The Bulls were able to put together one of the best defensive performances of the year on Wednesday night, backed by a raucous home crowd eager to help the Bulls tie the series.  With that now accomplished, the Bulls will get their biggest test of the season so far as they head into Atlanta for two games this weekend – a stretch that will most likely determine the shape of the season.  After the Hawks shot the lights out in Game 1, the Bulls have proven that they’re capable of ratcheting up the defense and overcome poor shooting nights by Derrick Rose, which have actually become the norm so far in the postseason.

But Rose has remained a strong leader after he was declared the MVP just a couple days ago.  In a crucial Game 2, Rose dished out 10 assists to help get the rest of the Bulls going, even though he continued his struggles from the outside.  As long as Rose isn’t shooting well, turning into a distributor first should be his game plan.  While many scorers in the league don’t have that ability, Rose is a gifted passer who can find ways to gauge defenses even if he can’t hit a jump shot.  We’ll see if Rose is up for the challenge tonight as the Bulls tip-off with Atlanta in a crucial swing game.

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