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Cavs Vs Bulls: Five Things To Watch For

By Jared Mueller

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The Cleveland Cavaliers have a tough and important pre-season game tonight in Columbus. The Chicago Bulls come in to face off with their main rival for the top seed in the East.

The Bulls and Cavs are both working with big additions to their teams which will make Cavs Vs Bulls a very interesting game both tonight and throughout the season. The Bulls brought in Pau Gasol as well as welcoming back Derrick Rose while the Cavs famously added LeBron James and Kevin Love, along with a number of other big bench players.

Check Out our Pre-Game Notes From inside The Schott Here

It seems that this game will be played most like a regular season game of any. The media coverage will be high and both teams are expected to play their stars for a long time tonight. It should make for a great game.

Here are 5 things we are watching for tonight:

Interior Defense

The Bulls, with Gasol, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson are very talented on the interior. Unlike the Cavs with Love, the Bulls interior players make their offensive living on the inside. One thing that has been stellar since Noah has arrived has been the interior passing. It will be interesting to see how the Cavs defend their bigs. Noah, Gasol and Gibson can make passes in tight space that can severely test Love, Anderson Varejao, and Tristan Thompson. James and Shawn Marion‘s ability to play in the past and takeaway passing lanes with their speed and length will be key.

Physicality

These two teams are high favorites to represent the East in the Eastern Conference Finals. While the two teams have not been high intensity rivals recently, the likely competition this year could spur some physicality. Noah has already gotten into a fight with Paul Pierce this pre-season. Varejao and Thompson’s activity, as well as Rose’s numerous forays into the paint could lead to some physical play and confrontations.

Ball Movement

The Cavs haven’t had their Big 3 together against an NBA team this pre-season, until tonight. Dion Waiters has led the team in shots partially filling in as the third wheel. Tonight he will have to fit in a bit more. Expect David Blatt to try to get the starters a ton of time together to help them gel. With their expected starting 5 all healthy, the Cavs should show the kind of great ball movement that Blatt, and the nation, expect from them. The players are likely to take this game far more serious as well, holding each other accountable for mistakes. The game in Xavier was more of a rec league game, not likely tonight.

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Perimeter Defense

Derrick Rose can break down any defense and while Irving has improved during his time with Team USA he likely will struggle with Rose. Could Blatt choose to put Waiters, who is a bit stronger and physical, on defense instead? With Mike Dunleavy likely starting at the 2 guard Blatt could hide Irving a bit. How they cover the Bulls 3 point shooters when the ball goes into the post will also be interesting. Will the guards have to help down letting the Bulls rain down 3s on their head?

Inside Out Offense

The Cavs on the other hand could struggle to play inside out. Varejao and Love have some post game but with the size of Gasol and Noah, as well as the active hands of Gibson, could have trouble creating from their. The Dallas Mavericks gave the Cavs problems by playing a zone. The Bulls are far less likely to pull that out but could play in a way to encourage the Cavs to shoot a ton of three pointers. Blatt has not seemed interested in that being the Cavs way of playing offense but could the Bulls bully their opponent?

What are you looking for tonight?

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