go to guy who is clutch, yet is a rookie, is disgusting. That team is going to make some noise, and I would not want to match up with them in the playoffs. They are winning with great defense, and they are pretty impressive so far.

[cqsallie]

Speaking of the Bulls - oh well, not really - just reminded of Phil by this talk. Didn't we hear that he was coming back as a coach? Has anybody heard anything further?

[ShoogarBear]

Sports Illustrated's web page says it's 50-50 he comes back at all, and most likely nothing happens till the season is over.

[boutons]

BG's a freak, and his season now officially a phenomenon. What he does has not been a secret for a long time. I've caught a couple of his 4th qtrs, one in tandem with Andres in crunch time. Absolutely amazing. Just goes to show that ANY lead is in danger of one of Ben's 4th quarters. Spurs were lucky to escape BG with a +3 win @SBC.

The Bulls are in the 4-team bunch behind DET and MIA, so they could come in anywhere 3rd to 6th. And I bet they win their first round, and have decent chance of making it to the ECF. Bulls fans must be very pleased.

[TwoHandJam]

It's exceptional that he's doing this as a rookie but lets see how he fares next year when teams have more film on him and defenses pay more attention to shutting him down. I think Bowen will be better prepared the next time they meet.

[Spurs košarka kultura]

I think the most amazing part of his performance last night is that he only played 9 FREAKING MINUTES!!!
OK n/m I'm an idiot he played 20 minutes, for some reason the nba.com box score says he played 9.

[Rick Von Braun]

I've seen quite a bit of Bulls' 4th quarters this year, probably around 30. Ben Gordon is a good player, but let's not go overboard.

Skiles doesn't use him much during the game, and rests him for the 4th quarter. The Bulls funnel everything to him in the fourth, and he does good and bad.

Pros: He has a semi-consistent jumper, and an excellent floater when penetrating--more effective than even TP's--. Very good range from 3pt land. He is fast and compact at 6'3". Good ball handler and slasher, tends to go to his right, and has a nice spin move when penetrating. He tries to follow up whenever teammates penetrate, and gets some putbacks from misses from time to time. He plays with poise in the 4th, which is remarkable for a rookie. He reminds me of Marquis Daniels with his stoic face.

Cons: Not a good passer. He doesn't know how to set up teammates, he either finishes or turns the ball over, but doesn't pass much when in trouble. A little black hole in offense, he tends to shot a lot! He is little undersized at 6'3" for a SG as well. Not particularly a good defender and a little lazy on D at times. Not a good rebounder either--except when looking for putbacks to score on the offensive end--. Likes to get the ball at the top of the key to initiate the offense, but when teams double team and pressure him there, he looks lost.

Overall, he is decent player with potential. A little unidimensional for my taste.

[Spurminator]

Is there any site that tracks stats by quarter? I'd be interested to see where Gordon ranks in shots-per-fourth-quarter.

[exstatic]

I agree, Spurminator. It's not THAT big a deal if his shots = his points. Now if he's putting down 1.3 or 1.4 pts per shot, that's another matter.

[Walton Buys Off Me]

Ben Gordon is special- plain and simple