Sorry for the extra thread but I wanted thoughts on this.
Game 1
Miami Heat at Chicago Bulls (-2, 181)
While it has been complete carnage in the Western Conference, chalk has been the name of the game in the East. The result is a blockbuster final series between the top two seeds, Chicago and Miami.
These two powerhouses faced each other three times during the regular season. Although all three contests were competitive, the Bulls showed the toughness that carried them to an NBA-best 62-20 record and outlasted the Heat on all three occasions.
A big reason for Chicago’s trio of victories was rebounding. The league’s best team on the boards (boasting a +5.74 differential per game) won the battles on the glass 42-30, 53-39, and 36-30.
With an in-form Carlos Boozer at their disposal, the Bulls could have their way with the Heat down low once again. Boozer struggled through the first five games against Atlanta mostly due to a case of turf toe, but he heated up in Game 6. The former Duke star went 10 of 16 from the floor for 23 points to go along with 10 rebounds in a 93-73 series-clinching rout.
“Boozer was just trying to force things,” Derrick Rose told the Chicago Tribune. “When you're not playing as well as you're supposed to, you over-think. He just had to get his groove. His confidence is high, back to where it needed to be. Everything he was doing was quicker; more efficient. That's the Booz we know.”
Pick: Bulls