The Miami Heat and the Chicago Bulls are scheduled to open the 2013 NBA season on October 29.
The Miami Heat will be showing off their second consecutive championship rings to the home crowd and there isn’t a team in the league who would like to spoil the celebration more than the Chicago Bulls.
The two teams have built up a pretty interesting rivalry over the last two years. The Chicago Bulls were the team that ended the Miami Heat’s record breaking streak last year and, despite not having Derrick Rose on the roster, the Bulls were considered one of the Heat’s biggest obstacles during both of their championship runs.
Of course, without Rose to drive the offense, the Miami Heat have been able to conquer the Bulls when it mattered most.
Still, Chicago believes that they are the better team. And Derrick Rose, who is expected to play normal minutes this season, thinks that he is the best player in the NBA.
After the Heat won their second championship, Joakim Noah said: “At first I said I didn’t care, but I was lying to myself… It’s going to be extra motivation to work extra hard in the offseason and I feel like we’ll be the team that beats them next year… We don’t like them, they don’t like us.”
Noah isn’t saying anything new to NBA fans. I mean, remember this?
The Miami Heat’s second biggest game of the year will come on Christmas Day when the defending champions take on the Los Angeles Lakers.
What do you think about the Chicago Bulls / Miami Heat rivalry? Do you think a healthy Derrick Rose will make the Bulls contenders this year?