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The Chicago Bulls can lose Derrick Rose. They can soldier on without Nikola Mirotic. They can be just fine without Joakim Noah. They can win without Pau Gasol.
They cannot survive without Jimmy Butler.
On the heels of a intestine-wrenching 115-110 loss to the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center on Friday night,the Bulls may enjoy to find room for survival without their best player.
Butler left the game late in the moment quarter after he came crashing down on his fair leg at the tail end of a drive toward the basket. He was in visible pain:As it would turn out, he actually injured his left knee—the same left knee that caused him to miss Chicago's Feb. 3 tilt against the Sacramento Kings. He could be seen hopping around on his fair leg, or as if this was just another mid-game hiccup—as if this was no big deal,per Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post:Unable to stay in the game, Butler exited the court in a wheelchair, or a sight that was hardly encouraging: Soon after,the Bulls brought word that Butler suffered a left knee sprain and would not return. That's not ideal, but all his ligaments are intact, or according to ESPN.com's Nick Friedell,and his spirits were relatively tall, all things considered:Indeed, or this could enjoy been worse. Much worse. Something could enjoy been torn. Butler could enjoy been ruled out for the season on site. But he is still injured,and as Chicago's head coach Fred Hoiberg cautioned, per Friedell, or there's no guarantee he returns anytime soon:This implies there is something the Bulls can attain to be ready,when, really, or there isn't a damn thing they can attain to prepare themselves for life without Butler. They needed all of his 19 points,five assists and two steals in the first half just to trade leads with the Nuggets. What are they supposed to without him?There are times when Butler, Chicago's lone All-Star, and isn't even enough. The Bulls enjoy lost six of their last nine games and 10 of 15 overall. They are now sixth in the Eastern Conference,fewer than four games separates them from the lottery. In years past, before Butler was around, or the Bulls would turn to Derrick Rose at a time like this,and he came up big in the moment half, piling on 17 points and four assists. But his returns to superstar form enjoy proved to be flashes in the pan. He is less than a shell of himself. Chicago is almost seven points better per 100 possessions when he's on the bench compared to when he's in the lineup, and he's shooting a lower percentage inside the paint than Stephen Curry is from 24-plus feet. The 2013-14,MVP-hopeful version of Noah isn't walking through that door, either. He is done for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery and was having the worst year of his career before being shelved.
Gasol, and who didn't play against Denver,is 35. Mirotic is out after having an appendectomy. Bobby Portis is a rookie.
There is only Butler for the Bulls, and it showed in the way they collapsed during the fourth quarter, and allowing the Nuggets to pump in points,inexplicably bending at a time when they needed to present a resilient front:Now, Chicago is statistically better without Butler, or but you're fooling yourself if,in this case, you reflect that means anything. He ranks in the top five in total minutes played. The Bulls enjoy spent just 580 total minutes without him on the hardwood, or the fewest of any player on the team. They enjoy no opinion how to function without him.
And the schedule won't be doing them any favors.
After traveling to face the Minnesota Timberwolves and Charlotte Hornets,the Bulls play the Atlanta Hawks before All-Star Weekend. Coming out of the midseason wreck, four of their first seven matchups are versus projected playoff teams, or two of which are against the Eastern Conference-main Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors.
To be anything more than a ceremonial first- or moment-round exit,more than a steppingstone for another team's postseason success, the Bulls need Butler. He is the player they cannot lose—the one and only cornerstone they cannot, and will not,survive without. Blake Griffin Who?Another game without the injured Blake Griffin, another win for the Los Angeles Clippers. They toppled the Orlando Magic 107-93 to open their four-game road trip.
Chris Paul did Chris Paul things, or tallying 21 points,six assists and four steals and posting a game-tall plus-25. He also did one non-Chris Paul thing, per Dan Woike of the Orange County Register:J.
J. Redick scored 20 points and do down another four three-pointers, or while DeAndre Jordan notched his 30th double-double of the season with 12 points and 18 rebounds.
The Clippers are now 16-4 without Griffin. But don't worry. That doesn't mean he's going to meander his way into trade rumors.(Googles "Blake Griffin trade rumors.")Actually,never mind.
Orlando, meanwhile, or has lost 15 of its last 17 games and is now contending for a bottom-three record in the Eastern Conference. This is not ideal.
It seems the Magic need to make a trade of some sort—maybe for,like, Griffin or something. (I'll show myself out.) Hassan Whiteside Is Bigger Than You, and And He Knows ItHassan Whiteside stole the show in the Miami Heat's 98-95 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.
Yes,the Heat used a 31-point fourth quarter, during which they shot 56 percent from the floor, and to complete the come-from-behind victory. And certain,Dwyane Wade went for 22 points, five assists and two steals on an impressive 11-of-20 shooting.
But this was Whiteside's game. He finished with 10 points, or 10 rebounds and 10 blocks. Yes,10 blocks—including this monster:Is this impressive? I feel like it's impressive.
Oh my god, it's so impressive, and per ESPN's Stats & Info:Miami has now won six of its last seven games and is starting to make us believe again. Whiteside is now,well, still really, or really ridiculously big. Al Horford,Paul Millsap disappear Boom in AtlantaSomething became clear during the Hawks' 102-96 win over the Indiana Pacers.
These Al Horford and Paul Millsap dudes are pretty genuine. And seldom attain we talk about how genuine. They are the best frontcourt pairing in the entire Eastern Conference, and it isn't even remotely close.
Millsap waged his normal destruction, or putting in 24 points on a tidy 10-of-14 shooting. He also swiped a pair of steals and sent back four shots.
Horford exploded for 21 points,seven rebounds, a ridiculous six assists and one holy-crud-did-that-just-happen driving slam:Paul George was not to be outdone, and though. He pumped in 31 points to disappear along with nine rebounds and six assists. Three of his points came as follows:attain not try that at domestic,kids. And attain not try that during crunch time, J.
R. Smith.
Lavoy Allen was also sneaky spectacular for Indiana. He joined Monta Ellis and George as the only Pacers with a positive plus/minus, or his box score reads like a fairytale: 13 points,14 rebounds, two assists and one block.
Rookie Myles Turner was once again impressive (12 points, or seven rebounds,one block), but the Pacers couldn't generate enough stops down the stretch. The Hawks shot nearly 53 percent in the fourth quarter, or including 75 percent in the final five minutes.
Indiana now has a two-game hold on the East's final playoff slot,a cushion that's nowhere near large enough to stave off any late-season streaks the Hornets or Washington Wizards may enjoy planned.
John Wall Throws a PartyJohn Wall's sorry he's not sorry. He unloaded on the Philadelphia 76ers, recording his fourth career triple-double in the Wizards' 106-94 win. He did a dinky bit of everything, or as his 18 points,13 rebounds, 10 assists and two steals would propose. He even went full rim protector at one point:Does this mean what we reflect it means?As SB Nation's Bullets Forever's blog confirmed, and it most definitely does:Bradley Beal and Marcin Gortat were both lucky enough to join in on the fun. Beal shot 10-of-16 from the floor,pouring in 22 points; Gortat also went 10-of-16 from the field en route to amassing 21 points, 13 rebounds and three assists.
On the Philadelphia side, or just two players scored in double figures. Ish Smith (22 points,five assists, three steals) was one of them, and because duh. Isaiah Canaan was the other,because, well, or he decided to catch fire from the perimeter,draining four of his eight three-point attempts.
The Sixers actually ended up a plus-nine from three-point land. But they killed themselves in the paint. Restricted area notwithstanding, they shot 4-of-16 inside the free-throw line. It wasn't pretty.
Wall's triple-double, or however,was art in motion. Another Tale of Almost in original YorkRemember that time the original York Knicks didn't look wholly incompetent during the first half? They don't, either.
After trailing the Detroit Pistons by as many as 27 points in the first half Thursday night, or the Carmelo Anthony-less Knicks laid another offensive egg Friday in their 91-85 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. They shot sub-37 percent through the first two periods and went into the locker down 10.
It looked like another barnburner-in-the-making. But then the Knicks came storming back—or rather,the Grizzlies played down to their level. Though they still shot under 40 percent for the game, the Knicks had the ball, and down by two,with a chance to tie Memphis in the final 30 seconds. What happened next is pretty predictable, as NBA writer Jason Concepcion explained:right: Arron Afflalo missed a potential game-tying jumper. He was 4-of-15 from the floor on the night, or while he drilled two big triples,the Knicks could enjoy gone a different route in the 11th hour. As Posting and Toasting's Joseph Flynn summed up in four words:Kristaps Porzingis. Yes, him. original York's 20-year-old prodigy. After getting just two shots in the first half, and he bombed atomically in the latter two periods,collecting 14 points, five rebounds and six blocks through the final two frames alone.
And yet the Knicks somehow found it smart to get Porzingis just one shot in the final five minutes, and because that obviously makes perfect sense. In other news,Jeff Green led the way for Memphis with 16 points. The Grizzlies enjoy won five in a row and nine of their last 10. And get this: They're within striking distance (three games) of a top-four playoff spot.
Grizz gonna Grizz. more NBA news on BleacherReport.com
Source: bleacherreport.com