[Izulde]

We get absolutely screwed in the seeding and are handed the #4 spot to face off against #1 Sioux Falls. Lovely.

In the NBA postseason, for the first time in what seems forever, all eight Eastern Conference playoff teams are .500 or better. 7 of 8 Western Conference teams are .+500, with the Los Angeles Lakers the lone sub-.500 entrant.

The Bulls are heavy favorites to win the East, while the Rockets and the Suns both won 60+ games in the West, making the favorites a coinflip there.

I have to admit, I love the Chicago team. Even though Luol Deng is gone for the year with a torn MCL, they still have a solid lineup.

PG Mike Bibby
SG Kirk Hinrich
SF Josh McRoberts
PF Tyrus Thomas (really had a breakout season this year, his first as a full-time starter)
C Eddy Curry
6th Ben Wallace
7th Raymond Felton

and so on. Curry's having arguably his best season in this universe, averaging 17 points a game and 9.3 rebounds in the regular season. Hinrich's scoring numbers are way down (15.8 ppg), but it's much a more potent Bulls offense with Bibby (24.1 ppg) and the emerging Thomas (14.4 ppg).

Switching back to the D-League, if you'd have told me that five Austin Mammoths would score 11 or more points, including Aaron Gray with 13 from the bench and that we'd still lose, I'd have called you a liar, but that's exactly what happened as Sioux Falls beats us 97-90 to end our season.

Whatever. Let's move on before I get really mad about it.

We'll be having a new Eastern Conference champion this year after Detroit sweeps Charlotte in the first round. Also getting the fastest exit possible are Milwaukee, who lost to Boston because they have no PG after that earlier deal, and the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets, who were swept by the Rockets in Round 1. So much for any hopes of any dynasties in this universe as we've lost our two-time defending East champion and our defending NBA champion already in the first round.

In fact, it was a pretty boring opening round, as every other series is decided in five games: Chicago over Philadelphia, Toronto over Cleveland, Seattle over Portland, San Antonio over Utah and Phoenix over the Lakers.

Second round matchups don't look that exciting in the East either, with Chicago vs. Detroit and Boston vs. Toronto. A Bulls/Raptors East final would be a ton of fun to watch, though.

The West offers Phoenix vs. San Antonio and Seattle vs. Houston. The Rockets should squash the Supersonics, but I'm intrigued by the Suns/Spurs matchup. Phoenix has a balanced offense, whereas San Antonio's been riding Tim Duncan and the suddenly ungodly Tony Parker, he of the 21.3 ppg in the regular season, 23.8 ppg in the opening round.

Houston sweeps Seattle to no one's surprise and the Bulls punch their ticket to the East Conference Finals in five games. Phoenix and San Antonio, as expected, goes full tilt to seven, as does, much to my shock, the Celtics/Raptors series.

Toronto wins Game 7 92-76 thanks to their monstrous front line. Andrea Bargnani scores 25, Chris Bosh double-doubles with 26 points and 12 rebounds and Greg Oden has a double-double as well, 12 points and 11 rebounds.

The Suns ace the Spurs 124-101 with seven Phoenix players in double figures, highlighted by Amare Stoudamire's 20 points, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks and Steve Nash's 22 points and 12 assists. But the real reason San Antonio lost was because Tony Parker broke his ankle in Game 6 and Tim Duncan was shut down in Game 7, held to just 3 points.

So in the East we've got the Chicago Bulls and their high-octane postseason offense of Mike Bibby (20.8 ppg), Tyrus Thomas (17.9 ppg), Eddy Curry (16.8 ppg) and Kirk Hinrich (16.8 ppg) against the Toronto Raptors and that scary frontline of Chris Bosh (21.3 ppg, 10.6 rpg), Andrea Bargnani (19.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg) and Greg Oden (14.2 ppg, 11.8 rpg). Thomas and Curry are both averaging just shy of 10 rebounds a game in the playoff themselves, but they're going to have their hands full against this dominant frontcourt.

In the West, it's the Phoenix Suns and the suddenly hot Leandro Barbosa (19.6 ppg) and Amare Stoudamire (16.4 ppg, 12.1 rpg) and a host of secondary scorers versus the Houston Rockets and their two-man show of Tracy McGrady (24.9 ppg) and Yao Ming (19 ppg, 14.3 rpg).

The Bulls/Raptors series is too close to call, but the Suns have a much more balanced and diversified offense and guys who have won rings before in 2007, so Phoenix is the odds-on favorite to beat Houston.

Surprisingly, neither series is close in the end, as Chicago jumps out to a 3-0 lead on Toronto and wins in five games and Phoenix runs off 3 straight after it was 1-1 in Game 2 to also win in five.

2009 NBA Finals - Chicago Bulls vs. Phoenix Suns
It's the 2007 NBA champions versus a team that should've been dominating the East for the last few seasons, but has suffered disappointing postseason flameouts the previous two years.

No more, and the Bulls are where they properly should be, as the East Conference champions.

PG Mike Bibby vs. Steve Nash
Bibby was the biggest offseason acquistion in the entire league and he may be the most important one-year signing ever. He's led the Bulls in scoring all year and is the focus of their offense.

Nash has been here before, but this year, he's acted as more of a pure PG in this playoffs, trading in his 20+ points a game for 15.3 points and 11.2 assists. It's made his team a lot better and has the Suns primed for another title.

Advantage: Even

SG Kirk Hinrich vs. Leandro Barbosa
Hinrich, like Nash, has seen his scoring numbers drop, but that's only because Bibby's here and Kirk is still averaging over 18 points for the postseason. He's capable of running the offense and being the main scorer if Bibby goes down and the Bulls frankly have the best starting backcourt in the NBA.

The 27-year old Brazilian Barbosa has turned this playoffs into his coming out party, averaging 20 points a game after a nice, but pedestrian regular season as a part-time starter. He leads the Suns in points per game this playoffs and is currently the toast of Phoenix. But will he succeed against the bigger, better Bulls or will this Cinderella scorer's playoff magic run out?

Advantage: Bulls

SF Josh McRoberts vs. Wally Sczerbiak
McRoberts is only starting because Luol Deng is out. He's non-descript. Wally's been a great veteran pickup and a key part of the Suns' new balance on offense.

Advantage: Suns

PF Tyrus Thomas vs. Shawn Marion
Thomas broke out this year and has looked better and better as the season's gone on, really peaking in this playoffs as he's averaged almost 19 points a game and played tough, briliant lockdown defense.

Marion is one of the biggest disappointments and underachievers in the league. Blessed with phenomenal talent, he's become nothing more than a pretty good player and shows absolutely no fire and no passion on the court.

Advantage: Bulls

C Eddy Curry vs. Amare Stoudemire
Chicago should be thanking the Lottery GM for shipping Curry back to the Bulls from the Knicks, because he's experienced a rejuvenation in his second stint in Chicago. Now that Bibby and Hinrich are around and Thomas has blossomed, Curry can take on a secondary role in the offense, which better suits his temperment.

Stoudemire is one of those guys who doesn't look fantastic on the scoresheet, but he brings a consistent double-double effort night in and night out and he fits in well with the Suns game.

Advantage: Even

The Bulls' bench is slightly better than the Suns', which should give Chicago the edge in an NBA Finals matchup that looks to be extremely entertaining.

Phoenix's playoff experience looks to turn the Finals into a rout when they jump to a 2-0 series lead, but the Bulls bounce back to take the next two and force an evening at 2-2. Chicago wins Game 5, but Phoenix wins Game 6 to set up the climatic Game 7.

And then Mike Bibby roars to life.

Already considered one of the greatest one-year signings in NBA history, Bibby adds to his hired gun legacy by scoring 35 points and garnering 6 assists, 7 rebounds and a timely steal to lead Chicago past Phoenix 96-91.

The Chicago Bulls are your 2009 NBA Champions!!!

Bibby the Brilliant! Mike the Magnificient!

They'll be talking about this season in Chitown for a long, long time to come. Not since the Jordan dynasty years have the Bulls looked this splendid, nor have they worn championship gold.

But the wait is finally over.

Da Bulls are basketball kings again.