One of the Bulls was mulling over the first two games of the Eastern Conference semifinal with the Detroit Pistons early Thursday and was asked what adjustments might be needed to avoid falling into an inescapable 3-0 hole.
“How about a pulse?” he wondered.
The Bulls gave everyone some hope for a while.
But eventually those late-game boos just sounded like a flat line for the Bulls’ season.
It effectively died in a shocking 81-74 loss to the Detroit Pistons, whom they had led by 19 points. It left the Bulls trailing 3-0 in the series, and no NBA playoff team has ever rallied to win a series with such a deficit.
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Game 3 was less about whether the Bulls would win or lose this series than what kind of team they are.
Are they a team that would shrink in the face of defeat or stand up and deliver a blow?
No matter what happens the rest of the series, it initially was a good sign for the Bulls the way the team shocked the Pistons with a ferocious early display of defense, less technical and more determined.
But the loss brought into focus a clear issue: This Bulls team is not yet good enough to compete with the best in the NBA. Now management knows it has work to do.
It was no surprise to Pistons coach Flip Saunders that the Bulls would respond early, even if no one quite understood how the Pistons managed just 28 first-half points.
“We know how they play,” Saunders said. “Our players have a lot of respect for them. We know their greatest strength is their ability to play hard as a team. It’s one of their greatest talents. You know they’ll come out and play hard. You have to play as hard as they do.”
The Pistons did for a while, staying about even until about midway through the second quarter.
And again it was the little things that always make a big difference.
The Bulls had some late success in Game 2 with full-court pressure, though they couldn’t get back into that bitter loss. And it’s not that the pressure led to the turnovers and fast breaks the Bulls seek to spark their offense with run-outs or quick shots in transition.
But pressuring the guards took vital seconds off the clock, thus limiting the Pistons’ options on offense.
“It’s important for us to take care of the ball,” Saunders acknowledged. “We expect everything from them, half-court pressure, full-court pressure, man-to-man pressure, sagging.”
But it was the Pistons who sagged, at least momentarily, trailing at halftime 44-28.
After being outrebounded badly the first two games, the Bulls clearly emphasized effort on the defensive boards, and the key was the guards. So it was a big sign for the Bulls to see Kirk Hinrich matching Ben Wallace with six first-half rebounds. Hinrich would go on to a double-double. The guards were hustling and getting back into the play and not leaking out for the cheap fast break, which didn’t materialize in Detroit because the veteran Pistons get back in transition so well.
The Pistons again went at Ben Gordon at every opportunity, in part, to make him work on defense and tire him late.
It got the Pistons to 16-16 late in the first quarter after Richard Hamilton and Chauncey Billups took turns based on the matchup.
The Bulls were getting good shots, as they felt they did in Detroit, but didn’t back off this time after shooting just 40 percent in the first quarter. The Pistons’ zone had been thwarting the Bulls, with the guards unable to find their shots quickly enough, although there were openings, especially in the zone lanes at each end of the lane.
Gordon began to find space there with quicker moves, getting off nine first-half shots, which was more important than the four he hit. Gordon drew contact and got to the free-throw line, where the Bulls got the edge as the aggressors and had nine first-half free throws to just two for the Pistons.
It appeared the Bulls’ aggressive, physical play did catch Detroit by surprise in the first half. It wasn’t any one particular play, but an attitude the Bulls signaled with hammering shots on drives to open the game by Hamilton and Billups. It was clear the Bulls were ready to foul and let the officials make the calls. When they didn’t, the first-half tone was set and the Bulls pulled ahead, holding Detroit to 22 percent shooting in the second quarter.
The Bulls seemed to put in a few post-ups for Luol Deng, but it was pushing the Pistons out of their familiar offensive spots and deeper to the perimeter that made a bigger difference.
“You win the first two, you’ve got a pretty good chance to sweep if you win Game 3,” Saunders said, noting that the Pistons had lost six straight Game 3s in the playoffs before sweeping Orlando in the previous round. “It’s tough to beat a good team three games in a row.”
But the Pistons made three a fortunate number Thursday as they took the action back to the Bulls in the third quarter, denying Gordon in the cracks and pushing the Bulls’ offense away … along with their playoff hopes.
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