Lost in the fact that the Bulls season ended in disappointment was how much Ben Gordon improved as a basketball player over the season. He played in all 82 games for the Bulls and he averaged 33.0 minutes, 21.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. He also improved his shooting a little bit as he hit 45.5% from the floor, 41.3% from 3-point range and 86.4% from the free throw line. Look for Gordon to be an even better player next season for the Bulls.

Gordon’s career numbers almost all improved due to his fine season. Gordon has now played in 244 games and he’s averaged 29.5 minutes, 17.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. He improved his FG shooting to 43.1% and his FT % to 84.3%. His three point % dipped a tad to 41.8%, but that’s still excellent. Look for Gordon’s career numbers to continue to improve for the next few seasons as he’s now a starting player instead of a 6th man.

The Bulls played well in the first half of the game but the 2nd half was quite a different story. The Bulls were outscored 52-37 in the 2nd half last night and that doomed them in the end. The Bulls also were outrebounded 48-35 and that hurt them badly in the end. The Bulls also shot poorly as they only hit 37.3% from the floor and that didn’t help matters last night. P.J. Brown led the way for the Bulls with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Ben Gordon also had a decent game with 19 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists. Luol Deng was also busy with 17 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Kirk Hinrich had an off game shooting (3 of 11) and he finished up with 11 points, 3 rebounds and 11 assists. Andres Nocioni was a little off in his 19 minutes on the floor as he only shot 2 for 7. He wound up with 10 points and 6 rebounds. The Bulls played the Pistons tough in this series, but the Bulls still fell 4 games to 2.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=270517004

The Bulls gored the Pistons last night in Detroit. The Bulls shot over 70% in the first half of the game and finished hitting 57.3% from the floor. Ben Gordon came alive as he led the Bulls with 28 points as he hit 5 of 6 three pointers. Luol Deng also was very busy with 20 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Kirk Hinrich did a great job of directing the offense with 17 points, 5 rebounds and 13 assists. P.J. Brown turned back the clock and scored 15 points, snatched 8 rebounds and dished out 3 assists. Tyrus Thomas was a fireball of energy off of the bench with 10 points, 6 rebounds and 5 steals in only 21 minutes on the court.  The Bulls are still down 3-2 to the Pistons as the series shifts back to Chicago.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=270515008

The Bulls raced out to a 77-56 lead after three quarters and then they cruised to victory yesterday. The Bulls outrebounded the Pistons 51-33 and they held the Pistons to 37.3% shooting from the floor. The Bulls will need to play with the same passion they did yesterday to have any chance of making this series go longer. Luol Deng was outstanding yesterday with 25 points and 13 rebounds to lead the way for the Bulls. Ben Gordon didn’t shoot well (4 for 11) but he still wound up with 19 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Kirk Hinrich came alive and played his best game in the playoffs this season with 19 points, 4 rebounds and 10 assists. Ben Wallace played with fire as he scored 11 points, snapped up 17 rebounds, dished out 3 assists, stole the ball 2 times and blocked 2 shots. Rookie Tyrus Thomas was outstanding in his 14 minutes on the floor with 10 points and 7 rebounds. The Bulls are now down 3-1 to the Pistons in this series.Â

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=270513004

The Bulls choked on Thursday Night. Their is no way to sugarcoat what went on in this basketball game. The Bulls rolled to a 44-28 halftime lead and things were looking rosy, but, the Pistons thumped the Bulls 53-30 in the 2nd half to beat the Bulls. The Bulls only shot 33.7% from the floor and that wasted the fact that the Bulls outrebounded the Pistons 60-43! Luol Deng led the way for the Bulls with 21 points, 14 rebounds and 2 assists. Ben Gordon had an awful shooting night (4 of 16) but he still finished with 16 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists. Kirk Hinrich was very active with 13 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists. P.J. Brown was very solid with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Ben Wallace finished with 5 points and 12 rebounds. The Bulls are now down 3-0 in this series to the Pistons.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/scoreboard?date=20070510

The Bulls got absolutely dominated for the 2nd game in a row by the Pistons. The Bulls only shot 34.3% from the floor and they were outrebounded 51-30 by the Pistons. The Bulls also played bad on defense as the Pistons hit 52.6% from the floor. Tyrus Thomas led the way for the Bulls off of the bench with 18 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals in only 22 minutes. Luol Deng only shot 4 of 12 from the floor and he wound up with 16 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals. Ben Wallace had a decent game with 13 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks. Ben Gordon disappeared as he only shot 3 for 7 with 13 points. Andres Nocioni scored 12 points and grabbed 2 rebounds in 22 minutes off of the bench. Kirk Hinrich was horrible again last night as he went 0 for 7 from the floor and he wound up with 2 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists. The Bulls are now down 2-0 to the Pistons in this series.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=270507008

The Pistons dominated the Bulls on Saturday Night as they served notice that they aren’t the same as the washed up Miami Heat. The Bulls only shot 32.9% from the floor and they were outrebounded 46-38 by the Pistons. Luol Deng led the way for the Bulls with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Kirk Hinrich had a pretty solid game as he hit 6 of 7 shots from the floor and wound up with 15 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists. Ben Wallace was tough when he was in the game with 9 points, 8 rebounds and 2 steals. Ben Gordon got schooled by Richard Hamilton. Gordon only hit 2 of 9 shots from the floor and he finished with 7 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists. Andres Nocioni was only 1 for 8 from the floor and he wound up with 2 points and 2 rebounds. Chris Duhon also was heaving up bricks (1 for 7) as he finished with 5 points. The Bulls are now down 1-0 to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=270505008

The rising Chicago Bulls will face the veteran Detroit Pistons in a series that starts later today. You just know that Ben Wallace was hoping he would get to play against the Pistons at some point and you just have to have the feeling that Big Ben will dominate the paint in this series. This will be an interesting match-up of athletic ability (Bulls) vs. veteran know how. Here’s a look at the matchups:

POINT GUARD: Chauncey Billups just dominated the smaller Jameer Nelson in round #1 against the Orlando Magic and he’ll try to impose his will again against the Bulls. Billups averaged 22.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 1.25 steals per game against the Magic in Round #1. He also shot good from everywhere on the floor as he hit 52% from the floor, 40% from three-point range and 85.3% on free-throws. Kirk Hinrich was horrible in the first round against the Heat. He averaged 11.0 points, 2.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.25 steals per game. Hinrich was often in foul trouble and he only shot 31.3% from the floor. He will need to improve his play in the Bulls are going to have a chance to win this series because they will need all hands on the deck. EDGE: PISTONS

SHOOTING GUARD: Ben Gordon was on fire the whole series against the Heat as he was repeatedly torching Dwyane Wade. Gordon averaged 25.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.25 steals per game against the Heat. Gordon is a fantastic shooter whose game is very similar to that of Richard Hamilton so this will be a fun matchup to watch in this series. Richard Hamilton averaged 18.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game against the Magic but he didn’t shoot well (38.6% FGs) and that will need to change if the Pistons are to prevail over the Bulls. EDGE: BULLS

SMALL FORWARD: This will also be a good matchup to watch on the floor. Luol Deng is a very athletic player that is great at finishing on the fastbreak. Deng abused the much slower Miami Heat in Round #1 as he averaged 26.3 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.75 steals per game. Deng also shot 57.9% from the floor in the first round. Tayshaun Prince is the Pistons best defensive player and he’s a good offensive player when the team needs him to be. Prince averaged 16.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game against the Magic. Prince was shot well from everywhere on the floor against the Heat as he hit 53.5% from the floor, 7 of 10 from three point range and 81.3% from the free throw line. EDGE: EVEN

POWER FORWARD: Rasheed Wallace always plays better as the games get bigger and his game has improved already in the playoffs. In the first round of the playoffs, Wallace averaged 15.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 blocks per game. Wallace also hit 10 of 19 (52.6%) from the three point line. P.J. Brown will start for the Bulls but he will only play about half the game with Andres Nocioni getting a lot of time here. Brown averaged 6.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steal per game in series #1 against the Heat. EDGE: PISTONS

CENTER: Ben Wallace will be fired up to take on his old team, that’s for sure. Wallace was his usual old self against the Heat in round #1 as he averaged 9.3 points, 9.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks per game. He will dominate the paint in this series, mark my words! Chris Webber will have a rough time keeping Wallace off of the boards. Webber will make him work on defense though as he averaged 12.0 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steal per game against the Magic. EDGE: BULLS

BENCH: This is an area that the Bulls will probably dominate the game. Andres Nocioni will be the most important player off of the bench for the Bulls. In round #1 he averaged 12.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 block per game. He will be matched up with Rasheed Wallace most of the time and he will make him work. Chris Duhon will provide backup minutes at point guard but he’s a smallish player which are the kind that Chauncey Billups beat up on. Thabo Sefolosha will provide energy off of the bench for the Bulls. He did a great job of defending Dwyane Wade in the first round and he could bully Richard Hamilton when he’s on the court. Rookie Tyrus Thomas is a high-flying finisher that will be a physical mis-match for the Pistons when he’s on the court.

The Pistons don’t use their bench much at all. Antonio McDyess will get the most playing time and he’s still a pretty good basketball player. He averaged 5.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.0 block per game in round #1 against the Magic. But, McDyess only shot 8 of 32 (25%) from the floor and that will need to improve if the Pistons are to get any help out of their bench. Carlos Delfino and Flip Murray didn’t do much in round #1 and they probably won’t be trusted in round #2. EDGE: BULLS

PREDICTION: This series will go 7 games and I like the Bulls to spring an upset here. The Pistons lack of a bench will hurt them in this series and Ben Wallace will make the Pistons pay for letting him leave.