[Thanks to marionette for today's game preview. No update on Rose Rose not participating in shootaround, per KC. But thanks to the commenters, a cryptic tweet from Rip suggesting he may play. I'm at the UC tonight, so selfishly I kinda hope everyone plays. Game thread up at 7:08. -ed.]

Tuesday. January 17, 2012 - 19:00 CST. My Suns visit my Bulls for their sole confrontation of this schedule screwy, truncated marathon, mother of an nba season. For me personally, these propitious polemics are highly prospected, possessing a precious poignancy perhaps paralleling, or possibly akin to, the cultured fine art paramour's passion for the Puccini. Or something like that.

What's that you say? All this alliteration and none of Grant Hill (aka, Mr Sig), one-time MVP Derrick Rose, and two-time MVP Steve Nash???

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[Thanks to marionette for today's game preview (Sign! Up!). The first paragraph delights me. -ed.]

I swore I wouldn't do this, but then I snarked rosegirldotcom badly, and on MLK Day of all days... HE WAS A MAN OF PEACE!!!! The 7 recs received only made me feel worse, so I made a vow to feel better. yfBB says this should not be a chore, but I hope making it a penance is okay.

If that's not enough, then self-flagellation is the next step, right? Or one could simply watch The Bulls tonight instead... PPAH-DRUMPTK! But seriously Ladies and Germs, I've had this one calendar-marked since January 31, 2009, the last time our beloved Bullies visited town (and won!).

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preface: time machine back with me to the summer of 2008, a year and a half ago. it was especially warm in Phoenix after the Shaq-led D'Antoni Suns lost (for the final time?) in 5 to San Antonio. and D'Antoni responded to the Steve Kerr plea for more defense and bench minutes by playing the field in the NBA head coaching market. before the Chairman took a similar (to Kerr's) personal interest, before Steve Shanwald played lucky rabbit foot, before 95% of Chicagoans had ever even heard of Vinny Del Negro.

as my post became closer to completion, it was becoming more and more clear that D'Antoni wasn't going to do the obvious (smart?) thing, and i felt my post would be made irrelevant. but today? maybe it will be interesting here...

(reproduced in it's entirety, with Dec "09 comments italicized.)  

The D'Antoni Bulls - Can A Look At Recent Suns History Help Predict Bulls Future?  

   Firstly, I am certainly not a scout. And my basketball experience only went as high as playing against guys that played at a high level a couple times. But I never made a diary in the old format or system, and with the imminent Pax/Reinsdorf decision on D'Antoni, it feels like "now or never".

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I feel a bit turncoat-ish as I write, but with last's night's thriller still fresh, and so many great finishes to the games already this year, I wonder if there's interest in a space to comment on what's happening specifically. On the other teams left, on the part of Blog a Bullers.

Of course many will say it could've or should've been "us".  The Bulls simply couldn't afford the two flat games (only one truly bad) they had against the chumps. But it is hard not imagining how nice it would've been to go into the second round against a team that the officials will call a moving screen against! Even the DPOY, if warranted!

I'll remain skeptical of how the team would have actually faired though. With remembrances of Dwight Howard's infamous steal, to Varejao being granted a time out after sliding out of bounds (the game before the home loss to NJ, one that cost 50 wins and the "easy" post season bracket just the same), even the record (2-9 vs ORL, 1-3 vs CLE this year, but 6-6 over the last three) shows Orlando especially has kind of had The Bulls' number recently.

I think it was majoyenrac who bandied about with me in another thread regarding the quality of NBA East vs West, and this Magic team specifically. So with that as reason, not to mention LeBron, perhaps some of the community here would care to post comments regarding what's shaping up as a phenomenal post season.

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