Drowning In My Captain And Diet -- by J.O.B.

1) The Bulls-Pistons series is over. Backbreaker tonight. It's already impossible to come back from being down 3-0, but when you lose the first two by over 20 each and you blow a 19 point lead in the third, you're tagged and bagged. The only quotable line in A Knights Tale fits perfectly here: "You have been weighed, you have been measured, and you have been found wanting." I really hoped for a more competitive series.

2) The blame for this game falls in two places - a horrendous second half of coaching from Scott Skiles (this coming from one of his biggest supporters) and Ben Gordon drifting into the abyss. Tyrus Thomas and Sefalosha brought such an enthusiasm in the first half they sparked the run that got them their lead. In the third quarter as the PissedOns mounted their comeback with a 3-2 zone, Skiles forgot that anyone existed on his bench till it was too late. Prince was burning the Bulls inside worse than Skurny in AWM's mom (zing!) and no backside help defense arrived. Thomas blocks shots - it's his only defensive talent. Thomas and Thabo didn't get a minute in the second half and Duhon never got off the bench. Who cares about Duhon? Well, considering Gordon thought the best way to beat the zone was to dribble until he fumbled the ball into Detroit's hands, a more sure-handed guard would have been preferred. His second half wasn't akin to Iverson's 2-19 from years ago, but that's just because he lost the ball before he could shoot and miss.

3) So how do the Bulls get better next year? Send Gordon to Golden State next year along with Adrian Griffin and a sign and trade of Nocioni to get Jason Richardson in return. Then you draft a kid like Spencer Hawes out of Washington or Roy Hibbert out of Georgetown with your lottery pick. You sign a banger to replace P.J. Brown (Jamaal Magloire or Danny Fortsen would do) and you pick up a high energy nat to replace Noce (Luke Walton, James Posey or Eduardo Najera come to mind.) Doing this keeps the veteran atmosphere Tyrus and Thabo need. Your starting five is Hinrich and Richardson in the backcourt with Deng, Big Ben and Hawes/Hibbert up front. Of the bench you've got Duhon, Tyrus and Thabo, plus Danny Fortsen and James Posey. Seems potent to me.

4) I'm going to congratulate the PissedOns now and still hope for a game 5 in Detroit, which could garner me another invite to the suite at the Palace.