13 wins, no losses; say it proudly, Warriors fans. Last night was a huge test in Los Angeles and Golden State prevailed, like everyone expected. The Clippers lived up to their choking ways and the Warriors once again showed why they are the best team in the NBA.
Tonight’s game will be different, though. The Bulls aren’t the Clippers; they’re the better team and have played like it. They play physical, tough defense. And they have a wing player that the Clippers could only dream of having, some guy named Jimmy Butler. He’s pretty damn good. Behind James Harden, Butler has been the best two-guard in the NBA this season. Derrick Rose might not play due to an ankle injury, which makes it even more difficult to contain Butler who’s usage rate goes through the roof without the ball dominant point guard in the lineup.
The Warriors had two home losses in the regular season last year, one of them came in the hands of the Bulls after a heartbreaking loss in overtime.
Chicago is on a winning streak of their own, claiming victory in four straight games (two on the road).
Butler isn’t afraid of the challenge of heading into the Bay Area and trying to put the Warriors fantastic start to an end. He wants to put even more on his shoulders than most other NBA players: he wants to guard Steph Curry.
“I look forward to guarding everybody, especially a prime time scorer,” Butler said. “I’ll ask coach for that matchup.”
Butler is one of the best perimeter defenders in the league. Pau Gasol is playing even some of the best defense of his career despite his older age. He is still capable of having big games, but small-ball could tire him out and put limitations in his game. Kirk Hinrich has always been a pesky defender himself, but everyone saw what Curry did to Matthew Dellavedova in the NBA Finals.
The surprising player in Chicago’s offense is Doug McDermott. He’s shooting 53 percent from beyond the arc and scoring 10.5 points per game for the team. Fred Hoiberg is also doing a good job managing minutes. Only two players on the team average more than 30 MPG and the rest are pretty well balanced.
However, the Warriors are still the best team in the league for a reason.
It’s hard to script a better ending in Los Angeles than what the Dubs did Thursday night. They have the whole league buzzing. Most people are envious, others are slowly starting to appreciate the greatness. The team has started the season 13-0 and have shown zero signs of slowing down.
Talks of the Warriors winning 70 games this season are rapidly growing, though. Chicago won’t take kindly to that. The surreal 72-10 season that the 1995-96 Bulls had was the best of all-time. Chatter around the NBA is that this Warriors squad has a chance to exceed that record and go down as the greatest NBA team ever. The Bulls want to not only win the game, they aim to protect one of the most prestigious basketball milestones ever that was set by their franchise. There’s no better way to do that than giving the Warriors their first loss.
After Chicago, the Warriors play the Nuggets, Lakers, Suns, Kings, and Jazz. None of those teams will be favored to beat the Warriors and are either mediocre or awful. If the Warriors get past the Bulls, they will be in position to start the 2015-16 campaign with yet another franchise record under their belt.
Golden State will be tired after having to come back from being down 23 points against the Clippers on the road. The Bulls last played on Wednesday. Despite being at home, the circumstances favor Chicago. The Warriors will have to overcome tired legs and a tough, hungry defense in order to continue and chase history. They need to bring their “A” game to beat one of the best teams in the NBA. And knowing the Warriors, I wouldn’t bet against them doing so at all.
Different story if they play in Chicago. At Roaracle, it’s Dubs all day (yes, I know the Bulls won there last year).