When it matters, LeBron reigns
LeBron James gave some clues that this might be a casual night during early warmups when he hoisted dozens of left-handed 3-point shots. And if anyone's wondering, he wasn't very good at it.
In the first half against the Bulls on Friday, James missed 5 of 6 shots and committed 4 turnovers. During one early possession, the league's reigning MVP stood and dribbled for about 12 seconds, staring down Bulls rookie James Johnson until simply fumbling the ball away against no defensive pressure.
When Flip Murray's steal and layup sent the Bulls into a 73-72 lead with 8:04 remaining in the fourth quarter, James immediately jumped off the bench to check back into the game.
Obviously, it was time to get serious. During the final eight minutes, James scored 13 points, the Cavs stopped messing around and finished off a 92-85 victory at the United Center. The Bulls' losing streak reached an even 10 games, but they're still just 2 1/2 games behind Toronto for the final playoff spot in the East.
Derrick Rose missed his fourth game with a sprained left wrist, but both he and center Joakim Noah are hoping to play Saturday in Philadelphia.
"Today I was shooting well, but dribbling was kind of hard," Rose said after the game. "I see we're down, so I'm going to try to push for tomorrow. I'm basically going to have to be a right-hand player the whole game, but I'm going to fight through it."
The Bulls (31-37) still believe they have time to turn things around if they can get some of their missing starters back. They just finished a stretch of playing nine straight opponents that owned winning records.
"Every game in this stretch we looked at and felt we were going to play hard and felt like it was an opportunity to get a win and hopefully get on the right track," Kirk Hinrich said. "It hasn't happened. We're going to go in there (Philadelphia) with the mindset to do whatever it takes."
James barely worked up a sweat while producing 29 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists. Late in the game, James carried on a conversation with fans sitting courtside, probably telling them what he was about to do, then raced to the basket for an acrobatic layup and 3-point play.
"They like their basketball here and the way I play," James said. "Going back to '84 when (Michael) Jordan was doing what he was doing, they've seen greatness. For them to respect the way I play the game, I respect that."
The Bulls had success exploiting the power forward matchup of Taj Gibson vs. Antawn Jamison. The Bulls rookie outscored Jamison 20-2 and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds.
Two rookies led the Bulls in scoring. After Gibson's 20 points, Johnson scored 16 and added a season-high 8 rebounds. He also had the assignment of guarding James most of the night.
"He puts on his shoes the same way I do, puts on his jersey the same way I do," Johnson said. "I'm not scared of anybody. He's just a great player, though. Give credit where credit is due."
The Cavs (55-15) built a lead early in the second quarter while James was on the bench. Jawad Williams knocked down a 3-pointer and Leon Powe fought off Hakim Warrick for two putback baskets during a 14-2 Cleveland run.
The Bulls had all kinds of chances to take over the game, but couldn't hit an outside shot when it mattered. They were 4-for-22 from 3-point range, while Hinrich, Murray and Jannero Pargo combined to hit 13 of 44 shots (29.5 percent).
The home team's last lead was 78-76 with 6:11 remaining after a 3-point play by Warrick. Cleveland scored 7 straight points, Gibson's dunk made it 83-80 with 3:56 remaining, then James added 7 more points to boost the lead to 10.
"I know how to close out games," James said. "I'm confident. I never get rattled or shook."
<p class="factboxheadblack">Mike McGraw's game tracker</p>
<p class="News">Cavaliers 92, Bulls 85</p>
<p class="News"><b>King for a day:</b> Was LeBron James trying his hardest on Friday? He had a sloppy game for 3 1/2 quarters, then scored 13 points in the final eight minutes to put things away. His good buddy Jay-Z did a concert at the United Center on Thursday, so feel free to speculate about James' state of mind.</p>
<p class="News"><b>Crooked shooters:</b> The Bulls went 4 for 22 from 3-point range, but it's looking more and more like rookie forward Taj Gibson is the real deal. He finished with 13 rebounds, 3 steals and outscored Antawn Jamison 20-2.</p>
<p class="News"><b>Escape to Philly:</b> Now lugging a 10-game losing streak, the Bulls are hoping Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah will play Saturday against Philadelphia, which has lost 11 of its last 13. The Bulls are still just 2 1/2 games out of the playoffs.</p>
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<li><a href="/story/?id=367427">Another two weeks before Deng's return<span class="date"> [3/19/10]</span></a></li>
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<p class="factboxheadblack">Bulls game day</p>
<p class="News">Bulls vs. Philadelphia 76ers at the Wachovia Center, 6 p.m.</p>
<p class="News"><b>TV:</b> Channel 9</p>
<p class="News"><b>Radio:</b> WMVP 1000-AM</p>
<p class="News"><b>Update:</b> The Bulls' run of nine consecutive opponents with winning records finally comes to an end. Philadelphia has been struggling, losing 10 of its last 12 games heading into Friday's date at New York. SF Andre Iguodala leads the Sixers at 17.0 ppg, his lowest scoring average in four years. Forward Thaddeus Young, who usually gives the Bulls trouble, has a fractured right thumb, but could play. The Bulls are 2-1 against the Sixers this season, but lost in overtime at Philadelphia on Feb. 3 after failing to hold a late lead.</p>
<p class="News"><b>Next:</b> Monday vs. Houston Rockets at the United Center, 7 p.m.</p>