NBA Playoff Preview - Chicago vs. Milwaukee

Apr 17, 2015 - 5:33 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - The Chicago Bulls hope to make their stay in the playoffs last a little longer this season and will take on the Central Division-rival Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.

The series begins Saturday at the United Center.

Chicago fell short in its quest for a Central crown and beat out the Toronto Raptors for the third seed in the East. The Bulls went through more injury drama with point guard Derrick Rose, who's back healthy and ready to roll in the postseason.

The Bulls have reached the playoffs in each of the past seven years and 10 in the previous 11. They went 50-32 in the regular season and lived up to their defensive reputation thanks to the offseason addition of power forward Pau Gasol. Gasol adds another dimension to what head coach Tom Thibodeau preaches and led the NBA with 54 double-doubles.

Gasol and Joakim Noah will be hard to beat inside this series.

"We have to want it more than anybody else," Gasol said. "The resiliency that we have, we've got to turn it into a determination and understand that every game in the playoffs is critical."

Gasol, a five-time All-Star, has plenty of postseason experience with the Los Angeles Lakers and won two titles with them before heading to the Windy City.

The Bulls, who ended the regular season with 10 wins in 14 tries, were eliminated by the Washington Wizards in five games in last season's quarterfinals.

Milwaukee finished with a franchise-worst 15-67 record in 2013-14, so the Bucks decided to shake up the coaching staff. Larry Drew was replaced by Jason Kidd and the Bucks responded with their third playoff appearance in the previous nine years.

"I think it's a great start for our foundation, for this young group. Understanding what it takes to win," Kidd said. "Only 16 teams make the playoffs now and we're one of them."

Kidd has reached the playoffs in both of his first two seasons as a head coach and guided the Brooklyn Nets to the postseason in 2013-14.

Much like the Bulls, the Bucks stressed defense and allowed 97.4 points per game. The Bulls surrendered 97.8 ppg.

The last time Milwaukee made the playoffs was in 2012-13, when it was swept in the first round by the Miami Heat.

Milwaukee went just 1-3 against Chicago in the regular season and hasn't faced the Bulls in the postseason since the 1989-90 campaign. The Bucks are 8-4 all- time against the Bulls in the playoffs.

MATCHUPS:

BACKCOURT: Rose played in 51 games this season, averaging 18.0 points and 5.0 assists, and is at full strength. Rose hasn't been able to contribute much in the postseason in recent years because of his health, which will be a major factor for the Bulls moving forward. Still lightning quick and willing to feed off his teammates, Rose is the impetus of the offense and will appear in a playoff game for the first time since tearing his left ACL in the Bulls' 2012 postseason opener against Philadelphia. He did have soreness in his left knee in the season finale. Jimmy Butler led the Bulls with 20.0 ppg and had no issue taking over the point when Rose was nursing his injuries. Butler can't get to the basket as quick as Rose, but is bigger and has more power. Butler is more efficient from the floor, too.

The Bucks needed to bolster their backcourt and traded for Michael Carter- Williams at the deadline. Carter-Williams was the Rookie of the Year for the 76ers last season and is a stat stuffer. With the Sixers and Bucks, MCW averaged 14.8 points, 6.7 assists and 5.4 rebounds. Carter-Williams is turnover prone and must protect the ball if the Bucks have any chance at winning a game in this series. His defense will be tested as well. Khris Middleton averaged 13.4 ppg this season and played 30 minutes a game. Kidd, a former guard himself, needs his backcourt to keep pace with Chicago's.

EDGE: BULLS

FRONTCOURT: The Bulls went 16-5 this season with Rose, Butler, Gasol, Noah and Mike Dunleavy as the starting five. Gasol and Noah are towers in the middle and it will be tough sledding for Milwaukee to penetrate at will. Gasol recorded 18.5 points and 11.8 rebounds, while blocking 1.9 shots per game, while Noah was second with 9.6 boards to go along with 7.2 points. The Bulls don't rely on Noah to score, but his intensity on defense and passing ability are crucial. Dunleavy is a sharp-shooter and will do damage from outside.

"I came here to win," Gasol said. "I came here to have an opportunity to win a title and I hope we can accomplish that. You don't take anything for granted. You never know what will be the next year, tomorrow for that matter. So you have to really embrace and enjoy the point you find yourself in."

Milwaukee's frontcourt doesn't have as much talent as Chicago's, but it's still learning with young forwards Giannis Antetokounmpo and Ersan Ilyasova. Antetokounmpo averaged 12.8 points and 6.7 rebounds, and scored in double figures in 60 of his 81 games played. His nearly 7-foot frame and athleticism makes it difficult for other defenders, so the Greek star has to attack early. Ilyasova may look like James Franco, but plays with heart and averaged 11.4 points and 4.8 rebounds. He's not afraid to bang inside. Center Zaza Pachulia has the challenge of posting up against Gasol and Noah. Good luck. Milwaukee's chances of making this a series would be better if rookie Jabari Parker was healthy. He was lost for the season in December with a torn ACL.

"We haven't accomplished anything yet," Pachulia said. "We've kept building. We've kept working hard and getting better. We've had good days and bad days. Compared to last year, obviously there's been a huge difference. We've made a lot of improvement, but we can't be satisfied with that."

EDGE: BULLS

BENCH: Chicago's bench is better than Milwaukee's. The Bulls have guards Aaron Brooks, Kirk Hinrich and Tony Snell, and forwards Taj Gibson and Nikola Mirotic. Gibson is a no-nonsense player and averaged 10.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. He will spell Gasol and Noah in the paint. The rookie Mirotic has great range from downtown and posted 10.2 ppg. He led the NBA with 136 fourth-quarter points in March (15 games). Brooks and Hinrich have experience starting and are more of a threat coming off the bench. Hinrich has been hobbled recently with a knee strain.

"Our goal is as any other team, to win a championship," Brooks said. "To do that you can't pick and choose who you want to play and who you want to go through. If we want to win a championship we have to beat everybody."

Milwaukee was seventh in bench points (37.3 ppg) this season and is long in the tooth with reserves Jared Dudley and O.J. Mayo. Mayo averaged 11.4 ppg and can still dial it up when he wants to, while Dudley brings a veteran presence and stability to the younger players. John Henson and Jerryd Bayless see action off the pine for the Bucks, who have scored more points than Chicago's reserves (32.2 ppg) and have less talent.

EDGE: BULLS

COACHING: Thibodeau is 17-22 in the playoffs with the Bulls and has guided them to the postseason in every year since taking over in 2010. His philosophy is defense and the Bulls have soaked up his coaching technique like a sponge. The Bulls made Thibs' job a lot easier with Gasol in the middle and who knows how much better the team would have been if Rose was 100 percent for 82 games.

Kidd guided the Nets to the semifinals last season, defeating Toronto in seven games in the quarters before losing to Miami in five games the next round. How can players not listen to Kidd and his basketball prowess? He has the numbers and experience. Kidd is a Coach of the Year candidate for turning this Milwaukee squad around, and his players believe in the system.

"We had a lot of bumps in the road this season as far as injuries, new members on the team, other members off the team," Mayo said. "It's been a long year, but at the end of the day, we've stayed collectively together and continued to work hard each and every day. The coaching staff has pushed us to get better, and that's what we're trying to do every day we step on the court."

EDGE: BULLS

PREDICTION: The Bulls will be a tough out this postseason, especially if Rose shows no signs of fatigue in those injury-riddled legs. Rose is happy to be a part of this postseason experience and it all rides on him.

"We have a deep team," Rose said. "Not only our starters are good, some of our bench players could start on other teams. We definitely have options. We've just got to find out how to use everybody. I'm just happy to be playing in the playoffs, to tell you the truth. It's going to be a fun series. They're a young, great team, great coach. They're really going to push us to play hard."

Familiarity breeds contempt and there will be no love lost between these two Central foes. Chicago, though, moves on because of its defense and the scoring duo of Rose and Butler. Gasol will help push the Bulls into the semis, too.

SPORTS NETWORK PREDICTION: BULLS IN FIVE