Bulls clinch 8th seed!!!

[D2Procon]

Congrats to the Bulls... Rose finishes with 24 points 6 assists
Cant wait for the Cavs - Bulls 1st round. WOOOOO!!!

[redzero]

:clap

Cavs in three.

[Frenzy]

underdogs. Nothing special if you lose. Super amazing if you win.

It's Win Win!

[The_Dude]

Bulls have already forfeited.

[timtonymanu]

No surprise. They wanted it more than Toronto.

Congrats and push Cleveland to 7 games. :toast

[sribb43]

Lebron should sit out this series

[lefty]

lol raptors

[ChrisRichards]

"We'll make the playoffs, thats not even a concern"
-Derrick Rose

I had my doubts specially when they lost against the Nets las week, but good job keepin your word D.

:toast

[FkLA]

I wonder where Bosh ends up. He'd be a moron not to get out of Toronto.

[ChrisRichards]

I wonder where Bosh ends up. He'd be a moron not to get out of Toronto.
Miami. He needs a real man to guide his vagina into a championship.

[Bob Lanier]

Miami. He needs a real man to guide his vagina into a championship.
You mean him?

http://www.phillyref.com/basketball/nbarefs/ism_bennett_salvatore.jpg

[IronMexican]

I'm surprised Bob Lanier isn't telling us how Chicago would be a #1 seed in the west and it wouldn't surprise him to see the Bulls win the series cause the East is that great.

[DUNCANownsKOBE2]

That's just one of his really lame trolling attempts.

[Ashy Larry]

go figure @ eastern conference...... Lakers win the west and what is your prize? Round one match up versus a 50 win squad

Mavs cinch the number two spot and what is your prize? In state rival who's won four titles in 11 years.

Utah can win 53 games, lose tonight and go from winning the Northwest Division to being on the road.

Cavs get the cake ass Bulls in the first round .... whoopty-freaking-dooo

[Bob Lanier]

50 wins in the West doesn't mean a great deal.

[AussieFanKurt]

bulls in 4
lebron to actual get called for fouls and travels thus they lose

[FlyHigh07]

I'm surprised Bob Lanier isn't telling us how Chicago would be a #1 seed in the west and it wouldn't surprise him to see the Bulls win the series cause the East is that great.

:lmao well he did overhear u shh don't insult them too much lanier will kick yo ass!

[FlyHigh07]

By da way ironmexican i was lookin for a "like" button fo yo post :lmao

[lil_penny]

other than the cavs, hawks, magic and celtics no other team from the east would have a shot at the playoffs in the west.

[duncan228]

Bulls ready to pull off shocker (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=txbullsplayoffs)
By Andrew Seligman

It may seem like a colossal mismatch, a four- or five-game exercise before this wild season ends for the Chicago Bulls.

The way Joakim Noah sees it, everyone else could be in for a big shock. Particularly LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“Everybody thinks we’re going to get our (butts) whipped. And you know what, we’re going to try to shock the world. That’s what we’re going to try to do. That’s pretty cool, I think.”

Beating Cleveland in the first round of the playoffs would be nothing short of stunning, the most dramatic and unlikely twist in a season that’s seen its share.

The most recent, of course, was the altercation between coach Vinny Del Negro and executive vice president of basketball operations John Paxson, but there were plenty before that.

There were struggles early in the season and a lukewarm endorsement of Del Negro from management, fueling speculation that his days in Chicago were numbered. There was a run by the Bulls. Then, there was a 10-game losing streak.

Noah was sidelined during that stretch because of plantar fasciitis in his left foot, an injury that kept him out of 18 games and ultimately sparked the altercation between Del Negro and Paxson.

Yahoo! Sports reported Tuesday that Paxson walked into the coach’s office and shoved Del Negro twice in the chest, grabbed his tie and had to be restrained in a confrontation over Noah’s minutes after the March 30 home game against Phoenix. Del Negro, according to the site, did not retaliate fearing his contract would be voided and it would hurt future opportunities. The Bulls also hired lawyers to interview witnesses.

The Bulls got a crucial victory over Boston on Tuesday and secured the eighth seed in the playoffs by beating Charlotte on Wednesday, after another chapter got added to the Del Negro-Paxson story.

ESPNChicago.com reported Del Negro initiated the contact, which he denied. And general manager Gar Forman acknowledged an altercation in a statement.

The players, meanwhile, shrugged it all off.

Kirk Hinrich called it “a non-issue to us.”

“We still had to go out and do what we had to do,” he said. “That was our focus.”

Derrick Rose added: “Usually when you come into the game or you practice, your normal life goes away. Basketball is where you can escape all the things you think about normally in the day.”

On Thursday, the Bulls had a day to rest, if not reflect on this wild ride.

“It feels good,” Rose said. “It’s supposed to feel good like we’re supposed to be here. All the hard work you put into it, we’ve had some ups and downs during the season, but we fought through it and we’re in the playoffs.”

There were times when the lottery looked like a better bet than the postseason, yet they’re back for the fifth time in six years after their second 41-41 finish in as many seasons under Del Negro. They fell twice to woeful New Jersey and blew a 35-point lead in a loss to Sacramento, yet in the Eastern Conference they were able to get a seeding instead of pingpong balls.

They can thank Rose, who went from Rookie of the Year to an All-Star in his second season at 20.8 points, along with Luol Deng and Noah. Deng averaged 17.6 points after a stress fracture in his right tibia cut short last season, and Noah had a breakout year at 10.7 points and 11.0 rebounds.

Even so, they’ll have a hard time duplicating what they did against the Celtics a year ago, pushing them in a thrilling seven-game series. Of course, Boston had a big hole in the middle with Kevin Garnett nursing a knee injury. Cleveland is looking healthier.

Shaquille O’Neal is expected to return from a torn ligament in his right thumb that has kept him sidelined since Feb. 25, and more importantly, James is healthy. So the Bulls won’t benefit from a sidelined superstar, like they did last year.

“I think that we deserve to be here,” Rose said. “We’re a young team. We still have a lot of confidence, trust in each other. It’s just going to be a great challenge playing Cleveland. It’s going to be fun.”

[nkdlunch]

1000x better to see Cavs vs. Bulls than Cavs vs. Raptors

[bostonguy]

I'd be shocked if the Bulls manage to pull off 2 wins. They will compete if anything but the series will never be in doubt for the Cavs especially with Shaq back.

[Ghazi]

You mean him?

http://www.phillyref.com/basketball/nbarefs/ism_bennett_salvatore.jpg

:lol


:cry :cry

[hitmanyr2k]

Del Negro needs to show his players clips of Lebron's dancing antics during the game earlier in the season to get them fired up...that kind of motivation can possibly get them 2 wins max in this series :lol