Four Bulls-Celtics questions after Game 2

Here are the four questions that came to mind after watching Game 2 of the Chicago Bulls-Boston Celtics series.

April 21, 2009, 8:41 AM

By: Wayne Drehs

Ben Gordon

AP Photo/Elise Amendola

Bulls guard Ben Gordon (7) launches a shot against Celtics guard Ray Allen.

Four questions after watching Monday night's Bulls-Celtics thriller (Boston won 118-115 to even the series 1-1):

1. How does coach Vinny del Negro allow his team to run out of timeouts in the fourth quarter?

I know you can't take them with you to the locker room, but still, don't you keep at least one timeout in your back pocket in case you need to draw up some sort of desperation last-second play? As it was, after Allen hit his game-winning three with two seconds left, the best the Bulls could muster was a last-second desperation heave by Tyrus Thomas. Who knows if it would have mattered, but I would have loved to have seen Vinny draw something up allowing Rose and Gordon to try to work some magic. At that point, two seconds is an eternity. Yet neither of the Bulls best players took the final shot.

2. What sort of shooting drills does Jim Calhoun use at UConn?

The back-and-forth battle between former Huskies Ben Gordon and Ray Allen in the fourth quarter was ridiculous. I kept telling the wife that Gordon should pass because nobody who isn't named Kobe or LeBron consistently makes off-balance fadeaway jumpers. And yet Gordon never missed -- or at least it seemed that way (42 points on 14-of-24 overall, 6-of-11 on 3s and 8-of-9 from the line). And then there was Allen (30 points, 6-of-10 on 3s), all but left for dead after the first half, hitting jumper after jumper, including the game-winning 3-pointer that saved the Celtics' season. If I'm Calhoun, I save the highlights of that game for a rainy day.

3. What's with all the swearing?

I don't claim to have anywhere close to a clean mouth, but do we need the slow-motion close-ups of Gordon, Kevin Garnett and others constantly repeating the mother of dirty words, the F-dash-dash-dash word, the one that got Ralphie's mouth washed out with soap? A 6-year-old could have read lips on Monday night and received a colorful tour of the English language. Players aren't role models. I get it. But does every big shot need an F-bomb as its exclamation point?

4. What should we expect in Chicago?

The Bulls have matched the defending champs shot for shot in the first two games of the series and return home Thursday night with the series tied. They've made Boston look tired, old and vulnerable. An extra day of rest will help the Celtics going into Game 3, but I am starting to believe the Bulls have a legitimate chance to send the NBA champions home early. To me, there are two keys to making that happen. First, they have to improve on the defensive glass. Secondly, they have to limit Rajon Rondo's penetration.


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