Imrem: All things being equal, Cavs' LeBron James isn't

Somehow, some way, the Bulls gave the Cavaliers a game Tuesday night.

Oh, the Cavs won it all right 106-101 and now are up 3-2 in the best-of-seven NBA East semifinal series.

The question on this night in Cleveland was how the Bulls managed to challenge the Cavaliers down to the final seconds.

The Bulls' frontcourt was missing injured Pau Gasol again and replacement Taj Gibson was ejected early in the fourth quarter for kicking his leg loose from Matthew Dellavedova.

Then there was Derrick Rose, who started the game on fire and finished it with his shooting touch in a deep freeze. Rose spent much of the night shaking his arm, wrist and hand after a recurrence of the stinger he suffered earlier in the playoffs.

But the Bulls' biggest problem was that LeBron James played like LeBron James, which is unlike anyone else in the world.

As Cavs head coach David Blatt put it, “LeBron was just outstanding in every element of the game.”

The stats sheet reflected the magnitude of James: 38 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals, 3 blocks … and zero turnovers.

“We were a step slow and he was quicker,” Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau said of James' best game in the series.

The Bulls didn't played great but played well enough that the Cavaliers needed everything that James provided.

The Cavs had their own adversity with Kevin Love already out. Add to that, James' achy ankle and Kyrie Irving scoring 25 points on an ailing foot and knee.

“We're still hurting,” Blatt said, “but who isn't at this stage (of the playoffs)?”

That has been the central theme of this series. It has been characterized as a battle of attrition with players either out or playing in pain. Through it all, suddenly the Cavaliers had a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter and the Bulls should have been ready to head home.

Yet, just as suddenly, the Bulls started coming back and coming back and coming back to within a basket on a 26-11 run.

One explanation for this is that neither team is healthy enough to put the other away.

“We had a little bit of desperation at that point,” Bulls forward Mike Dunleavy said of the rally. “And we kind of made a last stand.”

About a minute remained and the ball was in Rose's hand with a chance to tie. He drove to the hoop, launched a 5-footer and …

“Just not giving up on the play,” James said of what he was thinking.

Naturally, James blocked the shot to preserve the lead and ultimately the victory.

“I like the fight we had to come back,” Thibodeau said.

Fight or not it's difficult to imagine anyone beating the Cavs when James is playing like this. It's difficult to imagine anyone beating him four times in two weeks. It's certainly difficult to imagine the Bulls beating him two straight times Thursday and Sunday.

James hadn't been playing well against the Bulls. With Love out and Irving hobbling, he forced shots, turned the ball over and generally was far less efficient than usual.

That's the James that the Bulls need him to be if they're going to have a chance in Game 6 in the United Center.

It would help if Gasol magically returned to uniform, if Rose recovered to shoot better than 7-for-24 from the field and, honestly, if the Bulls simply got lucky.

“It's not the end,” Rose said. “We're not quitting.”

Judging by Game 5, the Bulls are unlikely to quit, but they're still unlikely to beat LeBron James.

mimrem@dailyherald.com