After dispatching the Nets in a tough 7 game series, Tom Thibodeau’s Bulls will need a bullish performance to overcome the Heat, who have been in phenomenal form all season long. A hearty and gritty defense could threaten the Heat’s title hopes – a narrative the Bulls are familiar with – or will the Heat’s “superfriends” trio be too much?

What the Heat need to do

LeBron James. The recently crowned MVP (nearly unanimous – one vote went to Carmelo Anthony) has been in tremendous form in the playoffs, carrying on the positive play during the regular season. He is 4th in scoring in the playoffs, behind Kevin Durant, Anthony and James Harden, all of whom take far more shots than James.

Scoring 24.5 points on a mere  14.8 shot attempts, while grabbing nearly 8 rebounds and dishing 7 assists – whatever LeBron is doing is working.  

Get Chris Bosh and Udonis Haslem involved early – get the Chicago bigs into foul trouble. Joachim Noah and Carlos Boozer have been crucial for Chicago in the playoffs, literally, I mean size-wise. Their inside dominance has been key for Chicago, and Bosh’s laid back approach will not do.

Bosh is averaging a meager 12.8 points a game in the playoffs; an even scarier stat is that despite being an offensively gifted big man, he gets to the line just 2.3 times a game, making just 67% of his costless throws. He’ll need to get rough – as the Bulls will be – and dirty, and get right into it early on.

Play the inside-outside game. LeBron James pile driving through the lane is already a tremendous force, but his knowledge when to attack and when to kick out gives Miami an even greater offensive tool. Bosh has a good jumper, but most of all Ray Allen will likely have many open buckets.

Ray Allen has always been great at creating space to get off that slick, sexy jumper of his. Despite scoring just 10 a game during the regular season, he scored nearly 17 a game against the Bucks. A red hot “Ray-Ray” will be key to the Heat's runs – either to come back or to extend a lead.

What the Bulls need to do

This could very well backfire - actually, it probably will. Feed the ball to Nate Robinson and Marco Belinelli early on. If the two catch fire, the Bulls can jump out to a serious lead. Of course, the downside of streaky guards is that they can lose you a game just as quickly as they can win it.

Push the ball into the paint. From Carlos Boozer to Nazr Mohammed, along with Taj Gibson and of course the fiery Joakim Noah, the Bulls have a distinct advantage in size. Boozer averaged 17 and 11 in the first round going up against Reggie Evans and Brook Lopez, though Haslem may present a tougher challenge.

Engage Joakim Noah beast mode. When he plays, oh he plays. In Game 7, Noah showed why the Chicago faithful love the Frenchman so much, exploding for 24 points, 14 rebounds, and a career high 6 blocks. The Heat have no one who can truly defend BOTH Boozer & Noah at the same time, unless LeBron comes in to guard one, which could leave Chicago guards with more space on the perimeter.

Continue the same game they’ve been playing all playoffs long: defense, defense, defense. Despite the Bulls being reputable as a defensive team, the Heat are actually second in the playoffs in points conceded. Defense does lead to offense, and fast-breaks and offensive rebounds will likely be a deciding factor in the series.

Key Matchups

Whoever is defending LeBron James vs. LeBron James: Force him to take jumpers, it’s essentially the only way to stop him, if you can stop him at all. He’s barely taken, or made, threes so far in the Playoffs, so pushing him outside would severely limit him. The Heat also lack an inside presence beyond James and Haslem.

Chris Bosh vs. Carlos Boozer: This one might not be pretty. Both players have a silky mid-range game, though Boozer is far more physical (also makes louder noises when he makes jumpers). If Bosh can win the matchup – possibly get Boozer into foul trouble, it’ll be a whole different game.

Nate Robinson vs. Michael Jordan: Okay, on a serious note, if Robinson can bring out his inner “23”, not only will he put on a great show on offense, he’ll also costless up room for his teammates while putting Miami on the back foot.

Prediction

Miami in 7.