The Chicago Bulls have a real shot at making it to the NBA finals this season after getting Derrick Rose back and if he remains healthy through the playoffs, the Miami Heat will have a true challenger in the East that could knock them off for the first time in three years.
Rose has said, according to Pro Basketball Talk, that he won't try and recruit players to come to the Bulls like LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony and he said that if people want to play with him, it's great, but that he won't be trying to get them to come to Chicago. Luckily for Rose, he plays for one of the most renowned franchises in the NBA.
Rose has been rehabbing all year and while he didn't play a game for the Bulls last season, the team still made it past the Brooklyn Nets in the first round before falling to the Heat. The team has a strong core with Rose, Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer and Jimmy Butler as well as Joakim Noah and that could be enough to put them over the top. According to Pro Basketball Talk, TNT analyst Steve Kerr has the same thoughts, as he predicted that the Heat will finally get beaten by someone in the East and it will be his old team in the Bulls.
Kerr said that he feels the Bulls can be the team to finally beat Miami and he cited the strong roster for Chicago, including Taj Gibson and Joakim Noah as well as the return of Rose. The East has a deep roster of teams that can challenge the Heat, including the Bulls, Pacers as well as the Knicks and the Nets. Both the New York teams have high expectations, but no one really knows how they will look on the court until the season begins and that leaves the Pacers and the Heat as the favorites again.
The Pacers pushed the Heat to the limit last season in the Eastern conference finals and now they could be even better than last season, as they added Luis Scola and decided to re-sign David West to a contract. Paul George is a superstar in the making, the bench is strong with George Hill and Chris Copeland and the team also added CJ Watson and they will get Danny Granger back from a knee injury. While the Pacers still actually have to "do" it, they have the team on paper to play with the Heat.
Rose has a big season ahead of him after coming back from his serious knee injury and the Bulls will be relying on the fact that he is fully healed and back to full strength. Rose also said that he may want to push things next summer for the World Championships, as Pro Basketball Talk reported that Rose told ABS-CBNNews.com he would be open to playing for the team. Mike Krzyzewski will be leading the team once again after deciding to return and Rose could be another excellent addition to a team that will include a number of the top players in the league.
