Pregame: Sixers vs Bulls
Dec 12, 2012; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Evan Turner (12) shoots a jump shot under pressure from Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng (9) during the first quarter at the Wells Fargo Center. The Bulls defeated the Sixers 96-89. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Well, who thought the Sixers would be going into the third game of the season with a 2-0 record with victories against the Miami Heat and Washington Wizards? Much to the chagrin of Sam Hinkie, I’m sure.
Yeah, me neither. Somehow the Sixers are 2-0 and are making this whole “tanking” persona really fun. I’ll admit, I cannot root for this team to lose. I love them, I don’t want them to lose. If they do lose, it’s okay, but I don’t want this team to lose. I may be in the minority there and yes I’m aware that it would be more beneficial for the Sixers future if they lose, but I’m not going to root for the team I love to lose.
So, what does Evan Turner think about tanking?
"“That’s y’all writing that stuff. That’s not us writing it. You know what I’m saying? I know myself, I don’t want to lose at anything. I want to keep competing. My teammates want to keep competing. So there’s no point in putting all that time in and meeting Coach’s fitness goals just to lose.”"
Okay, so what do you think about tanking Thad Young?
"“We know everybody is talking about trying to tank and all that other stuff, but us as a team, we feel like we’re better than that. We feel that we can go out there and be able to beat everybody on each and every night.”"
Anyways, it’s TWO games out of 82, it’s really not that big of a deal. I love how everyone is having fun with it though, it’s making for some fun times.
The Sixers defeated the Wizards 109-102 last night and will be playing their first back-to-back of the season. After MCW’s phenomenal performance against the Miami Heat, he came back down to earth against the Wizards. Carter-Williams shot 6-15 from the field (2-6 from deep), good for 14 points and five assists (three turnovers). John Wall was a nightmare for Carter-Williams all night. Wall exploded for 26 points on 10-20 shooting from the field, along with six dimes. Clearly, Carter-Williams had trouble with Wall’s quickness. It will be interesting to see how Michael Carter-Williams deals with a top 5 PG in Derrick Rose.
So, tonight the Sixers travel to Chicago to face the Bulls. The Bulls have won the last five contest against the Sixers, looking for number six tonight. Conventional wisdom says they have a good shot at getting number six, but what the hell is conventional wisdom this season anyways?
The most intriguing storyline about this game is Derrick Rose, of course. Any real fan of the Sixers remembers the playoff series three seasons ago against the Bulls. Derrick Rose tore his ACL at the end of game one when the outcome was already decided and I’m still confused as to why Rose was still playing. Rose just returned after missing a whole season from the ACL tear. Rose returns to face the team that almost ended his career, it will be interesting to see how he plays. He’s had an up and down season so far, but it’s Derrick Rose. He hit the game winner against the Knicks a few nights ago, so Derrick Rose is still Derrick Rose.
The starters for the Sixers remain the same with Michael Carter-Williams at PG, James Anderson at SG, Evan Turner at SF, Thaddeus Young at PF and Spencer Hawes at center.
The Bulls probable starters are:
- PG Derrick Rose
- SG Jimmy Butler
- SF Luol Deng
- PF Carlos Boozer
- C Joakim Noah
This game will tip off at 7:30 on NBA TV (The Sixers got a kinda-not-really nationally televised (but not really) game! Woohoo! So..the only question I can ask…..
Will the Sixers defeat the Bulls tonight and go 3-0?
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