Most likely outcome when Bulls take on Toronto?
What's the most likely outcome when the Bulls take on Toronto in an eighth-place showdown on Sunday at the Air Canada Centre?
• The hockey ice will melt, ruin the basketball court and force the game to be postponed.
• A lightning strike knocks out electricity, causing the game to be played in the dark.
• The hanging scoreboard crashes to the court.
• One team actually wins and takes control of the playoff race.
Well, it's tough to predict, because these teams have been lugging around plenty of bad luck this season.
In Toronto's case, all-star forward Chris Bosh was lost for the season when he took an accidental elbow from Cleveland's Antawn Jamison and suffered facial fractures. The following night, forward Hedo Turkoglu broke his nose against Boston, but was able to don a protective mask and return to action Friday in Atlanta, scoring 9 points.
If misery loves company, the Bulls should feel right at home. Not long ago, they lost 10 straight games while their three best players - Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Luol Deng - all missed time with injuries.
When those players returned, the Bulls appeared ready to make an inspired playoff push. But that plan stalled this week with a home loss to short-handed Milwaukee, a narrow win over the LeBron-less Cavaliers, then a crushing double-OT defeat to the lowly Nets on Friday.
The Bulls did plenty of their own damage against New Jersey, with 17 turnovers and untimely missed free throws. But they were also the victims of several debatable calls down the stretch and one crucial non-call against Rose that was unquestionably wrong.
Too late now. Since Toronto has already clinched the season series, the Bulls need to win Sunday to have a realistic chance of making the playoffs. If they lose, the Raptors would have to drop their final games against Detroit and New York for the Bulls to stay alive.
"You usually get what you deserve," coach Vinny Del Negro said after the New Jersey game. "We turned it over, didn't make free throws. Now we have to stick together, handle this, get our energy back and get ready for Sunday."
Whichever team winds up in eighth place will win a first-round playoff matchup against Cleveland, which will not be resting LeBron James just for the heck of it.
"Sunday is our season," Raptors guard Jose Calderon said. "We need everyone to be together, our fans, everybody. It's not like (the Bulls) are the best team in the league. They're like us."
The Raptors were competitive Friday in Atlanta, losing 107-101. Their leading scorers were Amir Johnson and Sonny Weems with 18 points each.
Hold on, here's some help. Johnson was a straight-from high school draft choice of the Pistons a few years back, once groomed as the next Rasheed Wallace. Weems, who's averaged 14.7 points in the last six games, is a former Bulls' second-round draft pick who was traded away for the rights to Turkish center Omer Asik.
Without Bosh, the Raptors' top scorers are Andrea Bargnani, Calderon and Turkoglu, while guard Jarrett Jack is usually the spark off the bench. The Bulls have lost five straight and nine of their last 11 against Toronto.