At this point, the Bulls probably are more than a little tired of hearing about 70 victories. Last year they rarely talked about it, and before they knew it they were making NBA history with their 72-10 record.
But this season, with the team on the verge of reaching the 70-win mark again, it keeps coming up, even though the Bulls (69-12) have lost two of their last three games. They have a final shot Saturday against the New York Knicks at the United Center.
“Last year you saw it coming,” Scottie Pippen said. “Now, you get a look at the calendar and people are wondering if we’re going to get there.”
There’s a reason. In losses to Detroit on Sunday and in Miami on Wednesday, the Bulls didn’t look sharp. Part of it is injuries, especially those to Toni Kukoc and Dennis Rodman, who will be back for the playoffs.
Part of it also is the schedule: The Bulls are coming off a stretch of five games in eight days. The opponents included Indiana, New York, Miami and Detroit, each a tough game in its own right.
But the Bulls aren’t playing their best basketball going into the playoffs. That’s why getting 70 victories now has taken a back seat to playing sound basketball.
“It doesn’t mean a thing to me,” Ron Harper said. “It would be nice to get 70 wins back-to-back, but our objective the last game is just to play good basketball and not get any more guys hurt.”
Decisions, decisions: With the injuries and the way the team has played lately, coach Phil Jackson has some tough decisions to make regarding his playoff roster.
Bill Wennington, who is out with a ruptured tendon in his left heel, likely won’t play again this season. Jason Caffey is a lock for the postseason roster, as is Jud Buechler, whose versatility makes him a keeper.
With Wennington out, Brian Williams should be in, though he has played inconsistently in his short stint with the team.
It could be that the final roster spot now comes down to 43-year-old Robert Parish and third-year forward Dickey Simpkins.
There’s the belief that Parish, who wanted to retire, wouldn’t be in Chicago if he hadn’t been guaranteed a playoff spot. Simpkins hasn’t made the playoff roster in his previous two years but has played well enough in recent stints against Indiana’s Rik Smits, New York’s Patrick Ewing and Miami’s Alonzo Mourning to warrant serious consideration.
“I have gotten the playing time lately and have tried to do the best I can,” Simpkins said. “As far as defense, I really felt that I’ve held my own against some guys in the post. Whatever it calls for, I’ve done the little things. The past several games, I feel real good about my performance with the playing time I’ve had. But can those two or three weeks determine a whole season? I just don’t know.”
Road woes: Sunday’s loss in Detroit and Wednesday’s loss in Miami represented the first time this season the Bulls have lost back-to-back games on the road.
Jackson blamed the schedule and a shortage of healthy bodies.
“We’ve had a tough schedule on the road and we’ve played a lot of games in a short period of time,” he said. “We’re short-handed, with three of our players (Rodman, Kukoc and Wennington) out of the lineup. It takes a big step for younger players like Jason Caffey and guys who aren’t used to playing to step in to that level and hold their own. It’s been a little bit of a test.”
Head games: With all their problems the last two weeks, have the Bulls lost their mental edge over opponents? Pippen thinks not.
“We’ve still tried to go out and have the same kind of tenacity and domination that we’re not going to give anybody that mental edge over us,” he said. “We’re always going to try to keep the mind game working in our favor.”
But he also said the Bulls don’t feel as dominant as last season.
“It’s a different feeling because we don’t have as big a margin of victories,” he said. “This year we’re gutting it out and winning on pure talent and experience. Last year we could go in and dominate a game and guys would be sitting on the bench.”
