Rethinking playoff experience

Is it really worth it to play for the playoffs? We all understand the ultimate goal is to win the Championship, but the reality in today's NBA is that only a handful of teams actually have a legitimate shot. So what are the rest of the teams playing for? Sure, there's always a chance, anything can happen, blah blah blah... but in a seven-game series, the better team always rises to the top.

So why should fans of those borderline playoff teams insist that making the playoffs is important, even though there's almost no chance of winning the whole thing?

Sure, there are positives, some quite obvious, to making the playoffs. But there are a number of negatives – or at least reasons to think twice about the postseason, especially with this particular Bulls team. The number one, or at least most-quoted, argument in favor of fighting to get seems to be “playoff experience.”

But what exactly is this experience? It’s talked about like some sort of magical rite of passage that the veteran players had to go through at some point. This star on their resumes automatically equates to higher price tag and is often a sought-after mark of distinction. But are a few extra games and a handful of practices really worth the accompanying merit? Should they automatically be considered a positive?

Can this magical "playoff experience" actually be a bad experience for a team? Looking at this particular Bulls team, there are a number of issues that stand out at first glance, and may not help this young team out in the long run.

First and foremost, the coaching situation is a mess. Actually, calling it a mess is an understatement. It’s completely FUBAR. Vinny Del Negro has proven time and again that he is not yet capable of running a team. Its not worth the time or space to list all the problems, but just do a quick bit of research if you don’t believe me. The general consensus is that he could be gone even before his first full year as coach is completed. With that assumption, is it worth it for a team full of young and developing players to spend additional time under his already-failed tutelage?

Will his system – assuming he actually has one – be run after he’s gone? Almost certainly not. Will the players learn anything new from him in a handful of extra practices? Given his track record, no. Would a brief and ultimately fluky playoff run save his job? Perhaps, which again, given his track record, is probably not a good thing.

If the point of playoff experience, especially for young players, is to help them further develop their games, I don’t see how a lame duck Del Negro can help that cause.

There’s also the issue of the physical toll the game takes on players, especially on those that play at a higher speed – i.e. Derrick Rose. Could a playoff series right now be ultimately the best thing for him? Maybe, but maybe not. Any fitness guru will say that proper rest periods are as important as the workout itself. Now these are professional athletes, so the same rules don’t apply as they would Joe the plumber, right? But is the potential benefit really worth the risk?

And then there’s the mental issue, which although I am in no way qualified will happily delve into.

At any level, losing leaves a bad taste in people’s mouths, and that can either be a good thing or a bad thing. If you come back working harder than ever to hopefully never taste it again, that’s a good thing. But if you experience a bit too much losing for your taste, you run the risk of getting used to it. Rather than upsetting someone, it starts to mean less, and eventually, dare I say feel normal. A locker room in which losing is commonplace is not one I’d like to utilize for developing my star player – or anyone else for that matter. What good is all the potential in the world if they don’t care if they win or lose?

So, someone please give me something good that will come out of getting blasted by the Celtics – or Cavs or Magic – in the first round of the playoffs?

All in all, the Bulls may in fact just be the exception, but they are quite an intriguing one to say the least.