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The Chicago Bulls have clinched the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference and will enjoy home-court advantage throughout the first round of the playoffs. The Washington Wizards own the regular season match-up against the Bulls with a 2-1 record. The Bulls have advanced to the postseason since 2009 while the Wizards have not been to the playoffs since 2008. The Bulls have been without their franchise player Derrick Rose since the early part of the regular season yet have found a way to claw their way back into becoming one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. Both teams have hopes of advancing to the next round, but in the end there will be only one. Jr. Williams and myself have come together to deliver our predictions for the Wizards versus Bulls series.
Bulls versus Wizards Playoffs Schedule
April | Opponent | Time | Local TV | Nat TV | Radio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 20 | @ Chicago, Playoffs: United Center, Chicago, IL | 7:00 PM | YES | TNT | WFED-AM 1500 |
| Mon 21 | @ Chicago, Playoffs: United Center, Chicago, IL Arena, Oklahoma City, OK | 9:30 PM | YES | TNT | WFED-AM 1500 |
| Thu 24 | vs Chicago, Playoffs: Verizon Center, Washington, DC | 8:00 PM | YES | ESPN | WFED-AM 1500 |
| Sat 26 | vs Chicago, Playoffs: Verizon Center, Washington, DC | 1:00 PM | YES | ABC | WFED-AM 1500 |
| Tue 29 | @ Chicago, Playoffs: United Center, Chicago, IL | TBD | YES | WFED-AM 1500 | |
| Thu 1 | vs Chicago, Playoffs: Verizon Center, Washington, DC | TBD | YES | WFED-AM 1500 | |
| Sat 3 | @ Chicago, Playoffs: United Center, Chicago, IL | TBD | YES | TNT | WFED-AM 1500 |
Who are the key players on both teams?
Jr. Williams: John Wall, Marcin Gortat, and NeNe are the key players for the Wizards. Wall is important because he is the best offensive player for his team while Gortat and NeNe are important because of their ability to defend, rebound, and score the ball near the rim.
D.J. Augustin and Joakim Noah are the most important players for the Bulls. Augustin has been their best scorer in the wake of the injured Derrick Rose, and Joakim Noah has emerged as both the leader and energy that sparks the Bulls both offensively and defensively.
Arnold Glass: The Wizards need point guard John Wall, backup point guard Andre Miller, shooting guard Bradley Beal, and power forward Nene to have valuable contributions in this series. The Bulls key players are point guard D.J. Augustin, center Joakim Noah, and backup power forward Taj Gibson. They definitely need Gibson to bring energy coming off of the bench.
What do both teams need to win?
Arnold Glass: The Bulls are known for their stingy defense, they just need to find ways to outscore the Wizards. Washington back-court have to find the weak spots in the Bulls’ defense to produce wins.
Jr. Williams: The Wizards have got to be aggressive and pound the ball down-low and hope to get the Bulls “bigs” in foul trouble early. John Wall has the advantage at the point guard position, meaning he shouldn’t have any significant issues scoring baskets.
Defensively, the Bulls have to limit the Wizards from scoring easy buckets and try to keep them under 95 points. A balanced scoring attack from Noah, Augustin, Jimmy Butler, Carlos Boozer, and Kirk Hinrich should lead to the Bulls walking away with the series.
Series Prediction
Arnold Glass: Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau is an intense defensive-minded coach and that intensity will be too much for the Wizards to overcome during this series. Washington will be a team to reckon with in the future, but they will be eliminated in the first round. Bulls in 5
Jr. Williams: Don’t underestimate this Wizards team, they match-up very well against the Chicago Bulls and I wouldn’t be surprised if this series stretches as far as seven games. In the end, I think the Bulls are the more superior team defensively, and will win this series 4-3.