Keep your eyes on Rose vs. Irving
Derrick Rose is making his first playoff appearance in three years. Cleveland point guard Kyrie Irving is in the postseason for the first time his career.
This might be the most important matchup of the Bulls-Cavs series - the former superstar trying to make his way back against the budding superstar trying to make a name for himself.
LeBron James is going to put up big numbers no matter what the Bulls do. Slowing him down is an unattainable goal. But the point guard battle could go either way.
Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau had strong praise for both guards on Saturday at the Advocate Center. Game 1 is Monday in Cleveland.
"I thought Derrick played as well as he has all year in Game 6 (at Milwaukee)," Thibodeau said. "It wasn't his scoring or shooting. It was his playmaking. That tells you how good he is. He had great impact on that game."
One thing that helped set the tone for the Bulls' 54-point win in Milwaukee was Rose driving past Michael Carter-Williams at will and getting into the lane.
Irving is one of the best young shooters in the NBA, but he also has a reputation as a weak defender. It will be important for Rose to use that advantage to keep pressure on the Cavaliers defense.
It won't be easy to outscore Irving, though. The fourth-year guard is a great complement for James' unselfish style. Thibodeau got to know Irving well last summer when he helped coach Team USA to the FIBA World Cup title with Irving averaging 12.1 points and shooting 60 percent from 3-point range
"Kyrie is a young superstar and the only reason he hasn't been in big games he hasn't been around long enough," Thibodeau said. "His USA experience, there was a lot of pressure on him in those games. I saw first hand how he responded to that. I know how good he is; he's a superstar."
One storyline in the Milwaukee series was how Rose played his best games after longer rest. With two or more days between games, Rose averaged 24 points. With one day off in between, Rose was at 14 points.
After Game 1 against Cleveland, there will be one day off between every contest until Game 7. During the regular season, there wasn't a big difference in how Rose fared on one-day rest compared to other scenarios.
"I would guess that most players would be slightly up with more rest," Thibodeau said. "Sometimes that's also how it unfolds, particularly if a player gets going. You may do things differently to trap him and get the ball out of his hands. It's hard to say.
"I thought the more Derrick plays, the better he is. He had the games at the end of the season and then the six postseason games. You have to remember: This is his first time in the postseason in a long time for him. He feels real good, feels strong. He has to get ready for the next challenge."
Rose vs. Irving should already be a great rivalry. But because of injuries to both players, they've faced each other just four times in the NBA and only once prior to this season.
Better late than never. Either one could be the difference-maker in this series.
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