It may have been a big game Saturday for the Bulls.
No, you didn’t miss it. The NBA still isn’t letting the Bulls back in the playoffs, despite that big increase from 15 to 21 wins.
But Dallas’ loss to Sacramento, to fall behind three games to one in the Western Conference semifinals, could push the Mavericks to make big changes. Which is where the Bulls might come in.
Again, the Mavericks were soft inside, giving up 56 of the Kings’ 115 points in the paint, including Mike Bibby’s game-winning layup. The Kings are averaging almost 115 points per game in the series and Dallas has had no answers for Sacramento’s size. One more loss, and thus a quick five-game ouster, should get the Mavs thinking. And who could better afford a package for 7-foot-5-inch Yao Ming than the Mavs?
That’s where the Bulls come in, if they get one of the two top picks in Sunday’s NBA draft lottery. It’s hardly a layup since the Bulls have a 42.5 percent chance of getting the No. 1 or No. 2 pick and a 40 percent chance of getting No. 4 or No. 5. The Bulls cannot want Yao if they have any thought about competing in the next three years.
But the Mavs already are competing. They have perhaps the deepest team in the league, but not much competitive size. Sorry, Shawn Bradley and Evan Eschmeyer. They have countryman Wang Zhi Zhi and perhaps Yao would be the answer, eventually, to competing in the bigger Western Conference.
Watching the Eastern semifinals, there’s no reason to believe the Bulls can’t be there next season if they just stay away from another rookie.
So here’s a plan if the Ping-Pong balls bounce the right way:
Take Ming and offer him for Michael Finley and Raef LaFrentz. With available salary-cap room and giving Dallas Marcus Fizer, the deal would work. Dallas has plenty of offense, and certainly could spare Finley for the chance at a big-time center.
Then the Bulls can go into the free-agent market and use their exception to put together a good deal for, say, Clippers point guard Jeff McInnis, who is not expected to be re-signed.
And suddenly the Bulls would have a team starting LaFrentz, Tyson Chandler, Jalen Rose, Michael Finley and McInnis. That’s at least as good a lineup as Detroit and Boston have. And coming off the bench, Eddy Curry, Eddie Robinson, Trenton Hassell, Jamal Crawford and Travis Best. With perhaps a cheaper free-agent pickup, like Michael Doleac or Gary Trent, it may be just one more Dallas loss and some luck away.
STATS & STUFF
NUMBERS GAME
3
The Pistons this season had the Coach of the Year (Rick Carlisle), Defensive Player of the Year (Ben Wallace), and the Sixth Man Award winner (Corliss Williamson). They are the sixth team in NBA history to capture at least three awards in the same season:
1968-69: Baltimore
Wes Unseld (MVP, Rookie)
Gene Shue (Coach)
1988-89: Phoenix
Cotton Fitzsimmons (Coach)
Kevin Johnson (Most Improved)
Eddie Johnson (Sixth Man)
1995-96: BULLS
Michael Jordan (MVP)
Phil Jackson (Coach)
Toni Kukoc (Sixth Man)
1998-99: Orlando
Doc Rivers (Coach)
Darrell Armstrong
(Most Improved, Sixth Man)
2000-01: Philadelphia*
Larry Brown (Coach)
Allen Iverson (MVP)
Dikembe Mutombo (Defensive)
Aaron McKie (Sixth Man)
* The 2000-01 Sixers are the only team to win four awards in one season.
GAMES OF THE WEEK
Mavericks at Kings
Monday, 8 p.m., TNT
It could be the end for Dallas, which had the league’s best road record this season at 27-14. The Kings had the best overall record at 61-21 and have been eyeing a conference finals matchup with the Lakers.
Hornets at Nets
Wednesday, 6 p.m., TNT
Could it be we’ve seen the last game in Charlotte? Without leading scorer Jamal Mashburn, who missed 42 games this season and most of the playoffs, it’s hard to imagine the Hornets getting another game in this series.
Sam Smith.
TIME TO GO
Sunday was the deadline for college underclassmen and high school players to make themselves eligible for the NBA draft:
PLAYER YR. SCHOOL
Carlos Boozer Jr. Duke
Curtis Borchardt Jr. Stanford
Caron Butler So. Connecticut
DeAngelo
Collins HS Inglewood (Calif.)
Lenny Cooke HS Flint (Mich.)
Mike Dunleavy Jr. Duke
Drew Gooden Jr. Kansas
Rod Grizzard Jr. Alabama
Marcus Haislip Jr. Tennessee
Casey Jacobsen Jr. Stanford
Jared Jeffries So. Indiana
Kei Madison So. Ok.-Walton (Fla.) CC
Chris Massie Jr. Memphis
Roger Mason Jr. Virginia
Uche sonwu Amadi Jr. Wyoming
Smush Parker So. Fordham
Travis Robinson Jr. Jacksonville
Kareem Rush Jr. Missouri
Jamal Sampson Fr. California
Theron Smith Jr. Ball State
Amare
Stoudemire HS Orlando
Marcus Taylor So. Michigan St.
Dajuan Wagner Fr. Memphis
Adrian Walton Fr. Fordham
Chris Wilcox So. Maryland
Troy Wiley Jr. Rhode Island
George Williams Jr. Houston
Frank Williams Jr. Illinois
Jay Williams Jr. Duke
Qyntel Woods So. Northeast (Miss.) CC
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