The NBA still doesn't have the refs in place, but it's looking like they are just about to finalize an agreement with them. There have been plenty of complaints about the replacement refs in pre-season, including a bizarre incident where the Israeli Maccabi coach refused to leave Madison Square Garden after being tossed in a warm-up game against the Knicks. A rabbi tried to persuade the replacement refs to let the coach stay, despite having two technical fouls. The refs stuck to their rulebook and the coach finally stormed off after a long game delay.
Rose is hurt, bad ankle. Whether he misses the opener against the Spurs or not is still up in the air. Either way, he's missed most of the pre-season and is bound to not be at his best for awhile. Combine that with a tough early schedule and the Bulls could be digging an early hole.
Bulls play more back-to-back games than any other team, so they clearly have a very unfavorable schedule. Combine that with lots of improvement around the East and loss of Ben Gordon, and you have to think the best the Bulls can do this year is about the same as they did last year.
Tyrus is fuming at being left out of the starting line-up in some pre-season games. Blog-A-Bull has been slamming Vinnie for starting the rookie Gibson over him, but I completely agree with the move. There's no future in Tyrus. I hope he's improved, so that we can fool some other team into taking him on, but I think the Bulls have wasted more time and energy on Tyrus than they should have. Not that Gibson is ready to start, because he isn't, but at least there's hope that he can be a stable NBA player.
So, I think the Bulls should find out what they have in the two rookies, get what they can for duds like Tyrus and Deng, and clear out the cap space for the big guns of 2010. And don't play Rose when he's injured because we'll need him healthy to attract those free agents.
Carlos Arroyo wound up going to Miami, who needs a backup point-guard more than the Bulls do. Maybe that incident with the Maccabi coach scared him out of rejoining them for another year?
Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov is about to purchase the Nets and become the most interesting owner since Mark Cuban. The Post reported today that he blew $19k on a lunch at Nello's with six friends! How do you spend $19,000 on lunch? How about $825 for three orders of truffle taglioni; $600 for four orders of truffle carpaccio; $210 for three orders of veal chops; and $72 for six (I'm assuming mineral) waters. Hmm, just googled them and a mineral water is $15-$18 at Nello's! So they were actually being frugal with the waters they ordered! A bowl of soup is $32. Perfect for a Russian billionaire visiting New York before buying their (well, almost "their", Brooklyn in 2011 or 2012) basketball team.
Finally, Victoria's Secret model Marisa Miller squared off against Rose at the Berto Center yesterday for a publicity photo shoot they are doing to nominate the sexiest athletes in Chicago. How they could choose Rose for nomination when they have Noah on the floor? He's completely irresistible when he dons his big bow tie and pulls out the Courvoisier.
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