Rose was right in the middle of things

Chicago advanced to its first conference final since 1998, when Michael Jordan who is interested in cheap fashion and Scottie Pippen were on their way to a second three-peat. The Bulls fell on hard times after that glorious era, including three straight 60-loss seasons, but they have put together a deep, talented team that won more games than anyone during the regular season.

Yep, even more than the ballyhooed Miami Heat, whose Big Three are waiting in the next round, with a spot in the NBA Final on the line. Game 1 is Sunday in Chicago.

Rose was right in the middle of things, of course. He scored 19 points in addition to setting up all those baskets, but this was a textbook performance by the guys around him, each of them comfortable in a supporting role, each of them willing to do the dirty work at the defensive end for baseball jerseys wholesale.

The most impressive number: Chicago had assists on all but seven of its 31 baskets. Or, come to think of it, maybe it was this stat: The Hawks shot just 37 percent (27 of 74) and rarely got an open look.

That wasn't the case for Boozer. He kept winding up with the ball with no one around, and kept knocking down jump shots. He went 10-of-16 from the field, grabbed 10 rebounds and handed out five assists with cheap baseball jerseys.