Pacers Bulls Betting – Bulls Arrive In 2011 NBA Playoffs As The Team To Beat In The East
For all of the talk about how the defending Eastern conference champion Boston Celtics would have to deal with the Miami Heat and Orlando Magic to get back to the NBA finals, few would have projected the Chicago Bulls would be part of that conversation. But after finishing the online sports betting season on a nine-game winning streak to finish with 62 victories, the Bulls enter the 2011 NBA playoffs as the top seed in the east, and will now look to flex their muscle against an opponent that they dominated in the regular season in the Indiana Pacers.
The Bulls won the first three of the four-game season series before falling to Indiana in the final matchup. While point guard Derrick Rose registered a career high 42 points in the loss to the Pacers, it wasn’t enough to make up for the poor play of his teammates. Chicago isn’t worried at all about that game however, especially considering that they probably weren’t prepared for that game the way they will be prepared for a postseason showdown after winning each of the first three games of the series by at least 13 points.
Not since a certain No. 23 was leading the Bulls to championships in the mid-90’s has a player been so dominant for Chicago as Rose has been this year. At just 23-years old, Rose is likely to become the youngest player in NBA history to win the MVP award. Rose has averaged 25.1 points per game with 7.8 assists and 4.1 rebounds, but his bid for the association’s most valuable player to his team extends beyond his own sports betting bonus statistics. Rose has helped both Luol Deng and Joakim Noah make strides in their respective games, and both are now hitting double-digit point totals on average. Noah has averaged 10.4 rebounds per game, but his increased production is also about the arrival of Carlos Boozer for the Bulls.
While many feel that Chicago has not proved anything with a strong regular season, the Bulls are taking on that mentality as well with the opportunity to prove they are the best in the playoffs. The Pacers seem to have the opposite mindset, perhaps happy just to be able to participate in the postseason. Indiana has several key pieces in Danny Granger, Darren Collison, and youngster Tyler Hansbrough, but it will still be at least a couple of years before those players are able to compete at the highest level. The Pacers did win five of their final seven games to reach the playoffs with some momentum, but they will be in tough to match up against Chicago.
The Pacers will have a hard time stealing even a single game in this betting series, and if they do it’s unlikely they will be able to take two. Chicago will look to set the tone for the playoffs with a statement in the opening round, and should be able to get through to the conference semi finals unscathed.
Prediction: Chicago In Four
