Special post for a special game...

It's sad, but down here in India we get to watch two or three NBA games a week... Which combines to roughly 84 games a year... Now one team plays 82 regular season games + playoffs so you can guess how little we actually get (thank you very much ESPN)... Now the chances of a game turning into a classic is obviously small (because otherwise it would be an average game)... And with Game 6 of the Boston Chicago FIRST round (yes FIRST ROUND) series the Indian audience was incredibly lucky to get to watch the 3OT 128-127 Bulls victory live...

The match was amazing because there was always something going on... Both teams for at it right from tip off especially the Bulls... I though Salmons was incredible in the first quarter, knocking down all kinds of weird shots... Then Ray Allen showed up, and BOY did he show up... The most incredible part was someone or the other kept coming back... 1 minute the Bulls would be up by 12, 5 mins and a 23-3 run later Celtics lead by 8 and then comes Miller from nowhere with clutch plays... Followed by Hinrich... And this was just regulation...

You know the feeling?? When a team is 3 points up, but Ray Allen is on the opposite team... It's like you know the shot is coming, you just don't know from where... I mean how the hell do you shoot over a (generously listed) 7 footer fully extended... I mean, you can't fault (for most parts) the defence on Ray Allen... This guy is as good as Reggie Miller at his peak (I know you're thinking it)... "Big baby" Glen Davis was great to credit to him for some of his clutch shots... I still cant get over the fact that this guy was a second round pick last season...

For Chicago, it was a team effort (barring Ben Gordon who didn't show up - hamstring problems too much I guess)... Salmons starred in the first... And through out the game there were spurts from him, Rose, Hinrich, Miller... But, (even though they didn't score as much) to me, Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah were the key players... Not because of the number of plays they made but the nature of the plays they made... Tyrus Thomas' emphatic dunk in the 4th made the crowd go wild... (Not to mention is superb rejection of Rondo - possibly the only time I saw Rondo drive the whole game)... Noah - What a steal... I mean sure Pierce is old... But if your big man can make a play like that? Well you've got one hell of a player... A lot of Bulls fans were upset at losing Nocioni (and his energetic & emphatic moves that got the crowd into it) in the Kings' deal but Noah has turned into a much better version of that... He makes sensible and hard plays... And he does it emphatically... Derrick Rose seemed a bit nervous in parts, but come on, he's only a rookie!! I personally felt Hinrich should have been handling the ball down the stretch... Rose looked like he could cough it up any moment...

Miller... Man what can I say... He's slow yes... But can he make clutch shots or what!! I really never knew he could shoot 3's today... (Yes I can be ignorant)... Not to mention that driving layup past Perkins late in the fourth...

Now I'm about done... Just a word for the fans dissing the coaches... Give them a chance!! Look at their results over a long term... Just by 2-3 games you cannot say a coach is bad just because some of his calls flopped... And in Vinny Del Negro's case, give him a break!! He's a rookie coach, but he's already proven to be decent (barring a couple of weird decisions)... Give him a couple of years, then judge him... For the Bulls it could be ideal - A young core growing up with the coach could help the team... It really could... Can't Wait for Game 7... Don't really care about the result, but we may need to keep the ICU's ready... Because Game 7 is going to be the clincher of one of the best playoff series' ever...