Chicago Bulls vs. Oklahoma City Thunder

It's only the first game of the season.

The only thing that kept sounding off in my mind as the Chicago Bulls made countless turnovers that could have been prevented and played less than stellar defense. However, there were a lot of good things that were evident throughout the game and the reminder that we are missing an all star from our starting line up keeps a smile on my face.

I wasn't really too sure what to expect from the Bulls in this game, or for the season. With a couple key off season moves to improve their stock value and appearance on paper this team could be anywhere. After what I consider the luckiest first round draft pick we could have asked for, we're putting together a supporting cast around D Rose. New coach, new center, new shooters, and developed players that remained on the roster.

From the tip off of this game it was evident how much of a talent Rose truly is. The Bulls ran a couple great pick and roll sets, had a couple fast breaks, and played some defense on the Thunder. Obviously I don't know what Tom Thibodeau's game plan was before the game, but I hope it was limit the points of the big 3 for the Thunder. Durant is going to get his upper 20/30 points without a doubt, its the players around him that you need to try and limit and really squeeze when they have the ball. As we saw in the game tonight that was not one of the Bulls' priorities. Westbrook grabbed rebounds and had quick put backs that really took the air out of the quality defensive stops the Bulls had. On top of that they out ran us on the fast break. I was a big fan of the Thunder last year and really think they have a great group that can only improve with their age since they are all such young players, but man are they long. I don't know how to explain it other than that. Every player seems to have a longer wingspan and longer strides than the other players on the court. This was partially the reason as to why the Bulls kept making such elementary turnovers, but a simple pass fake could have solved this problem.

A few things that were evident towards the end of the game:

Rose floater shot - It fell a couple times early and is a really pretty shot when it goes, but towards the end of the game he continued to use it when it wasn't hitting. The way the Bulls got into the lead was through drawing fouls to slow the Thunder down and not allowing them to stretch the floor. Its great to use that shot when its working, but towards the end of the game he needs to take the ball to the hole and draw some fouls.

Brewer - Thoroughly disappointed in his play tonight. I know hes been injured throughout preseason but he looked really lost out there. Again, it's only the first game of the season.

Referees - Must have been bit by the Durantula before the game because they were sick. It appeared early that Durant was going to be getting the "superstar" calls. I'm really starting to get tired of these, mainly because the Bulls do not have anyone to get these type of calls.

Korver - Did not play a lot, but came off the bench with six minutes left and hits a big bucket. I think as he feels more comfortable after this injury and Boozer takes his place on the court Korver is going to be a really solid piece to the Bulls puzzle.

Derrick Rose foul trouble affecting us early and late. In the first half when Rose got taken out the Bulls had no identity on the court. They were attempting to run everything too fast, and didn't have any one on the court that really wanted to take control (despite Watsons great baskets after the timeout).

Really great to see Deng developed a 3 point shot. I've been waiting for this for as long as we've had Deng. He has always had a great 15-18 foot jumper but for some reason it never worked for him from outside the arc. Now he's hitting it, which gives him the option of being a threat from outside and opening up the lane for others.

Taj Gibson played like a veteran. I really like Taj, for one because he was a late addition on my fantasy team, but also he plays well. He takes his time underneath the basket and he doesn't rush. I would really like to see him develop a more consistent jumper so when Boozer gets back they'll be able to run and inside out game.

Joaquim - Mr Consistent Double Double. Nuff said.

D Rose off season 3 point work not showing in season opener.

When it came down to crunch time the same old bulls showed up and crumbled. It is only the first game, but we still don't have a player that is reliable with it on the line. I only say this because of the way Durant can help his team out and if he wasn't on the court Westbrook or Green could. Rose is starting to step up and I think he could really fit that role well, but he's not fully there yet.

Towards the end the Thunder just had that extra bit to help out, when Boozer gets back I'd like to think the bulls have an edge on them. The Thunder don't really have a great inside force and Boozer's combination of power and an outside shot the Bulls are going to have a really different look than what we saw tonight.

This Season's Fantasy Picks

As a lifetime basketball fan that has always dreamed of playing or coaching past the high school level there is no better feeling than putting together an all star fantasy team. Tonight we have the draft for our "bragging rights" league. I'll be honest, last year I stopped paying attention to my team after the first couple weeks because no matter what I tried to do I couldn't acquire a quality big man to give me some rebounding numbers. At the start of the draft all I saw were star players that I enjoy to watch rather than observing the numbers they actually produce. That's why I'm putting together a list of some of my top players at each position so I can stick to a system rather than just grabbing the best player at the time.

Point Guard

Chris Paul - We saw Chris hurt last year towards the end of the season which really hurt the Hornets. They got rid of Tyson Chandler which appeared throughout the season to be Pauls' greatest asset. Most of the highlights I saw of the Hornets consisted of Paul driving to the basket and either throwing an alley-oop to Chandler or faking the pass and taking a step back jumper. However, the Hornets did acquire Emeka Okafor who we saw contribute a great deal to the Bobcats. Essentially, they received a player that still can't shoot outside who rebounds about the same and can't shoot free throws. David West is still on the team along with an aging Peja, I'm thinking this season is going to be centered more around Paul than in years' past because of the terrible cast around him.

Deron Williams - Similar to Paul's situation Deron is definitely going to be the primary focus of the Jazz this season. It appears that the Bulls liked the way the Jazz lineup was meshed together and just took the core group out of Utah. They did acquire Al Jefferson which with the combination of Mehmet could provide a really interesting inside and out game. New acquisition Gordon Hayward could prove to be a great shooter to have alongside Williams, but I see Deron's points going up rather than his assists.

Dwayne Wade - I absolutely despise the new look of the Miami Heat, but I think it should be interesting to see the way the Heat lean towards. Much like the Celtics in their acquisition of the "Big 3" there has been a noticeable trend in different situations throughout the game of who they lean on. I'm thinking that Dwayne's points are going to go down a little bit, but he is a competitor and will get his points however he has to. I do see his assists going up, but again this all depends on who they're going to be running the patented NBA big and roll with. With Drama Mama James on his team we'll see how when it really comes down to crunch time who they lean on.

Jason Kidd - What else to say other than quality veteran? Despite the off court feuds with his wife Kidd is always a great pick up and will give you quality rebounds, steals, and assists. It appears as he gets older that his numbers have dropped, but he does tend to go through spurts where he'll catch a flame and start draining shots. When he's feeling it the triple doubles start showing up like acne on a steroid using body builder.

Rajon Rondo - Complete tool for trying to pick a fight with Hinrich in the Bulls vs Celtics playoff series, but man as he really came into his own. Completely different playing style and really able to explode. Still no jump shot which I find amazing at the NBA level, but is extremely aggressive and has a great supporting cast around him. Since the Celtics picked up O'Neal we'll see if this gives the Celtics more offensive possessions or if this is just going to slow their fast break offense down.

Rose, Jennings, and more to come...