“I’m Back”… I never thought I’d ever get to use that quote from MJ but I think it fits the bill. I want to take a moment and express my gratitude to people who read my blogs. I apologize as it has been a few weeks since I have written. You guys are the reason why my blog has been as successful as it is.

What a run our Bulls are on, huh? Winning 12 out of the last 13 games. What a wild week. We had two blowout games earlier in the week and two nail biters the last few nights. Yes, I had doubts yesterday in the third quarter. The team was lifeless and the Bucks seemed to get any shot they wanted. It had the same feeling of the Pacers game we lost. Of course, leave it to Derrick Rose to prove me wrong. The other night, Stacey King made a comment that I felt was right on the money: Derrick is letting the game come to him. The great ones have that skill and it really separates them from the rest of the league. Now it’s not that the Bulls have lacked good players. I was actually a huge Ben Gordon fan. The man was a scorer and he did it with so much grace that it was a beautiful thing to watch. But he struggled with having the game come to him; at times he tried to do a little too much, tried to force things and as a result, played out of control. But ever since the All-Star break, I see Derrick really “letting the game come to him.” I’ll watch an entire game and at the end I am saying to myself, “Wait a minute, Derrick finished with 32 points and 8 assists? When did all that happen?” He scores quietly much of the time. And by “quietly” I mean that because Rose chooses when to score and does it within the flow of the game, it’s never forced and almost goes unnoticed. I am always in awe when I see his final stats. I am even more impressed that with less than three years in the NBA, Derrick has developed this skill so quickly. It’s yet another element that validates his MVP status.

Now normally, I am a calm individual; someone who tries to act with reason and logic. But there are a few things circulating in the sports world that I feel I have to address because they just did not sit well with me.

If you caught Friday’s game against Memphis then you saw the tasteless taunts from Tony Allen, a Chicago native. He hit a three pointer in front of Korver and turned around with his right arm still in shooting form and a face that I’d describe as Tony Montana-esque. Then after a timeout, he barked at the crowd, saying this was “his house.” My question is: who the hell was he trying to impress? Benny- the- Bull? The guy has an ugly shot, his second half reverse layup attempt that missed everything was just laughable, plus his defense is so over rated. I’ll give him credit for wanting to play defense but that doesn’t make him any good at it. In fact, Derrick flew past him for the game winning drive that night. Nice job, Tony Allen! Maybe next time around you can just use your ‘inside voice.’

This brings me to Israel Gutierrez from the Miami Herald. So who the hell IS Israel Gutierrez? Exactly. I stumbled upon his video this morning and it totally ticked me off (See below – 1A). I think it really proves my point that some of these sports writers just don’t know what the hell they are saying. Stats should be used more as a point of reference or a guideline. True sports fans know all the important statistics but don’t need to regurgitate it to defend their opinion. In the video, Israel states that Derrick’s field goal percentage is low, his numbers this season aren’t as good as others, and the amount of time missed by Boozer and Noah due to injury is irrelevant compared to the problems that Dwight Howard has faced with the Magic. If you had a chance to read my Rondo piece (See below – 1B) numbers sometimes lie. Yes, Rose’s FG percentage is low but that is because he needs to shoot 20 times to keep the Bulls in the game. I’ll agree that Howard’s name should be considered for the MVP but he won’t win because he’s so inconsistent. Six years in the league and Dwight’s free throw shooting is still bad. His post moves have improved, but he’s definitely no Olajuwon right now. And again citing “the numbers,” Israel closes by saying that Dirk and Kobe are better options. Well, Kobe is Kobe. Honestly, he’s the closest thing to Michael Jordan that we have in this age. But he also plays on a team with Odom, Gasol, Bynum, and the greatest coach in Phil Jackson. Not to mention Ron Artest as their lock down defender and Matt Barnes, a very quality player off the bench. I have no idea what Israel means when he says when adding wins other players deserves the award more than D-Rose because the Bulls have the second best record in the NBA. I’ll leave you with this last thought. If people like Israel wants stats then look at this. In the last 5 games, Rose is averaging 29 points, 9 assists, and shooting over 90 percent on the free throw line. Done deal – your 2011 Most Valuable Player is Mr. Derrick Martell Rose from Chicago!

1A:  http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=6263657

1B: https://chicago360.wordpress.com/2011/02/12/rajon-rondo-over-or-under-rated/