There is lots of interesting stuff going on in Chicago sports right now. I figured I would take a look at all three teams currently in season.
I have really liked what I have seen from the Chicago Bulls all season, but especially in the past 3 weeks since Carlos Boozer has joined the team. With Boozer in the lineup the Bulls are 8-3, and are winning games by double digits, which is nice to see. Boozer has been a double-double machine as of late, averaging 18 points and 10 rebounds per night since coming back from injury. The bad news for the Bulls is that Joakim Noah is out for at least 8 weeks with a torn ligament in the thumb of his shooting hand. He was playing so well, and looked poised to make his first all-star game. Not only that, but he and Boozer were playing fantastic basketball alongside each other. Noah's outstanding defensive play gives Boozer more opportunities to bring down rebounds on the weak side, and Noah's ability to play pick and roll basketball also gives Boozer opportunities to score from the post offensively. They had won seven straight games, and then Noah goes down and the Bulls let up for one game against the Clippers. They did rebound tonight with a blowout win against the 76ers, and their schedule for the next 3-4 weeks is extremely favorable, so they should be able to continue winning games until Noah gets healthy. It's just a shame that he went down when the team looked poised to put together an unbelievable win streak.
The Blackhawks have been an up and down team this season, as they too have been bit by the injury bug. Kane and Hossa have not seen game action for 2-3 weeks, and it has hurt the Hawks. They can't seem to find any consistency for a solid length of time. They'll win 2, then lose 3, then win 2, then lose 2, etc. They recently defeated the Red Wings and Kings at home, so that is good. Corey Crawford has taken over the number one goalie spot, and deservedly so. Turco hasn't played anywhere near what he is capable of, and I wouldn't be surprised if the Hawks just went with Crawford for the rest of the season. Toews and Sharp have been great lately, Bryan Bickell and Troy Brouwer have increased their offensive production as well. They just aren't finding enough wins right now, and in a tough Western Conference that is so tightly packed, they need all the standings points they can get right now, while they play a heavy portion of their next 10-12 games at home. Hopefully Kane and Hossa get healthy within the next few days, and the Hawks can put together a nice win streak.
Finally, the Bears did what most analysts said wouldn't happen this year. They won the NFC North Division Championship, and secured a spot in the playoffs for the first time since 2006. At the beginning of the season I said it wouldn't shock me to see the Bears win 10-11 games, and I am glad they helped me out. The game against the Vikings was so much fun to watch, especially the Devin Hester punt return TD to break the return TD record. A 40-14 romp was exactly what this team needed to regain their confidence after being manhandled against the Patriots a week ago. I don't care what everybody thinks of him, I actually really like Jay Cutler as the quarterback for the Bears. He can make all of the throws, he is very accurate, he is athletic, and this season he has played great football compared to last season. He has four games this season of 3 touchdown passes or more, and hasn't played a terrible game since the Redskins game where he was picked off 4 times. Take away that game, and he has 20 TD passes, 9 interceptions. Those are very good numbers. The Bears' defense is one of the best in the league again this season, and with an improved offense in a conference where there are no guarantees, it wouldn't shock me to see the Bears playing deep into January. I am not predicting that they will be in the Super Bowl or anything like that, but it wouldn't shock me if they were in contention.
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