NBA Present

Bulls fans couldn't have asked for anything more for Christmas Day. The NBA season began and 5 games were televised nationally. It made me not want to do anything for Christmas! I did manage to watch all the games, even during a family dinner. Even though the Bulls looked sharp during their last preseason game, both teams were a bit sloppy in the opener. The Lakers were leading most of the game. Behind Luol Deng, the Bulls came back to get a 56-49 lead. That was important because Rose got the halftime interview over Bryant. The Bulls fell asleep in the 3rd again and let the Lakers catch up, but it was clutch play in the 4th that saved the game. The Lakers led by 11 with 4 minutes to go... by 6 with less than a minute left. The game was seemingly over, but so many guys stepped up and didn't buckle under pressure. Deng scored several straight with trips to the line. Then he made a steal off Bryant and passed to Rose for the game winner. With 4 seconds left, the ball went to Bryant, who was blocked by Deng, Noah and Gibson. I think Deng got the block, but all 3 touched the ball at almost the same time. Like many Bulls classics, this game had the game winner followed by a great defensive play. That's first place and an important win on the season opening road trip. Golden State next!

The Knicks beat the Celtics in an exciting opening game. Heat defeated the Mavs in the Final rematch. OKC defeated Orlando. The rebuilt Clippers beat the Warriors.